Ron Asheton Dies at 60
Casey Fighorn is a friend of Quarterlifeparty and general critic of all things.
I type this up with heavy heart. Stooges guitarist Ron Asheton was found dead in his Ann Arbor, Michigan home early this morning. At this point details are not particularly clear, though officials say it is likely that Asheton suffered a heart attack, probably some days ago. He was found on his couch.
For those of you who don’t know, Ron Ashton and the Stooges pretty much invented punk rock before anyone had coined the term. They emerged out of the Detroit rock scene of the middle and later 1960s that included fellow proto-punk pioneers the MC5. Both bands exhibited the kind of manic drive and aggressiveness that would typify later punk groups like the Sex Pistols, the Clash, the Ramones, etc.
Asheton’s contributions cannot be overstated. The simplicity down simplicity of his guitar belied a prodigious skill with the instrument, and his songs and melodies are much of the reason post-punk existed in the first place.
After the tumultuous break up of the Stooges in the middle ‘70s, Asheton took part in a few other bands, none of which ever achieved the legendary status of his partnership with Iggy Pop, his drummer brother Scott Asheton, and late bassist Dave Alexander. Asheton was moved to bass guitar after Alexander’s alcohol related health problems made him unable to continue playing. He was replaced on guitar by James Williamson for Raw Power, which flopped commercially, which along with Pop’s drug habit led to the band’s 30 year hiatus. They reunited in 2003 after a clean and sober Pop saw the Asheton brothers’ collaboration with Minutemen legend Mike Watt, who would join the Stooges to replace Alexander.
Their 2007 album The Weirdness received mix reviews, but their live shows were purportedly as energetic as they had been initially. The sets included no material from Raw Power. I missed the reunion shows, and the 2007 tour, and will always regret this, despite the fact that I was nary a twinkle in my father’s eye the last time the original lineup played.
Every record — even the compromised Raw Power on which Asheton played bass— is a must-own. The eponymous LP features punk classics like “No Fun” and “I Wanna’ Be Your Dog.” The follow-up, Funhouse is cited by a plethora of music luminaries including Kurt Cobain, and Steve Albini as the best rock and roll record ever made. Every single song on the record is a masterpiece and the album is perfectly ordered; all while being light years apart from the rock stars of the era.
I’m listening to it as this gets posted. You should listen to it while you’re reading.
Related:
Tags: Uncategorized , The Stooges
This is such a shocking loss. Totally unexpected.
on January 6th, 2009 at 1:50 pm