ALBUM: High Priest (1987)
MV C Rating: 3.5/ $$$
Boy wonder vocalist out of the chute at the speed of sound.
Sweet 16 and burning white soul-boy vocals with the Box Tops.
Gimme a ticket for an aeroplane
Ain’t got time to take a fast train
Lonely days are gone, I’m a-goin’ home
My baby, just-a wrote me a letter
Killer opening. What’s the encore?
Alex Chilton was going to be a Big Star.
He was, and he wasn’t. The star fell without anyone seeing it.
Oh, but a few did. An influential few remembered the shooting star.
A song by one of the world’s coolest bands, The Replacements, was titled Alex Chilton. REM declared him a divine inspiration.
Big Star had some big expectations. How could their three albums, or just one of them not set the world on fire.
After that didn’t play out, Chilton did something many would do. Screw it. I’ll do what I want, start an indie career where you put out albums like this one where songs like Volare — are you kidding me?– become part of the buoyant fun. Toss off a Carole King song here, an obscure instrumental, and not so subtle (or sexy) invitation to get naughty.
All in fun. And it was, sort of. Sad, too.
Chilton died at 59 in 2010.
Counting down my 678 vinyl records before I die of brain disease.