Big Star may be the most influential band you’ve never heard of -- and that’s part of their mystique. Perhaps best known as the power pop group behind the (slightly altered) theme song for Fox’s That ‘70s Show, Big Star's existence was brief (1971-74) and their discography is small (three albums, none of which sold). But Alex Chilton, Chris Bell, Andy Hummel and lone surviving member Jody Stephens laid the groundwork for much of what we now call indie rock. The following list highlights some of their most famous disciples: 15 Bands That Owe Big Star a Round (and probably a whole lot more).

  • 15

    Pete Yorn

    On the album Pete Yorn recorded with actress Scarlett Johansson, the pair covered early Big Star member Chris Bell’s woefully underrated "I Am the Cosmos." They handled the delicate track with grace -- and got us thinking about the Big Star influence on Yorn’s own work. Critics love to namedrop Bruce Springsteen when they talk Yorn, because he’s a Jersey guy, but his masterful layering of power-pop chords, acoustic guitars and virile lyrics smack of Big Star lead singer Alex Chilton. See albums Musicforthemorningafter and Day I Forgot for what we’re talking about.

  • 14

    Fastball

    Fastball are one of those bands that didn’t make it much past the ‘90s, but they did a damned good job of squeezing the era for all it was worth, thanks to their flare for above-average power-pop and hooky, radio-friendly tunes like "The Way" and "Fire Escape." Spin their best-known album, 1998’s All the Pain Money Can Buy, to hear that great updated retro sound, which is a direct Big Star reference.

  • 13

    Nada Surf

    While Nada Surf may be best known for their ‘90s hit "Popular," their underground popularity has grown exponentially since the band decided to veer down the wormhole of power-pop -- specifically the French noir-core and Big Star-inflected types. Albums like Let Go and The Weight Is a Gift would not exist had forefathers like Big Star not blazed the trail.

  • 12

    Gin Blossoms

    The Gin Blossoms -- one of the most enduring examples of what we define as "‘90s alternative rock" -- owe a lot of their sound to Big Star. Listen to their cascading, jangling guitar lines; twinkling guitar effects juxtaposed with hefty helpings of distortion; and the reverence-for-the-past lyrical content. Big Star did it all first; the Blossoms treat the template like a holy temple.

  • 11

    The Lemonheads

    Evan Dando, steadfast Lemonheads leader, was one of the artists that immediately came out to pay tribute to Chilton when he died just before SXSW in 2010. And it’s easy to see why. Over the years, the Lemonheads have harnessed the power of pop in a very similar way to the great Big Star. Dando, like Chilton, maintains an immense slacker sneer throughout the hardest rocking and quietest acoustic moments.

  • 10

    Son Volt

    Alt-country power players Son Volt may have produced the single best Big Star cover of all time -- a devastatingly beautiful take on the drunken piano ballad "Holocaust," which appeared on Big Star’s Third/Sister Lovers album. A non-album b-side from Son Volt’s Wide Swing Tremolo era, the tune is a perfect fit for lead singer Jay Farrar’s low range -- and a reverb-heavy lead guitar subs in perfectly for the piano.

  • 9

    The Bangles

    Definitely not the first band you’d think of as carrying the Big Star banner, the Bangles did a rousing cover of the Alex Chilton-penned "September Gurls" back in 1986. Naturally, they tweaked the tune to be a little to be more girl-friendly, singing "September gurls / Do so much / And for so long / Until we touched" instead of "I was your Butch / And you were touched." Their version appears on the same album that spawned the radio smashes "Manic Monday" (ghostwritten by Prince) and "Walk Like an Egyptian."

  • 8

    Matthew Sweet

    Matthew Sweet belongs on all these lists we keep putting him on because he’s actually worth your while. The influence of Big Star -- like that of the Byrds -- has long been apparent in Sweet's music, and he even covered "The Ballad of El Goodo" on Big Star, Small World, a fabulous 2006 Big Star tribute album. Sweet was also part of a 2011 staging of Third/Sister Lovers that marked the one-year anniversary of Alex Chilton’s death.

  • 7

    Elliott Smith

    Elliott Smith may be one of the finest songwriters of the modern era, with his deliciously complex indie-folk songs. And on his first few non-major-label albums, you can hear nods to Big Star’s softer-sounding tunes, like "Nighttime" and "I’m in Love With a Girl." Smith’s intensely personal lyrics, Baroque song structures and soaring melodies have Big Star written all over them, and who can forget Smith’s fragile cover of "Thirteen," the best love song nobody’s ever heard?

  • 6

    Wilco

    Speaking of the tune "Thirteen," Wilco covered it on Big Star, Small World. But we’d trace the Big Star influence directly back to Wilco’s two best albums -- Being There (1996) and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2002). Both feature acoustic folk and power-pop, dosed with a lysergic experimental flavor. Big Star’s Third/Sister Lovers was one of the first of the great power-pop albums to add that progressive element.

  • 5

    Teenage Fanclub

    Scottish outfit Teenage Fanclub, who have appeared on a few of our other lists, is a prime example of what happens if you do Big Star’s sound with a ‘90s alt-rock sensibility. Like list-mates the Gin Blossoms and Matthew Sweet, the Fanclub took that tried-and-true formula -- chiming guitars, ooh-ahh choruses, introspective lyrics -- and ran through the streets of Glasgow with it.

  • 4

    The dB’s

    The dB’s have a direct bloodline to Big Star, with Chris Stamey playing and recording with Chilton in the late ‘70s. Stamey’s production house also helped release Chris Bell’s underrated single "I Am the Cosmos" / "You And Your Sister," which you can now buy as its own standalone album, with a bunch of other great solo tracks. Or, you can just listen to a dB’s song like "Big Brown Eyes," which is basically their best Big Star impression.

  • 3

    R.E.M.

    We put R.E.M. on our Byrds list, too, but they reappear here for good reason. Singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck and bassist Mike Mills have made no secret of their Big Star worship, and it's obvious that R.E.M.’s power-pop leanings derive from blueprints that Chilton and company drew up back in the day. Just listen to albums like Life’s Rich Pageant, Green and Monster for proof.

  • 2

    The Posies

    The Posies are one of those ‘90s bands that never got their fair shake, and two of its members in particular -- bassist Ken Stringfellow and guitarist Jon Auer -- were major Big Star disciples. In fact, their Chilton worship was such that they joined a re-formed touring version of Big Star (featuring Chilton and Jody Stephens) and recorded a new album with the band in 2005. We had a chance to see Big Star’s final show in Brooklyn shortly before Chilton’s death in 2010, and we can attest to the flower power Stringfellow and Auer added to the band.

  • 1

    The Replacements

    The Replacements top our list for obvious reasons. On their classic tune "Alex Chilton," leader Paul Westerberg imagines a mythical land where Big Star actually reached amazing commercial heights and garnered the love of children everywhere. The reality, of course, was far different, but the tune predicted the renewed attention Big Star have received in recent years. You might even call "Alex Chilton" the only Big Star song not written by the band. It has an infectious lead guitar riff and awesomely cheeky lyrics, and Westerberg even uses the words "big star," just like Chilton did on the track "O My Soul."

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