| "September Gurls" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Big Star | ||||
| from the album Radio City | ||||
| Released | August 1974 [1] | |||
| Recorded | 1973 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:41 | |||
| Label | Ardent | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Alex Chilton | |||
| Producer(s) | John Fry and Big Star | |||
| Big Star singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"September Gurls" is a song written by Alex Chilton that was first released by Big Star on their second studio album Radio City in 1974. It was also released as a single. [5] The song was covered by the Bangles in 1986, and by other bands.
The song was named in tribute to the Beach Boys' "California Girls". [6] It was inspired by three of the women in Chilton's life who he was thinking about at the time, including his ex-wife, having birthdays in September. [6] According to Big Star bassist Andy Hummel, Chilton "was going through a lot of different girls that he was having relationships with, kind of simultaneously, and a lot of what's in those songs [including "September Gurls"] is him really just telling of his experiences with them and how he felt about them." [6]
Producer John Fry recorded "September Gurls" on a six-track recording set. [7] The instrumentation includes rhythm guitar, bass guitar and drums, with some guitar fills and a guitar solo on a mando-guitar. [7]
While "September Gurls" was never a big seller, it is considered a classic song by publications such as Rolling Stone and Allmusic, as well as by music journalist John M. Borack. [8] [9] [10] Borack wrote:
"September Gurls" was and is the sine qua non of power pop, a glorious glittering jewel with every facet cut and shined to absolute perfection. While the Raspberries' "Go All the Way" provides a definitive encapsulation of what power pop is, "September Gurls" goes even further, not so much as the embodiment of a genre, but as a peerless, aching distillation of love and longing. "September Gurls" may not actually be the greatest song ever recorded, but for the duration of its 2:47 running time, you can be forgiven for believing it is. [10]
The track was rated #180 by Rolling Stone in the magazine's top 500 songs of all time, and is described as a "power pop classic". [8]
In his contemporary review of Radio City, Rolling Stone critic Ken Barnes described the song as "a virtually perfect pop number." [11] In another contemporary review of Radio City, The Sun critic Daniel Cotter described it as an "irresistible cut." [12] The Commercial Appeal critic Walter Dawson considered it one of the "better cuts" on the album and particularly praised Jody Stephens' drumming. [13] The Sacramento Bee critic Gene Sculatti described it as being "achingly plaintive" and called it "the very essence of purest American pop, distilled of sentiments and riffs that could only have sprung from stateside music." [14]
Jason Ankeny of Allmusic described the song as "sweetly gorgeous sound that's both familiar and novel; poignantly ragged and breathlessly reckless..." and says it "reveals a surprising tenderness, tempering its venom with achingly lovely vocals and sun-kissed harmonies". [9]
Chilton biographer Holly George-Warren called the song a "pop masterpiece" and "a three minute burst of euphoric, chiming guitars, kicked off with the mando-guitar, accompanied by yearning vocals singing lyrics both heartfelt and snide: 'I love you, well, nevermind / I've been crying all the time.'" [6]
Classic Rock History critic Brian Kachejian rated it as Big Star's best song, saying that "The song's swing and swaying groove sounds so good and stands as that perfect late summer or early fall song" and that "It’s one of those songs you can’t get out of your head." [15] Novelist Michael Chabon called the song "the pocket history of power pop" and claims that it is "the greatest number-one song that never charted". [16] Far Out rated it as the 89th most underrated song of the 1970s, saying that it "bristles with much of the same simultaneous melodic pleasantries and yet paradoxical cutting edge that the Fab Four propagated before them." [17]
Chilton was less kind describing the song, saying:
The musical structure's fine, it's the lyrics that were the odd bit for me at that time. "September Gurls" may be one of the more coherent things that I managed to produce in that time but if I were more confident in writing lyrics I probably would have done something else. It's not a song that really grabs me to this day. The musical structure grabs me but the overall song doesn't. [7]
The Bangles released a cover of this song on their 1986 album Different Light . [18] Kachejian called their version "great'. [15] Other bands who have recorded the song include Superdrag [19] and The Searchers. [20]
The title of Katy Perry's 2010 number one hit "California Gurls" was spelled thus as a tribute to Chilton and Big Star. Perry's manager is a fan of the band, and asked her to spell "girls" with a "u". [21]
Big Star was an American rock band formed in Memphis, Tennessee in 1971 by Alex Chilton, Chris Bell, Jody Stephens (drums), and Andy Hummel (bass). They have been described as the "quintessential American power pop band", and "one of the most mythic and influential cult acts in all of rock & roll". In its first era, the band's musical style drew influence from 1960s pop acts such as the Beatles and the Byrds, producing a style that foreshadowed the alternative rock of the 1980s and 1990s. Before they broke up, Big Star created a "seminal body of work that never stopped inspiring succeeding generations" according to Rolling Stone. Three of Big Star's studio albums are included in the Rolling Stone list of the Top 500 Albums of All-Time.
Power pop is a subgenre of rock music and form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, and cheerful-sounding music underpinned by a sense of yearning, longing, despair, or self-empowerment. The sound is primarily rooted in pop and rock traditions of the early-to-mid 1960s, although some artists have occasionally drawn from later styles such as punk, new wave, glam rock, pub rock, college rock, and neo-psychedelia.
Radio City is the second studio album by the American rock group Big Star. Released February 20, 1974, Radio City was recorded during 1973 at Memphis' Ardent Studios. Though not a commercial success at the time, it is now recognized as a milestone album in the history of power pop music. Critically acclaimed upon its release, the record sold poorly, partly due to a lack of promotion and the distribution problems of the band's struggling record label, Ardent Records. The album included "September Gurls" and "Back of a Car", which remain among the most famous Big Star songs; both the Searchers and the Bangles have covered "September Gurls".
"Peace of Mind" is a song by American rock band Boston, written by Tom Scholz. It was on their 1976 self-titled debut, and was released the next year as the third and final single from the album. It peaked at number 38 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in 1977, as well as number 33 on the Cash Box Top 100. It received substantial radio airplay, both upon the initial release of the Boston album and subsequently, and has been described as a "rock-radio staple".
"Smokin'" is a song by American rock band Boston, released from the band's debut album Boston (1976) as the B-side to the band's first single, "More Than a Feeling". "Smokin'" was written by the band leader, guitarist and main songwriter Tom Scholz and lead vocalist Brad Delp.
#1 Record is the debut album by the American rock band Big Star. It was released on April 24, 1972, by Memphis-based Ardent Records.
Starting Over is the fourth and final studio album by the 1970s power pop band Raspberries. It peaked at #143 on the Billboard pop album chart in 1974. Rolling Stone named it its rock record album of the year for 1974. The LP generated the #18 Billboard pop single "Overnight Sensation ", while a second single, "Cruisin' Music", did not chart. This was the first album by the Raspberries to feature songs with profanity. Those songs were "Starting Over", which featured the word "fucking" once, and the song "Party’s Over", which featured the word "shit" twice.
"For My Lady" is a song written by Ray Thomas that was released on the Moody Blues 1972 album Seventh Sojourn. It was also released as the B-side to the single "I'm Just a Singer ".
"Dream Police" is a song written by Rick Nielsen and originally released in 1979 by the American rock band Cheap Trick. It is the first track on the group's album of the same name. The single peaked at #26 on the Billboard Hot 100. Nielsen has stated that the song "is an attempt to take a heavy thought - a quick bit of REM snatched right before waking up - and put into a pop format." He also stated that "the song was about Big Brother watching you."
"Thirteen" is a song by the American rock band Big Star. Rolling Stone describes it "one of rock's most beautiful celebrations of adolescence", and rated it #396 on their list of the 500 greatest songs of all time. It was written by Alex Chilton and Chris Bell.
"Go All the Way" is a song written by Eric Carmen of American rock group the Raspberries, from their 1972 self-titled debut album. Released as a single in July 1972, the song reached the Top 5 on three principal US charts: number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 4 on Cashbox, and number 3 on Record World. The single sold more than 1.3 million copies, earning the band their only certified Gold Record. It was their second single release and their biggest US hit.
"Rock & Roll Band" is a song by American rock band Boston written by main songwriter and guitarist Tom Scholz and helped out by lead vocalist Brad Delp. The song appears on the band's 1976 self-titled debut. It is one of many songs Scholz worked on in his basement in 1974 and 1975 before Boston got its record contract, five of which eventually appeared on the Boston album. The "Rock and Roll Band" demo was finished in 1974, along with three of the six. However, Scholz had begun writing the song years earlier, in the early 1970s. The drum parts of this and other early Boston songs were developed by Jim Masdea, but this is the only song on the Boston album on which Masdea plays drums. Scholz plays clavinet and all the guitar parts, including bass guitar, and Brad Delp sings vocals. Boston consistently opened with "Rock and Roll Band" while playing at live concerts.
"Candy-O" is a song by the American rock band the Cars, the title track of their 1979 album Candy-O. Written by Ric Ocasek, the song was not based on a real person. The song features a prominent guitar solo by Elliot Easton and lead vocals by bassist Benjamin Orr.
"She's Tight" is a song by the American rock band Cheap Trick, which was released in 1982 as the third single from their studio album One on One. It was written by guitarist Rick Nielsen and produced by Roy Thomas Baker. It reached No. 65 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart.
"Let's Pretend" is a song by Raspberries, released in March 1973 as the second single from their second LP, Fresh. It was written by band leader Eric Carmen, who also provided the lead vocals.
"Overnight Sensation (Hit Record)" is a hit single by Raspberries, released in September 1974, on the Capitol label. It was written by band leader Eric Carmen, who also provided the lead vocals. It was the first single release from their fourth and final LP, Starting Over.
"Tonight" is a song by Raspberries, released in August 1973. It was written by band leader Eric Carmen, who also provided the lead vocals. The song was the first of three single releases from their third LP, Side 3.
"O My Soul" is a song credited to Alex Chilton that was first released by Big Star on their 1974 album Radio City. Chris Bell contributed to the lyrics. The song was also released as a single.
"Back of a Car" is a song credited to Alex Chilton and Andy Hummel that was first released by Big Star on their 1974 album Radio City. According to Hummel, Chris Bell contributed to writing the song as well.
"I'm in Love with a Girl" is a song written by Alex Chilton that was first released by Big Star as the last song on their 1974 album Radio City. It was also released along with another short song, "Morpho Too", as the B-side of the lead single from Radio City, "O My Soul".