Ron Asheton (the one with the glasses in the above image of The Stooges) has died.
Here is a more recent image of the man behind many of the amazing riffs in the demented Stooges catalog.
Ron was found dead in his home in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He was 60 years old. In 2003, after decades apart, The Stooges re-united for some shows. In 2007 they released an album of new material and toured again. The following quote helps explain why the punks and proto-punks were and are so revered. They were like US. They were not grand-standing rock "stars."
“When I was a young guy coming up, going to the Grande Ballroom every weekend, I got to see my heroes play. Jeff Beck, the Who, everyone. I didn'tThe Stooges, fueled by Ron's debased riffs and Iggy's demented vocals, set the blueprint for nearly every single raw, garage, punk, outcast, misfit group of loners that decided they would tell the world to fuck off by starting a band.
want to be a fanboy, but I'd stand there and wait — 'I just want to say hi, this
was great.' I saw them walk by me with blank stares like they were zombies. I
said to myself, you know, if I ever make it, I've got at least one minute for
everybody who wants to say something. So I talk to people, and that's what's
exciting now." - Ron Asheton
Listen to the unmistakable guitar riff that starts and propels the Stooges anthem, I Wanna Be Your Dog
Hear some more of his sleazy guitar in this Stooges classic, 1969.
You could easily transcribe the lyrics to today.
Well its 2009 OK, all across the USA
Its another year for me and you
Another year with nothing to do
Last year I was 21 I didn't have a lot of fun
And now I'm gonna be 22 I say "oh my" and a "boo-hoo"
Its 2009 OK, all across the USA
Its another year for me and you
Another year with nothing to do
Another year with nothing to do
Its 2009 baby
The Soup Nazi, one of the bad mo-fuckas at the Sonic Youth Gossip Forum, has provided these links.
February 2000 interview with Ron Asheton (by Jason Gross)
From the same website ( Perfect Sound Forever ), here is a listing of Ron Asheton's favorite records.
Pharoah Sanders - Upper Egypt
John Coltrane - Cosmic Music
Jimi Hendrix - Are You Experienced?
Rolling Stones - Aftermath
The Doors - The Doors
"New records? Don't listen to 'em. Don't really care. I just don't care about all the new female singers. I don't wanna know what you ate for breakfast and that you got up. FUCK YOU! The only way I could watch MTV was when Beavis and Butthead was on, when they ripped everything apart." - RON ASHETON
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