Big Star’s Chris Bell honoured with box set and book release

“He had a short career, just like Nick Drake. People need to discover this guy.”

Chris Bell, the guitarist and co-founder of Big Star, is to be given his retrospective dues with a new vinyl releases series courtesy of Omnivore Recordings.

Killed in a car crash at the age of 27, Bell’s career was tragically cut-short, resulting in the post-humous release of I Am The Cosmos, which will be re-issued on double vinyl, with The Complete Chris Bell, a six-LP vinyl box set set to follow.

The series will begin though with a 22-track compilation Looking Forward: The Roots Of Big Star, that includes six previously unreleased pre-Big Star tracks, with bands like Icewater, Rock City, Christmas Future and the Wallabys.

“Because Alex [Chilton] had the longer career and certainly the hit career that predates Big Star, I think Chris gets overlooked sometimes,” Omnivore co-founder Cheryl Pawelski told Billboard. “I think it’s important to keep his work out there and keep refreshing it. He had a short career, just like Nick Drake. I feel like people need to discover this guy.”

A biography written by Rich Tupica There Was A Light: The Cosmic History of Big Star Founder Chris Bell is also set for publication later this year.

Looking Forward: The Roots Of Big Star will be released on 7th July via Omnivore Recordings.