Iggy Pop & James Williamson “Kill City”

sfilzen — Mon, 07 Nov 2022 17:57:41 +0000

Iggy Pop & James Williamson “Kill City” released 45 years ago today, November 7th, 1977. Bomp! Records. Limited edition green vinyl. Pop and Williamson recorded Kill City in 1975 following the breakup of The Stooges in ’74. Supposedly John Cale was supposed to produce Kill City but after the demos were recorded (Pop’s vocals on the weekends while on leave from treatment for his heroin addiction) and then shelved for a couple of years (Williamson was jailed for heroin possession; they couldn’t find a record company to release the record), Williamson ended up producing it himself. From what I’ve read, it sounds like Iggy wasn’t happy about the release and the final product differs significantly from the original recording (which is not available): a lot of saxophone was added in on the track “Johanna;” there’s actually a lot of sax on the whole record, giving parts of the drug-hazed garage rock record a jazzy, 70’s New York City feel.

I like the non-sax forward hard garage rockers best: the title track “Kill City” is Stooge swagger and growl. “Consolation Prizes” has a killer hook, a sweet Zeppelin-esque blues guitar slide and Iggy’s vocals have his classic sneer. And “Beyond the Law,” though it does have saxophone, is a gritty rocker.

The post Iggy Pop & James Williamson “Kill City” 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.

james williamson Archives - Vinyl From The Vault

Iggy Pop & James Williamson “Kill City”

Iggy and the Stooges “Johanna”