Rock show, or rock circus?

The last six years The Stooges played same songs. Every concert starts with Loose, continues with Down On The Street - Iggy climbs on the bass amplifier - then Iggy scream "we are fucking stooges"…. Before 1969 Iggy says „magic number“, before I Wanna Be Your Dog Iggy says „animal song“… Real Cool Time - begins invasion on the stage – No Fun – end invasion… Every second concert is scheduled in advance (like Alice Cooper's shows).

The Stooges reunnion was a great thing 2003 years, but now, after six years…. all became acting for new fans. Fans want wild Iggy and Iggy is wild on stage, but he is not young, drugged and lost. Iggy is cool old man and he lives a quiet life.

What next year? I hope, or REAL The Stooges album (garage music) and tour without scenarios, or acoustic solo album.

interesting what you say about the element of predictability creeping in

I think it was inevitable that people would start expecting them to do certain things - Iggy anyway, and he does.
Of course I don't doubt that he still genuinely connects with the audience and all, though, that's the main thing....it's not just an 'act', is it?

a solo album...I take it you mean by Iggy?

a new 'garage' album...hmmm...would be intriguing

This reflects also my thoughts when I was going through the setlists of the shows and listened to the boots which were available at dimeadozen. A bit more of creativity wouldn't be bad...okay, they did not write that many songs as the Stones or other band long time in business but hey man, Iggy & Co., if you gonna read they think about it

of course they haven't written anything like as many songs as SOME bands, but then the songs they have done, certainly ALL the ones off the first two albums, are the best ever.
But definitely brand NEW songs would surely also be a treat (keep on repeating myself on that point)

You make a valid point Iguanas but...

I don't think The Stooges were ever that unpredictable sure you had certain moments like the Cincinatti festival but Iggy's always admitted that he was never that spontaneus, he used to think up all his stage moves. When they were touring properly in 1969, 1970 and 1973 some of the gigs may have been very similar. We don't know though as unlike the ones now they were rarely filmed.

HOWEVER

I think the reunited Stooges are steadily getting more unpredictable. At first they were there just for the fans but now they're trying new stuff, "Search & Destroy", "I Got A Right" and "Raw Power" have all been added in the last year.

They played Madonna songs at the RNRHOF seriously who saw that coming? And Iggy's adapting some songs differently. Will "T.V. Eye" feature his little monologue about coorporate rock before the "RAM IT"s next year like it did on "From The Basement"? We'll have to see but new songs and older songs are creeping back in ("Trollin", "Little Doll") and I think that brand spanking new songs like "God Is Dead" will definetly be heard in 2009.

2009 seems like it will be a very interesting year for The Stooges. 40 years since their album debut I think they'll start trying more new stuff. And I for one can't wait.

Yes, I agree very much. I kind of miss the old Iggy who changed his band every 2 years

It's always the same songs, and the setlist gets boring. I miss the Trolls, Iggy kicked ass onstage in 2001, and many others years !

JLTS - you know none of those other bands were ever a patch on The Stooges!

The last thing Iggy needs is another half-assed solo backing band. What he DOES need is for The Stooges to come up with some new material that has the freakout of the debut mixed in with the relentless pounding of Fun House. Not another "Weirdness", but something that reminds one of the magic of nearly 40 years ago. They still have it in them as musicians. Let's see if they can bring it out for all to see...

I think that the Stooges would benefit from keyboard / second guitar player. Steve Mackay is great on the sax, but the addition of a piano or sometimes an extra bit of guitar would boost the sound brilliantly.

Many of Iggy's bands in the 70's and 80's employed someone in this role - both Ivan Kral and Rob Duprey played keys and guitar at certain times between 1980 and 1983 and the excellent Shamus Beghan had this position on both the Blah-Blah-Blah and Instinct tours.

I also think that the standard set needs some new tunes to shake it all up a bit.

We shall see...

Cheers,

Richard

adams66 wrote:

I think that the Stooges would benefit from keyboard / second guitar player.

Perhaps, but we all know what happened last time....

Richard,

Don't forget Scott Thurston !! Keyboards/Harmonica/Backing Vocals from 73-74 -- he played Bass on a few Kill City songs, played keyboards w/ Iggy in 78, and played lead guitar for the new values tour 79.

He's a great guitarist, and IMO he seemed to have a similar style to James Williamson, and might have been as good as James. Just listen to New Values !

