Knew the name when started seeing mentions of  his death on Twitter but didn't really remember until started running through songs on Rhapsody and hit  "You Get What you Deserve".   Suspect a lot of  "dumb baby boomers" no longer had the luxury of time to explore and exchange new music when Big Star came along in the early 70s.  It wasn't as easy as it is now.  
The "Keep An Eye On The Sky"  collection of recordings, demo versions and live performances that was released last Sept.  is an interesting listen.