Big Star: Isolated In The Light
Donna Ranieri & Fabrice Couillerot FIRST THIRD. £40
Beautiful photo book celebrating the Memphis pop-rock greats.
In their early-’70s original lifetime Big Star never occupied the mass media, but they were memorably documented – notably in the colour-drenched images of the celebrated Tennessee photographer William Eggleston. Big Star-related photos featured in the recent Eggleston retrospective at the National Portrait Gallery in London, and one of his shots was on the front of Big Star’s second album, Radio City. Numerous Eggleston photos figure in this book – hugely evocative images – but they’re far from the whole of a compelling visual narrative that reaches from Memphis mixing desks to the Swiss Alps. Alongside, there’s commentary from Big Star associates, from surviving founder member Jody Stephens and from admirers including The Cramps and The Breeders’ Kim Deal. The book is a limited edition of 1,000 – 500 of which are a more expensive package with posters and a photographic print.