Big Star

Thirty-one years after they first formed, and six years into their "touring only" reformation, Big Star finally made their Irish debut. Main man Alex Chilton admitted as soon as he got on stage that he hadn't made the soundcheck earlier, but what followed proved he didn't need to.

They open with a triple punch of On The Street, Don't Lie To Me and With My Baby Beside Me.

Crunchy power-pop guitars are to the fore and we are left in no doubt that here is the man who almost single-handedly invented the genre.

Chilton and drummer Jody Stephens are the only originals left, but the gaps are plugged by Ken Stringfellow and Jonathan Auer from Big Star disciples The Posies. It's an appropriate mix as the audience is predominantly male, mostly late 20s and early 30s, who would have come across Big Star through listening to the likes of Teenage Fanclub, Matthew Sweet and The Posies.

It is Auer who sings the night's first magical moment, a spine-tingling version of I Am The Cosmos. It is a touching tribute to Chris Bell who left Big Star after their first album and recorded the song solo, not long before he tragically died.

The next touch of genius is Thirteen, the greatest paean to teenage love bar none. If Brian Wilson had written it, it would be a recognised classic. Instead it feels like our secret.

The Ballad Of El Goodo and Feel are glam rock rock-outs, but September Gurls gets the best reception of the night. It made a cold and wet August night seem like a long hot summer.

Thank You Friends is the sound of departure, where late-60s psychedelic-pop morphed into early-70s power-pop.

The set is made up from all three Big Star albums (No 1 Record, Radio City and the mordantly beautiful Sister Lovers) some judicious covers (Beach Boys, Kinks, T-Rex) and a genuine connection with the audience that left a warm impression.

What, for most of us, only existed on CD, is now a living, breathing, wonderful thing.