Cheers !

couldnt agree more with G!

i guess its predictable but i think it has to be, theyre for want of a less harsh but still real term 'a business' they have to do stuff, and i keep reading reviews of festivals etc that say ''oh my god, then iggy invited everyone up onstage" as if it was the first time they saw it, so i think stooges are still gettin the name out there

and like G said, iggy always had it worked out, and theyre gently adding and shaping the setlist, takin dirt out, puttin it in, adding raw power songs etc, adding weirdness songs i noticed

i would like a solo acoustic album, but i'd love a kickass new no frills album, altho sorry Loose, dont agree they should make a from the vaults like "funhouse 2" kinda thing, i think i posted it in another thread, about them finding it hard to create weirdness or a 'new' album as it is hard for reformed bands esp stooges and esp 40 years later, but i think cause everyone hated it, theyve probly got their thick skin back and can do a typical FUCK YOU album like they did with the first three, that would be cool, and something totally different, i dont want a stooges, or funhouse or raw power or weirdness, great thing about iggy is each album sounds completely different to the last so hopefully this is a completely new and compelling sound!!

I agree w/ your certian comment

"Every album sounds different than the last one"

VERY TRUE !

From Party to Birdhouse, to Blah Blah Blah, to instinct. Beat em up, Avenue B those are some of the most notables.

Beat em up and Avenue B are still a couple of my fav. solo albums

adams66 wrote:

I think that the Stooges would benefit from keyboard / second guitar player. Steve Mackay is great on the sax, but the addition of a piano or sometimes an extra bit of guitar would boost the sound brilliantly.


Cheers,

Richard

I don't think they need a keyboard/piano - do you really need to boost the sound when Ron's around

When I saw The Stooges reunnion show in 2003, I was thrilled.
Then...in these 6 years I seen about 40 The Stooges concerts on DVDs. Music is great but all concerts are the same.
I think that at every concert Iggy jumped on the bass amplifier during the song Down On The Street (even Ron was dressed in the same jacket ).
I don't understand, why The Stooges simply don't go out on stage and play. Like MC5 reunnion or New York Dolls. Why Iggy must acts an anger?
If you look at the audience at the photographs from the seventies, people watch Iggy with respect, as a God. See the audience this year. Laughter .... Why? Because Iggy acts himself as he was 40 years ago. See the audience at R'N'Roll Hall Of Fame.
I want to see Iggy as the old rocker, not as Madonna's toy.

G, F#, E wrote:

At first they were there just for the fans but now they're trying new stuff, "Search & Destroy", "I Got A Right" and "Raw Power" have all been added in the last year.

Iggy playing songs "Search & Destroy," "I Got A Right" and "Raw Power" whole life. I think this year's versions are the worst. For example, versions with Whitey Kirst (Tour 1990-1991) and Eric Schermerhorn (Tour 1992-1994) on guitar are much better. They are really excellent guitar players and songs sounds like Iggy and The Stooges 1972/73.

Loose1969 wrote:

The last thing Iggy needs is another half-assed solo backing band.

Half-assed solo backing band !?!

....Scott Thurston, Hunt Sales, Tony Sales, Fred 'Sonic' Smith, Glen Matlock, Ivan Kral, Carlos Alomar, Clem Burke, Seamus Beaghen, Andy McCoy, Alvin Gibbs, Steve Jones, David Bowie....

Iguanas wrote:

Then...in these 6 years I seen about 40 The Stooges concerts on DVDs. Music is great but all concerts are the same.

That relates with my point. The 70s gigs were hardly ever filmed so we can't tell if Iggy did the same stuff each night on a tour. As I said hes always said hes not spontaneous all his moves were always thought out.

Iguanas wrote:

If you look at the audience at the photographs from the seventies, people watch Iggy with respect, as a God. See the audience this year. Laughter .... Why? Because Iggy acts himself as he was 40 years ago. See the audience at R'N'Roll Hall Of Fame.
I want to see Iggy as the old rocker, not as Madonna's toy.

Thats because in the 70s Iggy was something unheard of nowadays most rock artists do a watered down version of what he does. People aren't laughing, they're smiling, enjoying the best live band give them the best gig of their lives. Its only natural that Iggy will have mellowed with age whats suprising is that at the age of 60 hes more energetic than most performers are when they're 20.

And drugs played a large part in his erratic behaivour in the 70s too.

I'm just glad that I've had the chance to see The Stooges live in my lifetime. And I would buy a ticket to see them again at the first chance I got.

I agree w/ Iguanas ! Iggy's backing bands I have loved, especially in the 90's with Schermerhorn, and Whitey !

They played w/ alot of intensity, and power... on those tours Iguanas mentioned, there's alot more energy, and it's alot more raw... when the stooges played raw power this year, I said to myself "WOW, that sucks !" lol ... it was cool they played it, but Ron's playing guitar on REALLY sucks... and the whole version is really down hill. very boring, and no energy. and no chorus... just a big loop.

