JW on joining the Stooges in late 1970

Some unused stuff from an interview w. James W. in 2002...

You joined the Stooges in late 1970 after Billy Cheatham withdrew to work as a roadie again. Can you pinpoint more exactly when it happened? I don’t think you played too many shows with the Stooges in 1970. Can you confirm?

JW: I’ll take your word for the exact month and date, but after I had finished night school to complete high school, I moved up to Ann Arbor to live. I had been in juvie many years prior to that during the Chosen Few days. Eventually, I moved into a big old house where Bill Cheatham, Zeke Zettner and Scott Asheton also lived. I’d known all these guys for years, off and on. Anyway, over the course of the next few months, I’d hang out at the main Stooge farm house and jam with Ron or Bill or whomever. Things were pretty screwed up by then. The drug scene had started taking its toll and the band was disintegrating. Anyway, it was still fun for me to hang out with these guys and then one day Iggy asked me to join the band and take Bill’s place. So, I began playing with the Stooges. Danny Fields liked the way I looked and played, or so he said. So I was now a Stooge.


I think Steve Mackay left the band in October 1970. Had you joined by then or did it happen later?

JW: I joined just as he was on his way out, but he did a couple of gigs with us even after I had joined.


Do you recall roughly the Stooges’ set list at the time you joined in the latter part of 1970? To what extent did you play the Fun House material?

JW: Very little. Actually, the Stooges always seemed to play what we were working on at the current time, not the recorded stuff so much. That was actually a problem in that the audience was never familiar with the new stuff. I believe that “I Got A Right” was developed during this time. By the way, “I Got A Right” was totally written by Iggy even though I got credit on a couple of releases of this song.


Did you introduce any of your material into the band in 1970? I know most of the 1971 set list was made up of your and Iggy’s songs but to what extent were you contributing material in 1970?

JW: No, I only joined the band in 1970 and we didn’t play much that year. I just played what they were playing at the time.


Some of the songs mentioned as being from the “post-Fun House” period (latter half of 1970) include: “Big Time Bum,” “Egyptian Woman” (or “Way Down In Egypt”), and “Private Parts.” Do you have any recollections of these tunes? Were you involved in the writing of any of them?

JW: I don’t recall the titles frankly, but started contributing the music for the Stooges songs right away. By 1971, Iggy and I had written maybe 6 or 8 titles that the band played….

In case anyone hasn't seen it, here's a picture of James today:

http://www.ieee.org/web/aboutus/corporate/election/samal-KMW.html

Thanx a lot for this 'unused stuff'! I always thought about 'I Got A Right' that James helped Iggy in developing the song. At least the writing credits were usually given to Pop-Williamson..

Rigsby wrote:

In case anyone hasn't seen it, here's a picture of James today:

http://www.ieee.org/web/aboutus/corporate/election/samal-KMW.html

Wow! I'm kinda speachless that i guy like him could change so much in the last 25 years. I'd say he's certainly done well for himself by going "straight"...

James in his Toyota Prius:

http://www.trynka.net/Site/LA.html

James w Glen Matlock & a fine curry...

http://www.trynka.net/Site/Open_Up_Blog/BB5A81D9-B11E-48A7-BE54-6DADFDE8C4B7.html

Quote :

Ron, James’s one-time enemy, was the only one who greeted them warmly.

Even more proof that Ron was a great guy.

Paul T wrote:

James in his Toyota Prius:

http://www.trynka.net/Site/LA.html

James w Glen Matlock & a fine curry...

http://www.trynka.net/Site/Open_Up_Blog/BB5A81D9-B11E-48A7-BE54-6DADFDE8C4B7.html

Cool!

GREAT story Per!

I dont know if you all saw it but there is a big article in the Winter 2008 Fretboard Journal About James. Shows a tech restoring his Raw Power era Les Paul.Also has a real funny photo ot him in a hawaiian shirt.

Nope didn't see it, could you post it?

Ill try this weekend