iggy and the stooges Archives - Vinyl From The Vault

Iggy and the Stooges “Open Up and Bleed!”

sfilzen — Thu, 28 Feb 2019 20:16:29 +0000

Iggy and the Stooges “Open Up and Bleed!” 1973/1995. Bomp! Records, The Iguana Chronicles series. From the liner notes written by Frank Meyer (Stooges historian), “This shiny, shimmering disk is a collection of material written after the monumental Raw Power LP, but never officially released.” The subtitle, “The Great Lost Stooges Album?” refers to the possibility that the tracks that appear on Open Up and Bleed! could have released on a studio LP if the band hadn’t disintegrated; it certainly doesn’t refer to the sound quality on the album which is rough (but fitting for the band’s hard protopunk vibe). The Stooges recorded several of these songs at rehearsal sessions in New York at CBS Studios, the last with keyboardist Bob Sheff, including “Rubber Legs,” “Open Up and Bleed,” “Johanna,” “Cock In My Pocket” (I’m sure that one would have been destined for a hit single, hahaha, though it is really good – rockin’ rhythm and blues with Bill Haley-style piano), “Head On” and “Cry For Me.” “Rich Bitch” and “Wet My Bed,” a “Chuck Berry-inspired rant about the joys of masturbation and urine distribution” (Meyer, liner notes), were recorded at the Latin Casino in Baltimore by an audience member. The last track on the album – more songs appear on the CD version – is “She Creatures of the Hollywood Hills.” It’s the only known rehearsal version of the track, recorded in Detroit.

The post Iggy and the Stooges “Open Up and Bleed!” appeared first on Vinyl From The Vault.

Iggy and the Stooges “Johanna”

sfilzen — Fri, 09 Nov 2018 20:31:49 +0000

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.

The post Iggy and the Stooges “Johanna” appeared first on Vinyl From The Vault.

Iggy and the Stooges “Metallic ‘KO”

sfilzen — Fri, 17 Jul 2015 13:45:20 +0000

Iggy and the Stooges “Metallic ‘KO” 1976. Skydog Records, French release. Today, July 17th, is Ron Ashton’s (bass player for the Stooges) birthday (b. 1948 d. 2009). This LP is a live recording from two shows at the Michigan Palace in Detroit in 1973 and 1974 and the album’s back cover states “The noise you hear on this disc is from the original tape used to document the Stooges’ last stand. This is NOT a defect in mastering or pressing.” Yes, the sound quality is not stellar but gritty and grimy, much like the Stooges themselves; and lore states that there was a high “level of audience hostility, with the band being constantly pelted with pieces of ice, eggs, beer bottles and jelly beans, among other things, in response to Iggy Pop’s audience-baiting.” Their rendition of “Louie Louie” is particularly confrontational, with Iggy changing** the words to to “Got a fine bitch, she’s waiting for me/Just a whore, across the way” and “I feel a rose [or possibly bone] down in her hair, her ass is black and her tits are bare.”

The LP was later remastered and released in 1988 as a double album.

**This article from The Guardian chronicles the mystery behind the lyrics to “Louie Louie” by The Kingsmen and its subsequent FBI investigation, which of course turned the track into a rebellious statement for generations of rockers and punks.

The post Iggy and the Stooges “Metallic ‘KO” appeared first on Vinyl From The Vault.