Alex ChiltonBest Alex Chilton Albums Ranked

Electricity By Candlelight / NYC 2/13/97

pitchfork

8.1

“Alex Chilton's second set at NYC's Knitting Factory was cancelled in February 1997 when the power went out. But somebody had an acoustic guitar, and there were candles, so Chilton decided to play what turned into an impromptu 17-song set of covers. It was captured on tape, and the resulting Electricity By Candlelight is a wonderful mess.”

Free Again: The "1970" Sessions

pitchfork

7.8

“In 1970, after the Box Tops and before forming Big Star, Alex Chilton holed up in a Memphis studio and recorded an album's worth of material. Omnivore Records has now reissued those sessions, long out of print, with bonus tracks.”

Ocean Club '77 (Live)

rollingstone

7.0

“In 1977, Alex Chilton was 10 years out from his Box Tops hit "The Letter" and recovering from the recent collapse of his power-pop band Big Star. Still in his mid-twenties, the Memphis singer tried his luck in New York, playing gigs like this one (in strong quasi-boot fidelity) that were as close, in plaintive voice and power-trio scruff, as he ever got live to the open wounds on Big Star's farewe”

Free Again: The "1970" Sessions

rollingstone

7.0

“In 1969, even before the end of his Top 40 band the Box Tops, singer Alex Chilton started making his first solo album. In 1970, he abandoned it to co-found Big Star, the Memphis version of the Beatles. Free Again finds Chilton, not yet 20, in fast bloom. The title track, "The EMI Song (Smile for […]”

A Man Called Destruction

pitchfork

6.7

“In the mid-1990s, Alex Chilton entered a Memphis studio to track a collection of deep R&B and pop covers. The results were fascinating and frustrating in equal measure.”