Alex Chilton's Lost Decade CD

Lost Decade is a document of recordings Alex Chilton made during the 1970s as both solo performer and producer. "The Artist" half features the brilliantly sloppy "Bangkok"/"Can't Seem to Make You Mine" single, a couple of outtakes from the chaotic Bach's Bottom period, and four songs from a post-Box Tops, pre-Big Star session. Three of these early solo tunes later turned up on 1970, but were subsequently re-mixed. Only a diehard would notice the difference, but then who else would search out this collection? The majority (if not all) of the other tracks have since re-appeared on various (and less expensive) Chilton releases over the years. "The Producer" portion features rare recordings produced by the artist, in which he often lent a hand instrumentally as well as vocally. The unremarkable blues- and country-flavored numbers will do little to satisfy the faithful (though the rockin' bluegrass of Grady Whitebread's "Bus Trip" does have its moments), but the side devoted to Scott Adams will fascinate, as it foreshadows the producer's own loose solo material. Chilton seems to have been particularly influenced by Adams' vocal style, and the desperate honesty in lines like "the trouble is nobody cares" would find a home on the then work-in-progress, Third/Sister Lovers. ~ Bart Bealmear