“What happens in Memphis stays in Memphis” — at least until you get these home (unless you live in Memphis!) might be Craft Recordings’ slogan for this all-analog pair of Big Star reissues, probably the first all-analog reissues of these two ignored when first released but now highly regarded early ’70s albums since Classic Records released them in 2009 AAA on Clarity vinyl. … These two albums, both of which are spectrally bright belong in every serious rock collection. So glad to see them brought back directly from the original tapes!” — Michael Fremer, AnalogPlanet.com. Read the whole article here.

Originally released in 1972, #1 Record is the debut album from Big Star, a critically acclaimed, Memphis-based band which is often credited with creating the power pop sound. Craft’s new editions to be released January 24th, 2020, were cut using the original master tapes by Jeff Powell at Memphis’ Take Out Vinyl and pressed at Memphis Record Pressing. The band formed in 1971 by the late Alex Chilton and the late Chris Bell with drummer Jody Stephens and bassist the late Andy Hummel featured Beatle-esque/British Invasion influenced songwriting and jangly rhythm guitar saturated arrangements of often wistful, melancholic songs.

#1 Record is the only Big Star album which has the combined writing power of both founders, Chilton and Bell. Fervent Anglophiles, Chilton and Bell employed a Lennon/McCartney style of collaborative songwriting to create their debut-Chilton taking a visceral approach, often laying down guitar and vocal tracks in one take, while Bell added polish with overdubs and harmonies.

#1 Record has become widely recognized as a milestone album in the history of rock ‘n’ roll. In 2012, Rolling Stone ranked it No. 434 in their “500 Greatest Albums of All Time” list, while the publication included song “Thirteen” in their “500 Greatest Songs of All Time” list.