#1 Record

Editors’ Notes It’s no wonder why Big Star’s shimmering 1972 debut became a go-to for future power-pop/rock legends like Tom Petty, Cheap Trick, and The Replacements. Primary songwriters Chris Bell and ex-Box Tops singer Alex Chilton were a brilliant team that created sing-along anthems with gorgeous guitar and vocal hooks. The horn-stoked “Feel,” the psych-folk popper “The Ballad of El Goodo,” and the soul-deep “When My Baby’s Beside Me” are downright inescapable. The acoustic-driven heartbreakers sting the most, such as the yearning lament “Thirteen” and the valentine to regret “Give Me Another Chance.”