Any rock and roll musician not influenced by Ron Asheton is either tasteless or ignorant. Decades from now, his music on the first two Stooges albums will still be played. Why is the famous wildman Iggy Pop screaming and hooting like a maniac on the song below? Because Ron Asheton’s guitar had been blasting in his ears for 4 or 5 hours when the tape rolled.
WARNING: ROCK AND ROLL
Here is a literary description of live rock and roll, from an interview with Iggy Pop.
Q: When you’re on stage, do you become someone else?IP: When it’s good, performing live should be like flying while elephants pound the earth. Any actor will tell you that they do their best work when they forget what they’re doing and just pay attention to the other actor. I think the same is true about live rock. Just sing the bloody song. Don’t worry about your pants, don’t worry about where you’re putting your legs, don’t worry about your hairdo. Other than that, pay attention to the crowd. Once I get into that, I don’t know who I am at that point. That’s the best it gets.
Rock and roll just lost an elephant.
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