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February 14, 2022 11:29 AM   Subscribe

I obviously know about The Bangles, and I know about Yo La Tengo, but what are your favorite Big Star cover songs?
posted by 1970s Antihero to Media & Arts (13 answers total) 10 users marked this as a favorite
 
A little too obvious? But Cheap Trick's cover of In the Street (for That 70s Show) is fun.
posted by General Malaise at 11:34 AM on February 14, 2022


Not strictly speaking Big Star, but the cover of Chris Bell's You and Your Sister by This Mortal Coil (in this instance Kim Deal & Tanya Donnelly) is a lovely thing.
posted by misteraitch at 11:38 AM on February 14, 2022 [1 favorite]


This sent me down a little rabbit hole of cover song forums I haven't been in for ages. I found there this lovely video of Nakia (new to me; apparently he was on The Voice a year later) doing Thirteen live at SXSW.
posted by knile at 11:38 AM on February 14, 2022


Hole - Thirteen this is a Courtney Love [channeling Stevie Nicks] solo version, but I'm pretty sure they had it on a CD single back in the day.

Loud Family - Back of a Car
posted by The_Vegetables at 11:42 AM on February 14, 2022 [1 favorite]


I've always liked Evan Dando's cover of The Battle of El Goodo from the Empire Records soundtrack.

There was also the tribute album Big Star, Small World which was shelved for a long time then finally released in 2006 featuring covers by the Afghan Whigs, Whiskeytown, Wilco, Juliana Hatfield, and others that you may give a few spins. I haven't heard it in ages, so I don't remember any particular favorites myself.
posted by Ufez Jones at 11:43 AM on February 14, 2022 [1 favorite]


elliott smith covered 'thirteen' very regularly at live shows. there was a posthumously released studio version. he did a couple others live as well (nighttime, stroke it noel) that are on youtube.
posted by noloveforned at 11:54 AM on February 14, 2022 [4 favorites]


From the tribute album Ufez Jones referenced, I like Matthew Sweet's straightforward cover of The Ballad of El Goodo.

He and Susanna Hoffs cover "Back of a Car" on the second volume of their Under the Covers series. (Here's a live acoustic version of that one.)
posted by AgentRocket at 11:58 AM on February 14, 2022 [1 favorite]


Best answer: Hooray for the Riff Raff/Waxahatchee - Thirteen

Souvlaki - Take Care

Jeff Buckley Kanga Roo

Lucero - I'm in Love with a Girl

The Lovely Sparrows - Take Care

Travis - Thirteen

Scarlett Johansen (with Pete Yorn) doing Chris Bell's I am the Cosmos

Dum Dum Girls - September Gurls

Sondre Leche - Take Care

Julien Baker - Thirteen

The Lemonheads - Mod Lang

Bubblegum Lemonade - Holocaust

Paranoid Park - Kanga Roo

The Jayhawks - I Am the Cosmos

this Alex Chilton tribute is heavy on Big Star.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:25 PM on February 14, 2022 [5 favorites]


¿Quieres bailar?

Two Spanish language covers of "Stroke It Noel": IVI POP and Kiev Cuando Nieva
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:24 PM on February 14, 2022


I know your post title is a reference to the Replacements' "Alex Chilton," but the Shit, Shower, and Shave mixtape has them doing a cover of "September Gurls."
posted by Leontine at 2:15 PM on February 14, 2022


Recently released Big Star tribute album, various artists
posted by music for skeletons at 2:53 PM on February 14, 2022


I adore the Garbage version of 13.
posted by Candleman at 6:36 PM on February 14, 2022


Here's The Potential Lunatics covering Thirteen. The singer was actually 13 at the time she recorded it.
posted by platinum at 10:01 PM on February 14, 2022


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