After two stunning albums, #1 Record (1972) and Radio City (1974), Big Star found itself on the brink of dissolution. The lack of commercial success contributed to the departure of founding members Andy Hummel and Chris Bell, leaving Alex Chilton and Jody Stephens as the band’s core. It would almost certainly send the Memphis group off the edge of a cliff.
Tracking for Third/Sister Lovers began in September 1974 at Ardent Studios in Memphis, with Alex Chilton and Jody Stephens taking creative control. Stephens later described the recording process as deeply personal for Chilton, remarking, “To a great extent, it is an Alex solo record ... It’s Alex’s focus, it’s his emotional state of being, but I brought in the string section for the one song I wrote...” (quoted in Bruce Eaton’s Big Star’s Radio City). This collaboration with Memphis musicians and producer Jim Dickinson resulted in an album far removed from Big Star’s earlier power-pop sound.
As Eaton notes further in the book, the recording featured “a large and revolving cast of Memphis musicians” working on what would become “a batch of starkly personal, often experimental, and by turns beautiful and haunting songs.” The guitars of Radio City were replaced by fragmented arrangements, creating a fractured and mesmerising soundscape.
The album opens with the frenetic energy of 'Kizza Me', with Chilton urgently proclaiming, “I want to feel you deep inside.” This sets the stage for an emotionally raw record. The spiritual affirmation of ‘Thank You Friends’ is truly uplifting with female Memphis backing vocals driving the soul of Chilton’s communiqué of love and gratitude. But what comes next is a confounding track called ‘Big Black Car’. It could easily find a home on Twin Peaks or a David Lynch movie. Its dreamy guitar straddles Chilton’s wistful vocal as he travels through life in his “big black car”.
'Jesus Christ' starts off as a bizarre circus-like ditty that quickly transforms into glorious praise and worship, which is totally heartfelt and unsarcastic. The majesty of kettle drums and Memphis horns takes it to another realm. Lou Reed’s “Femme Fatale” displays Chilton’s fragile vocals as it seamlessly breezes through the corridors of the mind of its author, peering through each room while Chilton’s jagged guitar chimes in sparingly. His guitar work is very understated but tastefully punches in and out. The guitar becomes part of the song’s allure and, along with the string section, provides the uneasy elements throughout the album that make it work.
Chilton’s lyrics highlight deep depression and isolation, peppered with intermittent optimism and humour. Songs such as “Holocaust” and “Kanga Roo” demonstrate experimental leanings, not unlike The Velvet Underground, whilst Blue Moon and Take Care are the ballads that provide the musical cartilage, keeping the listener’s heart affected.
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Ardent issued white-label test pressings for the album in 1975, but financial issues, lack of commercial interest, and waning enthusiasm from singer Alex Chilton and drummer Jody Stephens in completing the record meant the album was never properly finished or released at the time of its recording. It was finally given a release in 1978 by a now-defunct New Jersey sub-label of Passport Records called PVC Records. The confusion surrounding the release of this album meant that, to this day, there has never been a definitive version agreed upon by the band. Over the years, multiple versions have been made available, including a 1992 CD release on Rykodisc, assembled with Jim Dickinson. The 1992 release most closely represents the original planned song order and brings to the fore the music’s intended thrust, warts and all.
In 2016, Omnivore Recordings released the Complete Third box set, which was a three-disc definitive selection of the album. It included Alex Chilton’s demos, rough mixes by producer Jim Dickinson and engineer John Fry, and the final master, which was rejected by various record companies. The release was sequenced in chronological order and is a fitting tribute to a masterpiece that was never fully realized in the eyes of its creators.
Third / Sister Lovers by Big Star was ranked # 1 in the Top 30 “Heartbreak” albums of all time by NME. The album was also listed at # 31 on NME’s“Darkest Albums Ever: 50 of the Best.” Its influence resonated many years after its release, and new versions of the songs were later recorded by This Mortal Coil, Jeff Buckley, Rainy Day (the Paisley Underground all-star group), Placebo, The Monkees, The Afghan Whigs, and Teenage Fanclub.
Chilton and Stephens were not afraid to wear their influences on their sleeves, but more than that, they made them their own. The Kinks’ 'Till the End of the Day' was an unexpected bonus on the reissue, and Nat King Cole’s 'Nature Boy' was haunting. The deeply disturbing 'Dream Lover' was also added as one of the bonus tracks. The song is a stark reminder of the creative genius of Alex Chilton, who truly broke new ground in music.
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