Wilco, R.E.M. Members Will Play Big Star’s ‘Third’ in Full at Upcoming Tribute Concert

Since Alex Chilton’s death in 2010, the sole surviving original member of Big Star, Jody Stephens, has organized a series of Big Star’s ‘Third’ concerts for which he recruits an all-star lineup of musicians to play the power-pop pioneers’ third and final classic, ‘70s-era album in full. The latest show, “Thank You, Friends: Big Star’s ‘Third’ Live,” will take place next month in L.A., and Stephens has enlisted members of Wilco, R.E.M. and more for the occasion.

The Posies’ Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow, who played with a reunited Big Star between 1993 and 2010, will be on-hand for the show. (They appeared at the previous Third concerts, too.) The roster also includes Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy and Pat Sansone, R.E.M.’s Mike Mills, Yo La Tengo’s Ira Kaplan, Jessica Pratt, Mitch Easter of Let’s Active, Robyn Hitchcock, Semisonic's Dan Wilson, Chris Stamey of the dB’s, Brett Harris, Django Haskins and Skylar Gudasz. Carl Marsh, who arranged Third, will conduct an orchestra helmed by the Kronos Quartet.

The concert will take place at the Alex Theater on April 27. In addition to Third, some songs from the Big Star’s first two albums, including “In the Street,” “September Gurls” and “Thirteen,” will also appear in the set list. The show will be filmed and released on DVD in spring 2017. Grab tickets right here.