Music Blog

Five years ago this summer, Alex Chilton went missing for several days following Hurricane Katrina. For some tense moments, it appeared that the storm that took so much from so many had also robbed us of one of the iconic, if under-appreciated, musicians of our age. When he emerged unscathed, it only seemed right to those of us who identified as fans of his music-- certainly the man behind all-timers like "September Gurls," and "Thirteen," among many others, couldn't be taken so easily. In the aftermath, Big Star was active again, even releasing an album of new material that same year (In Space) with original members Chilton and Jody Stephens buoyed by the addition of Posies Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow, and touring into this year.

Alex Chilton died Wednesday at the age of 59 in New Orleans, where he had been preparing to play with Big Star this Saturday at SXSW in Austin. Regarded most certainly as an influential, even iconic, songwriter, it's interesting to trace his trajectory and influence through the years. From the beyond-his-years-sounding 16 year-old that fronted The Box Tops, most notably on their classic hit "The Letter," to his 1970's work with Big Star and subsequent solo career, to The Replacements name-bearing homage to him in the late '80's, Chilton's is a direct influence that can be seen in the likes of R.E.M., Matthew Sweet, The Posies, Teenage Fanclub, Yo La Tengo, and scores of others.

As untimely as it is, it's also in a way fitting that his death comes during SXSW-- there have already been a number of impromptu tributes paid in Austin over the past 24 hours and that will no doubt continue over the next four days or so. In a sense, it'll be Alex Chilton's festival.

We remember Chilton today on the stream, and with this exclusive version of one of his songs from London-based band The Clientele. They recently dropped by our studios for a session we'll be hearing in its entirety in a couple of weeks and offered up this version of Big Star's "Nightime." Compare to the original here.

Audio Files

Tagged: mp3