#118 – She Said She Said with Jon Auer (The Posies, Big Star)

If Revolver is the record where The Beatles remove any illusion to their drug use, “She Said She Said” may be one of the cornerstones of that moment. A song with origins from an evening of tripping on LSD in Los Angeles, it’s a song that straddles a number of different lines. It rocks, but it’s not rocking. It’s psychedelic but not trippy. It’s autobiographical but filled with illusion. It’s probably my favorite guitar tone of all time. It’s also a song that’s a bit mysterious. Whoever “She” is, what she’s saying is confusion. What’s it like to be dead? How does she know? Who the hell is playing the bass? Regardless of the answers to these questions, it’s just a killer track, and one that really sums up the Revolver ethos, in my humble opinion.

Joining us this week is songwriter, singer, guitarist and producer Jon Auer. Jon first made his name in the 90s as a founding member of now-defunct power-pop heroes The Posies, whose albums Dear 23 and Frosting on the Beater landed them all over MTV and alternative radio in the 90s, as well as landing a track on Ringo’s Time Takes Time album (“Golden Blunders,” originally from Dear 23). He also spent 17 years as member of the reunited legendary Big Star. With surviving founding member Jody Stephens, Jon recently joined Wilco’s Pat Sansone, R.E.M.’s Mike Mills, and Chris Stamey of the dBs for a tour celebrating the 50th anniversary of Big Star’s debut release, #1 Album. Jon joins us to talk a number of things, including this LSD-soaked Revolver track, who played bass on it, his Ringo & Peter Asher connection, the recent Big Star tour, and more!

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