The Stooges

Considered the godfathers of punk, the Stooges pioneered a raw unabashed sound that would be later catogorized as proto-Punk, punk, and punk rock. Fronted by the infamous Iggy Pop and original backed by the underappreciated talents of guitarist Ron Asheton, Drummer Scott Asheton, and Bassist Dave Alexander. The Stooges were original found by an Elektra spokesman who was on location to sign the MC5. The Stooges opened for them that night and (with the support of the MC5) also got a contract with Elektra. After their self-titled release (1969) and the followup Fun House (1970) Elektra droped the Stooges for lack of record sales. In 1972 Iggy meet David Bowie who then had them signed to Columbia. The lineup changed to include James Williamson on guitar with Ron Asheton takeing over Bass, and Scott Asheton remaining on drums. In 1973 Raw Power was released to the traditional lack of sales ending the Stooges for good. Iggy Pop continued working with David Bowie to make solo recordings but none matched the raw energy present on the Stooges' records. In 2003 Iggy Pop reunited Ron and Scott Asheton for a few songs on his album Skull Ring and a subsequent tour.