(Case in point: When J Mascis and Mike Watt hooked up with Ron Asheton for some 2001 dates, they only performed songs from the first two Stooges albums when Guns N' Roses and the Red Hot Chili Peppers covered the Stooges, they did songs from Raw Power.) It speaks volumes about the songs' pure immediacy and charisma that, even in its original mix, Raw Power became the album most responsible for giving the Stooges a life after death. Where the primordial caveman blues of The Stooges and the proto-metallic grind of Funhouse made them touchstones for future grunge, stoner-rock, and noise artists, Raw Power provided a mainline for first-generation punks and the 80s hard-rockers that followed in their wake. And in accordance with those changes, Bowie's infamously treble-heavy Raw Power mix thrust Iggy's vocals and Williamson's searing solos miles out in front of the rhythm section, to the point of practically writing Ron and drummer/brother Scott Asheton out of the set.Īll of which has made Raw Power the most contentious release in the Stooges catalog, a fact that Iggy himself effectively owned up to in 1997 when he issued an exponentially louder and beefier new mix that took the album's title to literal extremes (and, in the process, horrified audiophiles with a distaste for digital distortion). With the Stooges dropped from Elektra, Iggy exploited a solo-artist deal with David Bowie's management to reassemble his band around new guitarist James Williamson, pushing Ron Asheton to bass and re-branding the Stooges as "Iggy & the Stooges". Because the Stooges heard on Raw Power were not the same band that produced 1969's self-titled debut or 1970's Funhouse, but rather some mutant, zombie version. It’s as if he created a better mix, and then pushed the master level up all the way.When Iggy Pop commanded a generation of glam-rock kids and biker-bar burnouts to "dance to the beat of the living dead" on Raw Power's totemic title track, he wasn't just talking B-movie nonsense- he was heralding his band's back-from-the-grave resurrection. From what I’ve heard of the Bowie mixes, I agree they are thin, but I also feel the Pop mix is too hot. You can feel the equipment is in pain from having such rock n roll pushed through it at such high levels. Mostly he’s pulled back the guitar a little while pushing forward the bass and vocals. Everything sounds more present, despite being compressed violently. My copy of the album is the CD version from 1997. There are three mixes out there, the original release mixed by David Bowie, a 1997 release mixed by Iggy Pop, and a 2012 Record Store Day remaster of the Iggy Pop mix. They are joined by guitarist James Williamson.
Pop started “Raw Power” as a solo album, but ultimately enlisted former Stooges drummer Scott Asheton and bassist Ron Asheton. At the point of writing and recording this album, The Stooges were officially broken up with alcohol and drug problems. I received my introduction to the Stooges six months ago with their second album “Fun House.” I loved them then, and I loved this album two. This week, I have been listening to Iggy and the Stooges’ third album “Raw Power” from 1973.
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