---
product_id: 19041971
title: "I Am the Cosmos"
brand: "chris bell"
price: "€ 1.44"
currency: EUR
in_stock: false
reviews_count: 10
url: https://www.desertcart.de/products/19041971-i-am-the-cosmos
store_origin: DE
region: Germany
---

# I Am the Cosmos

**Brand:** chris bell
**Price:** € 1.44
**Availability:** ❌ Out of Stock

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- **What is this?** I Am the Cosmos by chris bell
- **How much does it cost?** € 1.44 with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Currently out of stock
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.de](https://www.desertcart.de/products/19041971-i-am-the-cosmos)

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- chris bell enthusiasts

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## Description

Product description








File: BIG STAR Classic solo album from former member of Big Star. Issued by Rykodisc in 1992.












.com








The very first lines of Chris Bell's one and only album say it all: "Every night I tell myself I am the cosmos / I am the wind / That don't bring you back again." Recorded between his departure from the notoriously misbegotten power-pop group Big Star in 1972 and his 1978 death following an auto accident, Cosmos is the work of a man struggling to assuage his depression with spiritual succor. Musically, this collection (which was unheard by the general public prior to 1992) is reminiscent of John Lennon's '70s work. With the exception of Plastic Ono Band, however, Lennon never put out a solo album on a par with this one. The tragedy is that Bell never had a chance to try to match it. --Steven Stolder












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From the Label








Big Star co-founder Chris Bell was recording this solo album at the time of his death in 1978. Previously unreleased on any format, this "Great Lost Album" clarifies Bell's role in the band's sound and secures his own place in pop history.  Bell died tragically in a car crash in 1978, and only one single ("I Am The Cosmos"/"You And Your Sister") was released in his lifetime, on Chris Stamey's tiny Car label. Both single sides are included here, along with newly-discovered alternate takes. The fifteen tracks highlight Bell's ethereal vocals, his uncanny sense of song structure and insightful, melancholy lyrics, all of which illuminate his often-overlooked contribution to Big Star. I AM THE COSMOS features rare photographs and liner notes by Chris's brother David Bell. Recorded all over the world (including sessions at the famed Chateau D'Heurville and Air studios), I AM THE COSMOS is a haunting pop masterpiece ripe for discovery.









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## Images

![I Am the Cosmos - Image 1](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/518QS4q54RL.jpg)
![I Am the Cosmos - Image 2](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41sRSTMe0kL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    The Bell estate has unfortunately been remixing....
  

*by J***7 on Reviewed in the United States on September 21, 2017*

The MP3 download here is not the original Rykodisc album that was released in 1992. (That apparently you can still purchase if you order the CD.) It's not just the fact there are 20 extra tracks available with the digital download. It's that many if not most of the 15 tracks from the original album have been remixed. Not remastered -- remixed. In some places it's subtle, in others obvious.I downloaded the original Rykodisc version from Amazon some 7 years ago. Noting recently that it was no longer included in my online Amazon Music Library, I inquired, and was told that this original version had been "removed by the content owners." I was invited to "purchase" (free, with a promo code) what they called "a newer Chris Bell Music album": 

  
I Am The Cosmos (Deluxe Version)









  
  
    
  .That "deluxe" version, available for digital download only, was released in May 2016, according to its page. It has only 12 extra tracks compared to the 20 extra on this version you are currently looking at -- which is an "ultra" deluxe version, I suppose, that was released just last week, in September 2017, only 16 months after the basic "deluxe" version. But the 15 tracks from the original are still the remixed ones. And, like the basic deluxe version, they are not in the same order as on the original version: "I Got Kinda Lost" and "Make a Scene" have switched places, as have "Fight at the Table" and "I Don't Know."If, like me, you have been used to hearing the original Rykodisc versions for ages (and its tracks in a certain order), you may find listening jarring and even a little disappointing. Admittedly, the original version was released 14 years after Chris's death, but still, it's been out for 25 years now. Who takes such a long-released classic record from one of America's greatest unsung artists and decides, nah, let's change it up a bit?No doubt Chris's estate -- the aforementioned "content owners" -- is responsible, and while I don't begrudge them trying to keep Chris's flame alive and maybe making some money, the extra tracks alone would have been sufficient, perhaps with a remastering of the original tracks. But not remixing.I'm giving this 5 stars because, remixing or no, it is still obviously I Am the Cosmos, the greatest album nobody ('cept us chickens) ever heard of, and as Robert Christgau said, it clearly shows that Big Star was his idea.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    Once I Walked a Lonely Road
  

*by S***S on Reviewed in the United States on January 25, 2013*

I initially wasn't going to buy this new edition of I Am The Cosmos,having finally picked up the original Rykodisc 1 CD release of the albumthat dates back to 1993 and this being a rather pricey Rhino Handmadeedition, but ended up not being able to resist, beingthe massive Big Star and Chris Bell fan that I am, and realizing howmuch extra material was included I realized it was well worth the investmentand so right was I!!  This a simply gorgeous reissue, complete with a lovelybooklet with great rare photos and some nice essays on Chris byhis brother David and other folks, and a run-down of the origins anddifferences in the alternate and demo tracks on disc 2.  Plus I think the wholething sounds even better than the original Ryko album edition,which already sounded fine but this sounds even cleaner and more powerfulof a remaster.I think the whole thing is essential and particularly if you'rea dedicated Big Star and Alex Chilton fan you'll likely want to add this to yourcollection.  I haven't stopped playing it since it arrived and I was alreadyplaying the Ryko CD constantly so it just augments what was already available.I don't have a least favorite song, they're pretty much all great, and the wholething grows on you over time even the alternate versions of tracks like "Speed of Sound"or "Fight at the Table" or "Better Save Yourself."Also realized the price isn't that high considering all you're getting and the gorgeouspackaging and loving care with which this reissue was executed.  Hats off to Rhino, Ardent,the Bell family, everyone involved in getting this masterpiece released!  It's becomeone of my most prized possessions in a very short span of time, as with the Big Star box set which is alsoessential as far as I'm concerned.  I also recommend reading Rob Jovanovic'sfantastic book on Big Star as accompaniment to both this and the Big Star catalog,it can only enrich the listening experience that much more.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    I'm torn
  

*by G***E on Reviewed in the United States on June 3, 2019*

As noted by other reviewers, many/most of the mixes on the 2017 Omnivore disc are subtly but noticeably different from the "original" (also posthumous) Rycodisc release. (I haven't heard the subsequent Rhino re-release.) Is that an intrinsically bad thing? Not as such, but why?I've been living, intimately if chastely, with the Rycodisc version for a couple decades. At this point, it's part of my musical DNA. There are arguably a couple of overly proselytizing duds (I'm not a huge fan of Look Up or There was a Light), but the rest. . . ? Amazing.The "new" mixes both add some interesting detail and distract somewhat from the simplicity of the "originals." I guess what I'm trying to say is I'm still tying to habituate. I will say that the copious extra mixes are both welcome and generally excellent.In sum, I'm not going to toss out my Rycodisc "original" anytime soon (and good luck trying to find an affordable copy), but the new Omnivore disc is a well welcome addition to my collection.

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*Product available on Desertcart Germany*
*Store origin: DE*
*Last updated: 2026-02-27*