Zack: I’ve wanted to listen to this album forever
now. I kept nominating it like every time it was time to pick a new batch, and
it always got looked over. Honestly, I couldn’t think of a single Big Star song
I’d ever heard, and all I’d ever read about the band or this album was that it
was the epitome of critical darling, commercial failure. It gave it an air of
mystery. Now that I’ve actually listened to it, I have to say that it didn’t
quite live up to my lofty expectations. I was really expecting to be blown
away, but instead I got a very consistent, very enjoyable album. My life
remains unchanged. But it was definitely an album that I want to listen to a
few more times, and I’m hopeful that more realistic expectations for a second
go around will help.
Favorite Tracks: The Ballad of El Gordo; Watch the Sunrise;
My Life is Right
Emily: I think the reason I apparently passed over Big Star so many times is because I had absolutely no idea who they were. Zack put them in the "classic rock" genre, but how could they be classic if I didn't even know their name? Turns out their cult following and critical acclaim, as well as emergence in the '60s and '70s, rightfully places them in the category of classic rock. That, and their power-pop-rock stylings that Wikipedia describes as drawing "on the vocal harmonies of The Beatles, as well as the swaggering rhythms of The Rolling Stones and the jangling guitars of The Byrds," which is a super-accurate description if you ask me. This album didn't really do anything new, but it definitely did it well. Plus, In the Street was later covered by Cheap Trick and used as the That '70s Show theme song. As That '70s Show is both one of my favorite sitcoms and favorite sitcom theme songs, that's totally a plus in my book for Big Star.
Favorite Tracks: In the Street; Watch the Sunrise; When My Baby's Beside Me
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