Punk icon Iggy Pop turns 60, dives off stage
Sun Apr 22, 2007 3:45AM EDT
By Dean Goodman
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Iggy Pop marked his 60th birthday on Saturday just like any other respectable senior citizen would.
The eerily athletic "Godfather of Punk" stripped down to a tight pair of blue jeans and dived off the stage into the arms of his adoring fans during a concert in San Francisco with his reunited band the Stooges.
Towards the end of the 80-minute show, the crowd at the Warfield theater sang along as his bandmates struck up "Happy Birthday," and Pop was surprised as balloons bearing his image dropped from the ceiling.
A fan also handed him a white T-shirt inscribed "Birthday Boy Iggy," which the singer proudly displayed to his unimpressed bandmates.
Pop, whose real name is Jim Osterberg, seemed thrilled by all the attention, but did not dwell too much on the special occasion. He muttered a few thanks along the way before resuming his usual routine: manic singing and dancing, spitting into the crowd, scampering onto the speakers and throwing his microphone stand around the stage.
During the song "No Fun," he invited fans in the mosh pit to jump onto the stage, and generously shared his microphone with the motley troupe he termed the "Bay Area Dancers."
Pop no longer carves up his chest with a steak knife, rolls around in cut glass, smears himself in peanut butter, or follows a drug regimen that makes Keith Richards look like a choirboy. But the Michigan trailer-park kid otherwise outruns rockers one-third his age.
Pop is back on tour with the Stooges, the band with which he first made a splash in the late 1960s. Their enthusiastic garage rock, a dissonant distillation of Chicago blues and British Invasion rock, helped pave the way for punk rock bands like the Ramones and the Sex Pistols.
The Stooges self-destructed in 1974 after releasing three albums whose influence was not reflected by their meager sales. Pop ended up penniless in the gutters of the Sunset Strip, and checked into a psychiatric hospital. He launched a comeback in 1977 with the help of David Bowie, with whom he co-wrote such tunes as "Lust for Life" and "China Girl."
A prolific recording artist and touring act, he reunited with Stooges guitarist Ron Asheton and his brother, drummer Scott Asheton, in 2003. With California punk veteran Mike Watt subbing for late bass player Dave Alexander, they last month released their first album in 33 years, "The Weirdness."
After their North American tour ends on May 4 at the Beale Street Music Festival in Memphis, they will launch a brief summer tour of European festivals.
22nd April 2007 07:52 AM
Ten Thousand Motels
Fuck...I didn't even see this before I posted this item.
http://www.maxlugar.com/forum/detail.asp?Id=84613
22nd April 2007 12:47 PM
GotToRollMe
Here are a few photos from Iggy's April 21st birthday show at the Warfield:
[Edited by GotToRollMe]
22nd April 2007 12:54 PM
fireontheplatter
one of these days i will have to listen to this guy just to see what all the fuss is about.
22nd April 2007 01:18 PM
GotToRollMe
You don't know what yer missing, kid. Try the Stooges "Funhouse" and Pop's "Lust For Life" albums for starters. And if you ever have the opportunity, see 'em live!
22nd April 2007 03:12 PM
pdog
quote:fireontheplatter wrote:
one of these days i will have to listen to this guy just to see what all the fuss is about.
the music is perfect for deviants, misfits, mental patients and outsiders....
I love it!
22nd April 2007 04:56 PM
ExileIzzy
Funhouse is amazing
23rd April 2007 01:25 PM
monkey_man
Iggy looked like he was having a blast on Sat! The band did the Happy Bithday after Trollin'. They dropped the balloons and then launched into 1969! I didn't see his image on the balloons or I might have grabbed one.
23rd April 2007 01:34 PM
monkey_man
From Thursday's show:
From the Birthday show:
[Edited by monkey_man]
23rd April 2007 02:34 PM
pdog
awesome...
23rd April 2007 03:06 PM
guitarman53
Yeah, Iggy! amazing he's still alive, I remember getting The Stooges first album, & someone mentioned he's a fag, the same could be said about The Alice Cooper band when they were a transvestite band, the real old original rebels, I think if it wasn't for David Bowie, Iggy would never have made it.
Strange thing is the last time I heard about Iggy, he was playing golf with Vincent Furnier (Alice Cooper) & David Bowie! talk about people who have survived.
23rd April 2007 03:07 PM
pdog
Lou, Iggy and Bowie in Berlin! Amazing anyone survived!
24th April 2007 04:50 AM
Dan
Yep, the Wiltern show was awesome! The pit wasn't first come first serve so I am glad I didn't take off early from work and leave the stuff at home which was considered. Great stuff, also liked Sistas In The Pit and also the first band was some power trio with Philthy Animal Taylor formerly of Motorhead on drums. Great show, glad I went, Kimmel is tomorrow, got a ticket for that too.
24th April 2007 01:31 PM
GotToRollMe
Thanks for the vids, monkey_man! Looks like a good time was had by all!
And Dan, glad ya made it to the show AND ya got tickets to Kimmel. Can't wait to see that one tonight!
24th April 2007 01:47 PM
monkey_man
24th April 2007 03:11 PM
Dan
The Birthday Show is on Dime. So is Chicago, Denver and a short FM broadcast from SXSW.
24th April 2007 03:32 PM
pdog
quote:Dan wrote:
The Birthday Show is on Dime. So is Chicago, Denver and a short FM broadcast from SXSW.
any of the shows sound good, that you know of? I imagine these aud. recordings souding like a train going by...
24th April 2007 04:17 PM
Dan
quote:pdog wrote:
any of the shows sound good, that you know of? I imagine these aud. recordings souding like a train going by...
Warfield was recorded on cassette. Haven't heard any of them other than an hour of the Wiltern, which does sound good, but not sure if I will have time to transfer it before I go to my secret torrent location this weekend.
24th April 2007 07:16 PM
GotToRollMe
quote:pdog wrote:
any of the shows sound good, that you know of? I imagine these aud. recordings souding like a train going by...
I've been downloading them all but haven't had a chance to listen to any of them yet...lol...yeah, I know, I'm hopeless...I'll let ya know when I do.
25th April 2007 11:55 AM
Dan
Stooges played longer than what was broadcast last night.
She Took My Money
I Wanna Be Your Dog
T.V. Eye
Funhouse
Skull Ring
Seems like it would have been easy to tape after all, I will remember that next time.
5th May 2007 02:49 PM
_Boomy_
Once again, I would like to wish Iggy Pop a Happy, Happy Cinco De Mayo.
6th May 2007 09:02 AM
Strange_Stray_Cat
The last time Keith tried to dive, he ended up having brain surgery.
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