Sam Lefebvre on Big Star: Nothing Can Hurt Me
"Big Star: Nothing Can Hurt Me" 9 p.m. July 19-25 (6:45 p.m. on Sunday, July 21) at the Roxie Theater. $6.50-$10; roxie.com.
The story of early '70s Memphis rock group Big Star is fraught with loss and conflict, but the group left three albums of shimmering pop and gut-wrenching anguish that rockers like Michael Stipe and Paul Westerberg later championed. A commercial failure during its time, Big Star has been perpetually rediscovered and celebrated over the last 30 years. That process is chronicled in Big Star: Nothing Can Hurt Me, a new documentary (reviewed page 32) spanning bandleader Alex Chilton's early fame as a vocalist for the Box Tops through Big Star's tumultuous career and recent tributes. Exhaustive archival work and masterful editing earn the film a place in the essential rock documentary canon.
Tags: Hear This, Show Preview, Big Star (Band), Memphis, Michael Stipe, Paul Westerberg, Roxie Theater
