"Rock musician’s death felt in Memphis and on Hill
WASHINGTON — As speeches in Congress go, this one was remarkably brief — and poignant.
Democratic Representative Steve Cohen of Tennessee took to the floor Thursday morning to offer a statement on the passing of rock musician and singer Alex Chilton, who died of an apparent heart attack Wednesday in New Orleans at 59. The tribute, posted on YouTube, was tweeted and posted on Facebook by fans, with many remarking on how touching and appropriate the eulogy was.
Just under two minutes long, Cohen’s off-the-cuff remarks captured the independent spirit and artistic achievements of the musician who, though not especially well known, was highly regarded and influential. Cohen quoted lyrics from “The Letter,’’ a song that a 16-year-old Chilton and his band the Box Tops took to the top of the charts in 1967. He also commented on the mark Chilton, with his band Big Star, made on such groups as REM and the Replacements, and mentioned the singer’s fiery iconoclasm.
“He never cared for the critics, he didn’t have that much acclaim [with] record sales, but he did with others.’’
Then he must have been good.
Cohen ended his Chilton tribute with this: “He is an embodiment of Memphis music: hard, different, independent, brilliant, beautiful. We’re lucky he came our way.’’
--more--"Normally I would get ticked off at Congress taking time for this; however, we are talking a death here. I think the celebration of life and the remembrance of those who are gone is important. Too bad they start and fund so many wars down there.
"Alex Chilton, 59, singer with the Box Tops, Big Star" by Chris Talbott, Associated Press | March 19, 2010
Alex Chilton, the singer and guitarist who had a number one hit as a gravel-voiced teen with “The Letter’’ and went on to influence a generation of musicians through his work with Big Star, died Wednesday in New Orleans. He was 59.
The Memphis native died at a hospital after experiencing what appeared to be heart problems, said his longtime friend John Fry. Mr. Chilton had his first taste of fame with the Box Tops, the band he and his friends started in Memphis. He was 16 but sounded much older when “The Letter,’’ which opens with the lines “Gimme a ticket for an aeroplane. Ain’t got time to take a fast train. . .’’ hit the top of the charts in 1967.
Hey, I'VE HEARD THAT SONG!!!
Their other hits were “Soul Deep’’ and “Cry Like a Baby.’’
But Mr. Chilton soon realized he did not enjoy playing it straight, said Chips Moman, then his producer.
“He wanted to do his own thing,’’ Moman said in an interview yesterday. “He didn’t want to do those kinds of songs we were doing. Sometimes that’s more powerful than the money you receive for a hit record.’’
It was Mr. Chilton’s work with a second Memphis band, Big Star, in the early 1970s that cemented his legacy as a pioneering voice for a generation looking for something real in the glossy world of pop music. The band was never a commercial success, but R.E.M. counted Mr. Chilton as an influence, the Replacements name-checked him with their 1987 song “Alex Chilton,’’ and his band still provides a template for musicians.
“In my opinion, Alex was the most talented triple threat musician out of Memphis, and that’s saying a ton,’’ Paul Westerberg, the former Replacements frontman, said in an e-mail. “His versatility at soulful singing, pop rock songwriting, master of the folk idiom, and his delving into the avant garde, goes without equal. He was also a hell of a guitar player and a great guy.’’
How come I was brainwashed into believing it is all Grand Old Opry and country music down there?
Mr. Chilton’s influence was widely felt in the 1980s and 1990s, when a generation of listeners looked to songs like “Thirteen,’’ “I’m in Love With a Girl,’’ and “In the Street’’ (widely known as the theme song for “That ‘70s Show’’) because they captured teen angst and relayed sometimes-dark emotions that were universal....
Mr. Chilton had been scheduled to perform with Big Star on Saturday in Austin, Texas.
Wow, he was still going.
“Alex Chilton always messed with your head, charming and amazing you while doing so. His gift for melody was second to none, yet he frequently seemed in disdain of that gift,’’ the festival’s creative director, Brent Gulke, said in an e-mail.
Sadness over Mr. Chilton’s passing was felt all the way to Capitol Hill, where US Representative Steve Cohen of Memphis said in the House: “He did it his own way, independent, iconoclastic, innovative. . . . He is the embodiment of Memphis music. Hard, different, independent, brilliant, beautiful. We’re lucky he came our way.’’
*****Survivors include his wife, Laura.
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