The Idiot

by Iggy Pop

Overview

In 1976, the Stooges had been gone for two years, and Iggy Pop had developed a notorious reputation as one of rock & roll's most spectacular waste cases. After a self-imposed stay in a mental hospital, a significantly more functional Iggy was desperate to prove he could hold down a career in music, and he was given another chance by his longtime ally, David Bowie. Bowie co-wrote a batch of new songs with Iggy, put together a band, and produced The Idiot, which took Iggy in a new direction decidedly different from the guitar-fueled proto-punk of the Stooges. Musically, The Idiot is of a piece with the impressionistic music of Bowie's "Berlin Period" (such as Heroes and Low), with it's fragmented guitar figures, ominous basslines, and discordant, high-relief keyboard parts. Iggy's new music was cerebral and inward-looking, where his early work had been a glorious call to the id, and Iggy was in more subdued form than with the Stooges, with his voice sinking into a world-weary baritone that was a decided contrast to the harsh, defiant cry heard on "Search and Destroy." Iggy was exploring new territory as a lyricist, and his songs on The Idiot are self-referential and poetic in a way that his work had rarely been in the past; for the most part the results are impressive, especially "Dum Dum Boys," a paean to the glory days of his former band, and "Nightclubbing," a call to the joys of decadence. The Idiot introduced the world to a very different Iggy Pop, and if the results surprised anyone expecting a replay of the assault of Raw Power, it also made it clear that Iggy was older, wiser, and still had plenty to say; it's a flawed but powerful and emotionally absorbing work. [The Idiot was reissued on LP in 2017.] ~ Mark Deming

Product Details

Release Date:	06/02/2017
Label:	Virgin Emi
UPC:	0602557366242
Rank:	5887

Tracks

1. Sister Midnight
2. Nightclubbing
3. Funtime
4. Baby
5. China Girl
6. Dum Dum Boys
7. Tiny Girls
8. Mass Production

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Iggy Pop   Primary Artist,Lead Vocals,Vocals
Dennis Davis   Drums
Phil Palmer   Guitar
David Bowie   Piano,Guitar,Keyboards,Saxophone,Xylophone,Synthesizer,Vocals (Background)
Laurent Thibault   Guitar (Bass),Bass
Michel Santangeli   Drums
Carlos Alomar   Guitar
George Murray   Bass,Guitar (Bass)

Technical Credits

Tony Visconti   Mixing,Mixing Engineer
Walter Lacey   Composer
James Williamson   Composer
David Bowie   Arranger,Composer,Engineer,Producer
Ron Asheton   Composer
David Skye   Producer
Dave Alexander   Composer
David Alexander   Composer
Geoff MacCormack   Composer
Iggy Pop   Composer
Scott Asheton   Composer
Carlos Alomar   Composer
James Osterberg   Composer