Featuring Big Star’s Jody Stephens, Mike Mills (R.E.M.), Chris Stamey (the dB’s), Jon Auer (Big Star/The Posies), and Pat Sansone (Wilco)
After many years celebrating the music of Big Star via the collective known as Big Star’s Third, Jody Stephens (the last surviving member of the original Big Star lineup) had an idea.
“I truly loved touring the world and performing Big Star’s Third with a core group, a variety of special guests, and a chamber orchestra playing the beautiful orchestrations created by Carl Marsh and Chris Stamey. But when the idea of celebrating the 50th anniversary of #1 Record came up, it was time to pare the production down to a five- piece rock band. So I called a few close and like-spirited musical friends.”
Enter some of the legendary group’s biggest fans, who have long been associated with Big Star and related projects. The band now includes Mike Mills (R.E.M.), Jon Auer (The Posies), Pat Sansone (Wilco), Chris Stamey (The dB’s) and Stephens. Dubbing themselves the Big Star Quintet, it’s a lineup that is both personal and close in spirit to #1 Record and Radio City.
When the newly-minted Quintet gathered at R.E.M.’s rehearsal spot in November of 2022 to commune with the music and workshop as a five-piece for the first time, none of them could have foreseen the rapturous receptions they would receive over the next few years: sold-out shows in the US, playing abroad (including two tours of Spain), both #1 Record and Radio City 50th-anniversary tours, and stellar reviews of their live shows in Uncut, The San Francisco Gate, and beyond.
To call the members of the Quintet versatile would be something of an understatement. All five take turns singing lead and harmony vocals and deftly fill the different musical chairs required to accurately perform the multi-faceted Big Star catalog. Stephens shines just as brightly singing at the front of the stage on numbers like “Thirteen,” “Blue Moon,” and “Way Out West” as he does propelling the group behind the drum kit with visceral grace.
Now a well-oiled and well-traveled outfit, the Quintet’s unabashedly high-energy band vibe and mutual appreciation on stage is the way to experience the essence of Big Star’s music live. That said, it’s more than just the songs and sounds that the five musicians share in common.
“Playing Big Star’s music with Mike, Pat, Jon, and Chris is a joy,” says Stephens. “We travel together as friends and have so much fun with this music and with our audiences.
ABOUT THE BIG STAR QUINTET LIVE:
“The enthusiasm of the five-piece was evident [at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass] in [San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park] as they seamlessly swapped instruments and vocal duties…at the conclusion of each song, the group grinned at one another like they shared a secret.”—The San Francisco Gate
“The band treat the material with an enthused respect, like kids with golden tickets to a musical chocolate factory…the four-part harmonies gel like family, as if from a lifetime’s practice.”—Uncut
