Trivia / Big Star

The band:

• Acclaimed Flop: Both #1 Record and Radio City received acclaim from critics when they were released despite poor sales.
• Colbert Bump: Received a boost when Alternative Rock bands like R.E.M. started citing them as an influence. They also got more attention when a cover of "In The Street" was used as the theme for That '70s Show.
• Creative Differences: The reason Chris Bell left.
• Creator Backlash: Alex Chilton seemed to regard Big Star as this, refusing to perform the band's songs at most of his solo gigs and not seeming enthusiastic when he did play with the reunited band.
• Creator Breakdown:
  • Andy Hummel's songs, "The India Song" and "Way Out West", were inspired by a real-life breakup he had with his girlfriend.
  • As the albums just kept bombing and bombing, this trope came more into play, culminating in Third/Sister Lovers.
• Creator Couple: The "Sister Lovers" part of the third album's name is a reference to the fact that Alex and Jody were dating two sisters, Lesa and Holliday Aldridge, while the album was being recorded, both of whom ended up performing backing vocals. Jody mentioned in later interviews that Lesa featured more heavily on the album's first incarnation, but Alex's relationship with her was rocky enough that he erased a lot of her contributions at one point.
• Dueling Works: In many ways they were competing with the Raspberries, who were similarly peddling a Power Pop sound that didn't try to hide its inspirations from The British Invasion. #1 Record was released around the time the Raspberries Signature Song "Go All the Way" was breaking into the Top 40. Thanks to having more of a Teen Idol-oriented image and a much more competent label (Capitol Records), the Raspberries won this particular battle at the time, though Big Star was the critical darling and eventually Vindicated by History (though in some ways the Raspberries have been as well).
• Executive Meddling: Since Big Star had basically broken up by that point, Third was supposed to be an Alex Chilton solo album, but the label put it out under the "Big Star" name. Also, we have no idea what the actual tracklist was supposed to be: both the 1978 release and the supplanting 1992 Rykodisc version with extra tracks are more guesses, educated or otherwise.
• Revival by Commercialization: A cover of "In the Street" was used as the Real Song Theme Tune for That '70s Show. In later years, the band would do the song in the same style as Cheap Trick's cover.
• Saved from Development Hell: Third/Sister Lovers was released three years after the band broke up.
• Screwed by the Network: Well, label. It's nice to be liked but better by far to be paid, and you can't get paid if your album isn't in stores.
• Short-Lived, Big Impact: The band only released two albums while they were together, yet just about every Alternative Rock band cites them as an influence.
• Similarly Named Works: Soft Machine also released an album called Third.
• Throw It In!: "Don't Lie to Me" and "She's a Mover" both start with Studio Chatter.
• Troubled Production: Third/Sister Lovers
• What Could Have Been: It's interesting to think what might have happened if Big Star did go on to become popular... It's Popular, Now It Sucks!, maybe?
• Writer Revolt: The witheringly sarcastic "Thank You Friends" is basically a huge "fuck you" to the label politics that had screwed up Chilton's career. Notably, Ardent founder John Fry commented that "Downs" sounded like a hit, so Chilton sabotaged it by replacing the rhythm track with a bouncing basketball, slurring the lyrics, and adding a steel drum to the track.

The Korean animation studio: