Hidden Gem:
Chris Bell
I am the Cosmos
1992 | Rykodisc

Paired with Big Star’s #1 Record and a handful of tracks on Radio City, including “O My Soul” and “Way out West,” I am the Cosmos reminds us of how much Chris Bell carried the group’s sound before he and Alex Chilton parted ways in 1972; Chilton going on to record the scattered but wonderful Third/Sister Lover.  Big Star’s influence is also evident in today’s less mainstream music. Take Radiohead’s The Bends for instance where there are traces of Bell and Chilton’s musical approach all over the album, especially on the “The Bends,” “Black Star” and “Sulk.”

Now hailed as brilliant by many critics, #1 Record was a commercial failure upon its release due to poor distribution by its label. Disappointed, Bell left the band, giving into depression. Believing in Chris’ talent, his brother David played a key role in Chris’ musical career over the next several years, convincing him to grab studio time in Italy at Chateau D’Herouville where Elton John recorded “Honky Chateau” and “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.” This put Bell in touch with Geoff Emerick who engineered the Beatles’ later albums and who mixed some of the tracks featured on this collection. I am the Cosmos contains demos recorded between 1974 and Bell’s untimely death in 1978 when his car struck a telephone pole.

“Every night I tell myself I am the cosmos / I am the wind / that won’t bring you back again” sets the melancholy atmosphere for much of the album. Although Bell openly reveals two suicide attempts on “Better Save Yourself,” lyrics are not always his strong suit. Lines like “You didn’t have to act so cool / I know you’ve been to school” on “Make a Scene” make you downright wince but, damn the bright guitar makes you want to shake your ass. Still, tracks like “Look Up,” a song of such aching beauty that it brings me to tears more than make up for his poor lyricism. Chilton lends his vocals on the pretty “You and your Sister” while the bluesy “Fight at the Table” could have been written by a post Radio City Chilton with its loose arrangement. I am the Cosmos is a rare gem left behind by an artist whose life was taken prematurely, leaving many of us wondering what might have been.

by Justin Weingartner

http://www.myspace.com/bigstarchris [unofficial site]