I like the way the stooges play original stooges songs, but I think they are terrible at the song's they don't write.... which is dissapointing.... so I guess they need to write some killer ass song's and mix ALOT of them in on tour... I think they only played like 3 of the songs from weirdness live... and then for a while they did 1... and then none... why they never do Passing Cloud, or Christianity ? Or Can't Have Friends, or why not "You Better Run" ? not even Dead Rock Star

i still say it'd be nice if he incorporated some of his great solo shit into a "stooges" tour...
...fuck it...mix things up a bit...
speaking of whitey...i've been listening to that 1991 berlin concert a lot lately...
whitey was kicking major ass for that whole show...
that show (among many others of that era) also showcases how the old "stooges" stuff seamlessly melds with iggy's solo shit...

well said G

i think like i said, that stooges are to some extent a commodity, in the same way dolls and MC5 are, but stooges have higher expeectations, theyre living up to the music ones (though i must agree, the reditions of search etc arent as great as past - hate to posit the thought but, ron's fault? i was listenin to i got a right at baltimore 08, virgin mobile festival i think, and he does this weird thing after the main riff or something, cant remember where but it sounded kinda aerosmithy, dunno, have a listen, pullin the string kinda thing, hard to explain just reminded me of aerosmith, and i know he wants to make it his, but the song was perfection - to me at least - or as perfect as it was gunna get - so anything will be shit by comparison, not that its shit, just by comparison lol but i digress)
anyway yeh stooges had this ''theyre a crazy act, iggy, you have to go see them" kinda thing, and i think its easier for a 61 year old man to plan out and do the same thing than to literally be creative or watever

i duno, i just would rather see something like the thing they have at the minute, done well, rather than iggy hurting himself by doing something stupid, amean the guys 61! and i wouldnt want a weird i dunno, i think what theyve got is good, and probly not meant to be watched 40 times lol, i know you have to bootlegs n all, and i think the setlist should be thrown around a bit more, personally i would love new material to be put it, and weirdness stuff cause i really love weirdness, esp the LP should be done live, also Ann would be great and stuff

but thats just me, anyway, yeh the setlists a bit stuck, but i think the live shows probly just so they know what to do, so its deliberately not spontaneous, so stuffs thought out and theres no confusion etc and the wearing the same clothes thing is just for the image i pressume, so people will have an image when they think of them - again still gettin the name out
damn had another thing to talk about but got distracted, if i think of it ill post oh yeh, its the whole laughin at them thing - no offense, but if we did have footage of them, it would either be like it is now, which is awe/smiling/having a good time, or other ppl would be scared or mostly laughin! stooges im sure were always laughed at no? so i dunno, i agree with you, but i dunno, im just so appreciative that they are touring and recording that i dont mind anythin u'no

JESUS_LOVES_THE_STOOGES wrote:

I think they only played like 3 of the songs from weirdness live... and then for a while they did 1... and then none... why they never do Passing Cloud, or Christianity ? Or Can't Have Friends, or why not "You Better Run" ? not even Dead Rock Star

they used to do dead rock star, but they just shifted it out. if you're talking about the weirdness dates/tv performances these are what they played:

atm (which i was disappointed it got dropped)
free & freaky
greedy awful people
i'm fried
my idea of fun
o solo mio (performed on the les prives t.v. show + at bam margera's wedding)
she took my money
trollin'


obviously we can all tell what was dropped/stayed.

Shakes wrote:

o solo mio (performed on the les prives t.v. show + at bam margera's wedding)

Does anybody have any links or torrents of these? Its disgraceful that "O Solo Mio" was rarely played its the best song the remormed Stooges have written, personally I love it

the final episode of bam's unholy union you can see a mixture of the lead-in of loose / i wanna be your dog. on the dvd box set there is a "music video" (footage from the wedding performance/show clips) set to 'my idea of fun'. it's also on itunes as well. other than that i only knew of some things that were played because:

1. i know some of the guys from cky (the band) and bam. i was told of some songs that were played (the ones i mentioned)

2. there were a few photos some where from the wedding (bamargera.com? i could be wrong) and you can see the set list hanging on the side of an amp.

the les prives show was on www.purelivegigs.com that last time i remembered.

Quote :

o solo mio (performed on the les prives t.v. show + at bam margera's wedding)

WOW seriously, damn wish i'd watched it! was it broadcast, does anyone have it audio or video?

and didnt know they did free & freaky would like to hear that too, ive seen atm, gap, im fried, my idea, she took my money on kimmel i think and only recently saw trollin on that from the basement thing

in my last post there is a link to the les prives torrent (which incl. new york dolls) on the word "les prives".

thanks shakes!