It has been great fun getting to know the music of Big Star over the last few months. We just had another performance of our live fully orchestrated version the Big Star’s Third on Tuesday at Historic Playmakers Theater on the campus of UNC – Chapel Hill. It was our last warm up for our show in New York in March, and it went very well. I had been aware of the fact that Alex Chilton was a very talented song writer, but it has been very enlightening to get to the roots of his output and inspiration by digging into the Big Star part of his writing.
Sure the NY show will feature stars, including Jody Stephens, an original member of Big Star, Mike Mills of REM, and of course Chris Stamey, but I think this show will really serve as a demonstration of the high level of musical skill and talent that exists in Raleigh, NC and the surrounding areas. Much of this show rests on the backs of a very talented and committed group of local NC musicians who, with the help of Chris Stamey have created a one of a kind opportunity to hear this music. These guys are stars-in-waiting, and it has been a pleasure to perform with them.
I’ll be playing various percussion on the show. If you’re in the city on March 26th, come check it out. It’s a rare opportunity to see a rock show with 25 or 30 people on stage contributing, and its going to be filmed for a documentary so maybe you’ll end up on camera!
Here are some links for more info: