Alex Chilton was 16 in 1967 when he rasped his way through “The Letter,” a soulfully imagined piece of garage rock candy that became a number one hit for The Box Tops. In 1970 Chilton, Jody Stephens, Andy Hummel and Chris “I Am the Cosmos” Bell set a new standard for power pop when they started playing together as Big Star. He recorded several solo albums including A Man Called Destruction and the Jim Dickinson-produced Like Flies on Sherbert.
Chilton recorded early singles for The Cramps at Ardent Studio in Memphis. He recorded their first LP Songs The Lord Taught Us at Sam Phillips’ Phillips Recording Studio.
The Replacements song “Alex Chilton” from the Jim Dickinson produced Pleased to Meet Me is an homage to its namesake who plays guitar on the album.
In the 1980s, Chilton played guitar with Tav Falco’s Panther Burns.
Alex Chilton died today, Wednesday, March 17th, of a heart attack, one week before a scheduled concert at SXSW in Austin, Texas. He was 59.
More to come.
