02/28/2008
Iggy Pop Rocks David Bowie's Head Off
Like downing a bag of Pop Rocks and chugging a Coke, Iggy is well versed in the art of explosive music. This weekend I was stuck in an airport for a number of hours and went through a couple of my favorite Iggy albums. After listening to The Idiot and Lust For Life from start to finish, my flight was still delayed. So having the down time, I listened to David Bowie's attempts at covering "China Girl," and "Tonight." As I have said before, and I'll say again, I'm a true blue Bowiephile BUT David has nothing on Iggy in terms of these songs...even if he did co-write them.
Iggy's debut solo album, The Idiot, was released in 1977 with the help of bosom-buddy Bowie, wearing the hat of the album's producer. This record secured Iggy's position among the ranks of the musically brilliant. Bowie adopted two songs ("China Girl" and "Sister Midnight") for albums he would release years later. On "Sister Midnight" Bowie added new lyrics, rearranged it a bit, and renamed the song "Red Money" for his album Lodger. That one, I take no issue with. What he did to "China Girl,"however, is another story.
Gone is the mish-mashed, proto-punk of the original. Iggy's brazen, ballsy vocals have been replaced by flimsy whiffs of insincere schmaltz. And...bad 80s bleached hair.
The second album Iggy released in 1977, Lust For Life, featured yet another partnership with Bowie. Songwriting credits on "Tonight" and "Neighborhood Threat" from this record cite Pop and Bowie (in that order) as co-writers for the songs. Interestingly enough, Bowie adopted both tunes for his 1984 album Tonight and credited himself first as the writer. He then went on to properly ruin each song with slick 80s production and melodramatic hairstylings. Look what he did to "Tonight."
WTF? Reggae?! I hope Iggy smacked David for what he did to his song. I adore the original for its velvety swagger, and its hazy confessions. Then Bowie went and made "Private Dancer"-era Tina Turner turn the song into lousy adult contemporary elevator duet. Well done, David. You should be ashamed of yourself, Tina.
Ignore David's covers, listen to Iggy's original versions, and buy The Idiot and Lust For Life at Amazon.
MP3
Download 'Iggy Pop - China Girl'5:09 | 6.64MB
Download 'Iggy Pop - Tonight'3:40 | 5.70MB
Posted by Emily on 02/28/2008 3:40 PM in Rock, YouTube, 80's Pop, 70's Rock, Punk
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