Iggy Pop is an artist that I just keep going back to, again and again. Apart from his work with his band The Stooges, Pop has also led an amazing solo career. His first two solo efforts, Lust for Life and The Idiot are possibly my favorite albums of the 70s.
Iggy Pop is arguably one of the biggest living musical legends on the planet today. Iggy is the grandfather, king and pretty much inventor of punk music. His live shows are legendary: The raw, bare-chested, sweaty, drunken bravado at his shows in the 60s/70s have been an inspiration for punk and rock performers ever since, and an endless hoard of people have since attempted to be as kick-ass as him - which is an impossible task, of course.
After inventing his raw stage persona as the vocalist for his band The Stooges, he left the band to go solo, and then something unusual happened: he actually made even better music. In 1977 he releaed his first two solo albums, Lust for Life and The Idiot, with only a half year interval. Lust for Life is the most famous of the two, with its iconic album cover featuring Iggy's creepy and manic smile brimming at you. From the very first track (which is also the title track), you know you're in for something special: In what I honestly think is one of the best opening tracks ever made, the song comes right at you with its intense drums, and the heavy bass and Iggy's nonchalant vocals carry you through five powerful and legendary minutes.
Pop is still as active as ever today. In what has to be one of my favorite singles of 2009, he teamed up with the BPA, also known as Fatboy Slim, to record a cover of The Monochrome Set's "He's Frank". This song is an awesome meeting of two talents, and almost as good as Pop's former US-UK collaboration - which was in the 70s and with David Bowie. (Bowie wrote songs for Lust for Life and The Idiot). The song's video is awesome too, and conveniently also has a puppet theme that fits well into this blog!
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