Iggy and the Stooges “Johanna” b/w “Purple Haze” 1975/1988 Revenge Records, limited release (2000 copies) on green vinyl. “Johanna” was recorded in 1975 by Iggy Pop and James Williamson and then appeared on their 1977 album Kill City on Bomp! records, however the Stooges frequently performed “Johanna” in ‘73 and ‘74 before the band broke up. From Allmusic: “Interestingly, “Johanna” was a leftover Stooges song, which can be heard in bootleg releases of the band’s record company-rejected demos. The Stooges had been playing a heavy and sleazy version of blues-rock, influenced by the trashy sounds of mid-‘60s garage bands, as well as the Doors, neighbors the MC5, and some British blues acts. Like early Aerosmith, they at times resembled a more raw and less nuanced version of the Rolling Stones. Both the Stooges’ demo version and the Kill City recording of “Johanna” demonstrate Pop’s reverence for the Stones, in his almost cartoonishly exaggerated aping of Mick Jagger’s vocal idiosyncrasies and soul stylings. On the Stooges version, Pop sounds a little less musical, more talk-singing over a typically unsubtle Stooges heavy driving riff. The Kill City version finds a more finessed vocal delivery over a grooving R&B-type arrangement, complete with saxophone by John Hardin. [The version on this 7″ is the Kill City version]…Pop is the romantic on “Johanna,” not the sleazy street hustler who wants to be your dog. He explores the conflicts of a hot-and-cold relationship: “I’ve been a bitch and I know it too/Johanna/I hate to say it but I’m coming home to you.” The newly clean and sober Pop seems here to have found a new addiction. The Kill City arrangement, though not as aggressive as the Stooges version, is no less passionate.”

I’m a bit less clear on the background of their cover of Jimi Hendrix’s “Purple Haze.” It only appears on posthumous Stooges anthologies and the 7″ liner notes simply state that Iggy is on vocals and Williamson plays lead guitar so it’s probably also from the Kill City sessions. It’s super-muddy, fuzzy and raw with Pop’s vocals kinda faded through a dark echo chamber.