So I’m a little late to Big Star. There’s a reason for this, kind of, sort of. About five years ago, after trying to be the guy who knew everything about everything, I made a conscious decision to pare down and focus on something that I knew I loved instead of trying to master things I thought would net me bits of nerd cred. It was there that I decided to focus down on comics, my true pop culture passion, and as a direct result, all other parts of my consumption has suffered. I stopped seeking our new music (or at least music that was new to me), stopped watching as much TV and buying as many movies. Inevitably, gaps formed and widened. Big Star was one of those gaps.

My buddies James and Scott have gone on at length about how great Big Star is, but until very recently, I hadn’t gone out and tracked them down. Then, for whatever serendipitous reason, I kept hearing this one song over and over in bits of different media: “Thirteen”. You all probably know it, but… whatever. This is my blog, is it not? I can talk about whatever the hell I want to, yeah? Yeah.

“Thirteen” is a wonderful song that shouldn’t be as good as it is. It takes the sheer ridiculous importance of being thirteen, and plies it to music, ascribing a certain importance to the events as listed by the narrator.

“Won’t you let me walk you home from school?” opens the song. The first verse then trundles through a bit of an awkward ask-out. It should be cloying, but the music and the lyrics swirl in a heady mix of pure nostalgia, turning the song into a fond memory even as it documents the life-and-death importance of teenage drama. I’ve listened to this song on repeat quite a bit lately, I just can’t get over it.

Do you have any gaps in media that you know of? Have you stumbled across something you know you “should have” experienced sooner, but are just starting to get around to? Hit the comments if you wish, and let me know. Let’s talk this out, friends. This is a safe place.