THE BIG STAR QUINTET CELEBRATES FIVE DECADES OF THE INFLUENTIAL BAND’S LEGACY
Featuring Big Star’s Jody Stephens, Jon Auer (Big Star/The Posies), Pat Sansone (Wilco), Chris Stamey (the dB’s), and John Stirratt (Wilco)
“A half-century later, the Memphis band’s sophomore album remains a bright, beautiful portrait of young,big emotions and the way they intersected with the joy of music – Paste Magazine (2024)
Memphis, TN (July 2025)—Five decades ago, Memphis power pop pioneers Big Star released two albums: No. 1 Record and Radio City. These genre-defining works went on to become cult classics, inspiring generations of fans through songs such as “In the Street,” “Thirteen,” “September Gurls,” “Back of a Car,” and “I’m in Love With a Girl.” To celebrate the albums’ enduring legacy, an all-star collective of musicians (led by the band’s sole surviving original member, Jody Stephens) will join together on September 5, 6 at the Bearsville Theater (Woodstock, NY) to perform many essential songs from Radio City and No. 1 Record, inducted this year into the Grammy Hall of Fame, and from the highly influential Third album.
Joining Stephens will be some of the band’s biggest fans who have long been associated with Big Star-related projects, including Jon Auer (The Posies), Pat Sansone and John Stirratt (Wilco), and Chris Stamey (The dB’s).
Heavily influenced by the British Invasion, yet undeniably original, Big Star (vocalist/guitarist/pianist Alex Chilton, vocalist/guitarist Chris Bell, bassist Andy Hummel, and drummer Jody Stephens) offered a fresh new sound when they emerged in the early ’70s. While power pop wouldn’t truly take off until later in the decade, the Memphis band set the tone with their infectious blend of jangly pop, driving guitars, sweet harmonies, and wistful melancholia. In 1971, Big Star made their debut with #1 Record, which featured such memorable numbers as “In the Street” (later made famous by Cheap Trick), “Thirteen” (“one of rock’s most beautiful celebrations of adolescence” — Rolling Stone, 2011), and “The Ballad of El Goodo.” (“The bridge (or middle eight, call it what you will) alone shows more talent and creativity than some bands’ entire back catalogues.” — The Guardian, 2011) While the album garnered high marks from critics, however, it failed to make a commercial splash.
In the last two decades, Big Star has finally been given their due, honored with a host of glowing retrospectives, as well as a tribute record (Big Star Small World, 2006), a documentary (2012’s Nothing Can Hurt Me), and the 2016 concert film and live album, Thank You, Friends: Big Star’s Third Live…And More. The acclaimed release, which is available to view on Amazon Prime, captures the popular touring live show, “Big Star’s Third,” in which an all-star roster of guest vocalists and musicians join a core group (including Stephens, Mike Mills, Auer, Sansone, and Stamey) to perform Third/Sister Lovers, plus selections from #1 Record and Radio City. Filmed at a concert in Glendale, CA, Thank You, Friends features a cross-generational lineup of talent, including Jeff Tweedy (Wilco), Ira Kaplan (Yo La Tengo), Robyn Hitchcock, Dan Wilson, original arranger Carl Marsh, and San Francisco’s Kronos Quartet.
