One thing the break I took a few months ago did for me was to reignite my love for Big Star. When I heard The Ballad of El Goodo on my “Break” post I reached for their albums again. This song is a short ballad by Alex Chilton on their second album Radio City. They had songs that were as good as The Beatles or The Kinks but just as not widely known.
When they started this album, a key member quit: Chris Bell. He wrote half of the debut album #1 Record. The failure of the first album was the key. Bell was a sensitive guy and took it hard. The problem was Stax Records who were going through financial hardships at the time.
When the record was played on the radio it got a huge popular response but when people went to the record stores…there was no album. Stax had a huge problem with distribution at the time. Plus…they didn’t know how to promote a power pop band. In my opinion, if they had been on Capitol or WB they probably would have succeeded. The debut album is about as perfect of a power pop album as you can get.
Radio City is a little edgier and some fans like it more than #1 Record. They decided to stay together with the three of them…Alex Chilton, Jody Stephens, and Alex Hummel. Chilton wrote this touching short acoustic song. It’s one of the most popular songs on the album. On Spotify, it’s second only to September Gurls on times being played with 5,544,493.
It’s a sweet short song that sticks with me.
A rare live version from 1974
I’m In Love With A Girl
I’m in love with a girlFinest girl in the worldI didn’t know I could feel this way
Think about her all the timeAlways on my mindI didn’t know about love
All that a man should do is true-ooh-oohAll that a man should do is true-ooh-ooh
I’m in love with a girlFinest girl in the worldI didn’t know this could happen to me
…
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Nice post 🎸🎸
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That sucks as who knows how many bands got shafted by shitty distribution in their careers.
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Atlantic owned the masters to the albums they distributed, leading to limited profits for Stax.
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Yes…it was a mess for Stax.
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That’s a great song and one wonders how things could have been different based on the issues you raised.
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Thanks for listening Randy.
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I remember that song! For those of us who have been married (me) or are still married & are of a certain age we’ve had & or still have that feeling…nice song.
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Well that is cool! You probably will be one of the few who knew it.
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they definitely made their mark with the next generation of American rockers
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A lovely little ditty
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Fun fact: when I was looking up the meaning of my name, I saw Big Star had a song called “O, Dana.” It’s about a girl who says crazy things off the top of her head, but I’m pretty sure that wasn’t me, although that was in the 70s!
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You never know Dana! Alex could have spied on you lol.
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🫣!
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Nothing like hooking up with a favorite band. Always makes us feel something usually good. Ive been hooking into a few of these “Love Songs” From Humble Pie hard rock to Big Star soft side. I like it.
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I know Big Star thanks to you, Max, and I’ve yet to hear a song they did that sucks. Given their great music, it’s hard to believe they never gained the traction they deserved. The fact Stax handled distribution of their first two albums still remains puzzling to me!
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I think Stax was going downhill at the time and unfortunately….they were caught up in it.
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Yep, you’re right. Stax had unfavorable distribution deals with Atlantic Records and then CBS Records, which eventually led to insolvency and shut-down in late 1975.
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They had a deal with Columbia to distribute for Stax and Clive Davis loved Big Star…but he got fired right before it was released.
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Through my influence my son used this as his wedding song.
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That is a great story!
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I really love this song. Big Star influenced so many Indie bands.
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