O My Soul
| "O My Soul" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| SinglebyBig Star | ||||
| from the albumRadio City | ||||
| B-side | "Morpha Too" / "I'm in Love with a Girl" | |||
| Released | 1974 | |||
| Recorded | 1973 | |||
| Genre | Power pop | |||
| Length | 2:47(single version) 5:40(album version) | |||
| Label | Ardent | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Alex Chilton | |||
| Producer(s) | John Fryand Big Star | |||
| Big Starsingles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"O My Soul"is a song credited toAlex Chiltonthat was first released byBig Staron their 1974 albumRadio City.Chris Bellcontributed to the lyrics. The song was also released as a single.
Writing and recording
[edit]"O My Soul" was one of the earliest songs written forRadio City.It was a song that Chilton and Bell worked on before Bell left the band. At the time, Chilton and Bell split up the songs that they had worked on together, and "O My Soul" was one of the songs that was assigned to Chilton. According to Chilton, Bell contributed to the lyrics but Chilton wrote all the music. After the song was released Bell asked to have his name added to the credits but the request was denied.[1][2]
Chilton originally recorded "O My Soul" without Big Star, with Richard Rosebrough playing drums and Danny Jones playingbass guitar.[2]Big Star recorded two versions.[1][2]The released version has Chilton playing both guitar andMellotron.[1][2]Big Star bassistAndy Hummelrecalled that his bass parts wereoverdubbed.[1]Hummel also recalled thatJody Stephenswas trying to get an unusual drum sound, saying "Jody's playing lots of sort of broken rolls and stuff, almost like an eclecticdrum solothroughout the song or something. "[1]
Over five minutes long, "O My Soul" is longer than any other song in Big Star’s discography.[1]It also has an unusual structure. It starts with an instrumental version of an entire verse before the vocal enters 45 seconds in.[1]Hummel recalled trying to make the song sound different than the traditional Big Star song, and that they made it sound more "sparse" than previous Big Star songs.[1][2]Hummel said that it "starts off like it's going to be a traditional Big Star rock song, but then Alex started adding other parts different than the original line."[1][2]
Bruce Eaton described the song as sounding like "the perfect set-opener for a killer live band", saying that "With its persistent stutter-stop skewed-soul guitarriff,garage rock Mellotron, explosive off-kilterdrum fills,country-flavoredguitar solo,and drivingbass line,it serves loud notice thatRadio Cityis not paint-by-numberspower pop."[1]
Reception
[edit]AllMusiccritic Mark Deming called "O My Soul" "a gloriously messy hodgepodge of slashed-out R&B rhythms, psychedelic chord twists, and smart pop melodicism" with a melody that "swerves all over the place.[3]He also considered it "one of the most exciting (and most curiously funky)" of Big Star's songs.[3]Deming also commented on Chilton having "fun with the lyrics", particularly highlighting the line "I can't get a license/To drive in my car/But I won't really need one/If I'm a big star."[3]Music journalistJohn M. Borackdescribed the song as "strange buthooky"and praised Chilton's guitar playing.[4]Rolling Stonecritic Ken Barnes described the song as "a foreboding, sprawling funk affair."[5]The Suncritic Daniel Cotter described it as an "irresistible cut."[6]The Commercial Appealcritic Walter Dawson considered it one of the "better cuts" on the album and particularly praisedJody Stephens' drumming.[7]The Sacramento Beecritic Gene Sculatti said that it "reminds ofRick Derringerfor its gritty funk. "[8]
References
[edit]- ^abcdefghijEaton, Bruce (2009).Radio City.Continuum. pp. 67–70.ISBN9780826428981.
- ^abcdefGeorge-Warren, Holly (March 2014).A Man Called Destruction: The Life and Music of Alex Chilton, from Box Tops to Big Star to Backdoor Man.Viking. pp. 137–139.ISBN978-0-670-02563-3.
- ^abcDeming, Mark."O My Soul".Allmusic.Retrieved2024-01-28.
- ^Borack, John M. (2007).Shake Some Action.Not Lame. pp. 13, 38–39.ISBN9780979771408.
- ^Barnes, Ken (April 11, 1974). "Radio City".Rolling Stone.
- ^Cotter, Daniel (April 8, 1974)."Big Star Comes of Age with 'Radio City' Album".The Sun.p. 14.Retrieved2024-01-31– via newspapers.
- ^Dawson, Walter (May 3, 1974)."Big Star May Someday Be Just That".The Commercial Appeal.p. 4.Retrieved2024-01-31– via newspapers.
- ^Sculatti, Gene (May 25, 1974)."Good Things Come out of Memphis and Ireland".Sacramento Bee.p. A16.Retrieved2024-01-31– via newspapers.