Big Star's Big Reach... (And Where Are They Now... Kurt Ralske Edition)

Listening to "September Gurls" by Big Star reminded me of a favorite song from my college years -- "Special One" by Ultra Vivid Scene. UVS was fronted by Kurt Ralske, who was clearly influenced by the Jesus and Mary Chain -- at least stylistically. But the verses in "Special One" (which was the underground band's best-known song and featured Kim Deal of the Pixies) sound a whole lot like "September Gurls" to my ear. Listen for yourself.

After I initially wrote this post, I did a little research and found that others have made the connection, too. Allmusic.com spotted it in their review of UVS's Joy 1967-1990 (saying Alex Chilton could sue for royalties) and there's a whole thread about it on a Teenage Fan Club forum here. 

Now, onto the Where Are They Now portion of the post. Kurt Ralske is a visual artist working in the medium of digital video and programming. And he's now a professor at the Rhode Island School of Design.

Where Are They Now?

I just found out that a guy I work with was the drummer for Elwood, who had a minor hit in 2000 with a cover of Gordon Lightfoot's "Sundown". So if you're wondering where they are now, well, the answer is the NBC News graphics department.