Reviews (page 3 of 8)
Solid, Iggy
Gonna go up I think. Its 3.5 but man did the 3rd track piss me off. There is some good guitar and just music in general but that track was ten minutes of a waste of time and everything.
Unexpected insanity around every bend. A wild ride
very interesting album and not what i expected. quite good. just short of a 4 for me, probably a 3.5 not sure. but i’ll give it a 4 for the influence it had on the music to come. 🌕🌕🌕🌗
Now this is great. I love it. 1969 I had never heard and I can’t stop listening to it.
It's like if The Doors went Punk and started using a lot of Fuzz and Wah. I knew the first two tracks (1969 and I Wanna be your Dog) which are both absolute jams. I don't think the rest of the album quite lives up to the intensity of those first two tracks but the vibes and rawness are there throughout the album.
I’ve skimmed through this one before and I’ve heard “I Wanna Be Your Dog” several times but this is the first time I’ve sat and listened all the way through. I really wish I had done this earlier, killer record for sure! The slower jams “We Will Fall” and “Ann” were surprisingly my favorites on this listen. All around phenomenal record that deserves the praise it gets. 4.5
Fantastic psyche sound , and great guitars
I can't imagine putting this on in 1969 and having your mind blown. You can hear the punk genre forming in this album.
Imagine how new it must have sounded back in 1969. It's truly a link between late 60s psychedelic rock and 70s punk - it's one of the most important albums in proto punk, if not the most important. I love I Wanna Be Your Dog the most, the rest are also very good songs. On importance it should get a 5, for my personal taste it gets a 4.
The 10 minute song kept it from a 5 star. Guess I like the Stooges - didn't have that on my bingo card when I started this quest. 4/5
Solid album. Enjoyed first half more than second. Standout songs: 1969 Not Right
Good album
Primitive, raw, fuzzed out guitar. The antithesis to the pop and blues based bands of the time. Proto-punk rock. Experimental sounds.
Original proto-punk. Love it.
Inspired literally thousands of bands. I can't think of how many bands I've read about that mention the Stooges as the beginning of their lineage. What's crazy is that this is still my least favorite of theirs despite having a couple of their arguably best songs. The influence alone makes it at least four stars, but it only has enough great songs to make a perfect EP, not quite a full LP. Rating: 4.2
They look like they stink and don't give a shit about it. This music kicks you in the balls and spits in your mouth then tries to make out with you. Don't pretend you don't like it you dirty bitch. Best Tracks: 1969; I Wanna Be Your Dog; No Fun
Pretty great, with some classic jams. A bit uneven at times, but still solid and raw sounding.
# 🎸 In-Depth Review: The Stooges by The Stooges (1969) ## 📀 1. Introduction and Background The Stooges' self-titled debut album, released in August 1969, is widely regarded as a **landmark proto-punk recording**. Produced by John Cale (formerly of the Velvet Underground) and released by Elektra Records, the album initially received mixed critical and commercial reception but has since been recognized as one of the most **influential rock albums** of all time. With its raw energy, minimalist approach, and confrontational style, *The Stooges* laid the groundwork for punk rock and alternative music. --- ## 🎤 2. Lyrics and Themes ### 📝 2.1 Lyrical Content The lyrics on *The Stooges* are characterized by their **simplicity, repetition, and primal themes**. Iggy Pop’s writing often reflects themes of **boredom, alienation, and raw desire**, eschewing the poetic or political complexity of some contemporaries in favor of direct, visceral expression. For example: - **"1969"** captures youthful frustration and apathy with lines like *"Another year with nothing to do."* - **"I Wanna Be Your Dog"** explores themes of submission and raw sexual energy with minimal, repetitive lyrics. - **"No Fun"** is an anthem of ennui, with Iggy repeatedly snarling *"No fun, my babe, no fun"*. ### 🧠 2.2 Themes - **Boredom and Alienation**: The album encapsulates the disillusionment of late 1960s youth, focusing on feelings of stagnation and disaffection. - **Primal Desire**: Tracks like "I Wanna Be Your Dog" and "Real Cool Time" emphasize raw, unfiltered urges, often with a sinister or menacing undertone. - **Experimentalism**: "We Will Fall" stands out as a departure, featuring a **10-minute drone** with improvised chanting and mystical lyrics, drawing comparisons to The Doors and Velvet Underground. --- ## 🎶 3. Music and Sound ### 🔉 3.1 Musical Style The album’s music is **raw, minimalist, and aggressively primal**. It blends elements of: - **Garage Rock**: Simple, riff-based structures reminiscent of The Kinks or early Rolling Stones. - **Proto-Punk**: Distorted guitars, pounding drums, and Iggy’s snarling vocals prefigure the punk movement. - **Psychedelic and Experimental Influences**: "We Will Fall" incorporates drone and Eastern-inspired chanting, while "Ann" offers a slower, moodier contrast. ### 🎹 3.2 Instrumentation - **Guitar**: Ron Asheton’s guitar work is defined by **fuzz distortion, wah-wah effects, and repetitive but powerful riffs**. - **Rhythm Section**: Dave Alexander (bass) and Scott Asheton (drums) provide a **primitive, driving foundation**, though their playing is often rudimentary. - **Vocals**: Iggy Pop’s performance is **charismatic and unpolished**, ranging from snarls and screams to Morrison-esque crooning. --- ## 🎛️ 4. Production ### ⚙️ 4.1 Production Style Produced by John Cale, the album’s production is **minimalist and unadorned**, aiming to capture the band’s live energy. However, the production has been criticized for its **flatness and lack of dynamism**, with some song parts sounding monotonous or indistinguishable. ### ⚠️ 4.2 Strengths and Weaknesses - **Strengths**: The production effectively captures the **raw energy** of the band, making the album feel immediate and confrontational. - **Weaknesses**: The mix can sound **thin or one-dimensional**, and the lengthy "We Will Fall" is often cited as a misstep in pacing and production. --- ## 📊 5. Themes and Influence ### 🧱 5.1 Themes The album’s themes of **alienation, boredom, and primal rebellion** resonated with audiences who felt disconnected from the peace-and-love ethos of the late 1960s. Its raw, unvarnished portrayal of youth culture was both a critique and a reflection of its time. ### 🌍 5.2 Influence *The Stooges* is arguably one of the **most influential rock albums ever recorded**, shaping the development of: - **Punk Rock**: Bands like the Sex Pistols, Ramones, and The Clash drew directly from its raw energy and minimalist approach. - **Alternative and Grunge**: Artists like Sonic Youth and Nirvana cited the album as a key influence. - **Live Performance**: Iggy Pop’s confrontational stage style set a new standard for rock performance. --- ## ✔️ 6. Pros and Cons ### 👍 Pros: - **Groundbreaking Sound**: The album’s raw, minimalist approach was unlike anything else in 1969 and remains influential. - **Iconic Tracks**: Songs like "I Wanna Be Your Dog" and "1969" are timeless anthems of rebellion. - **Cultural Impact**: It laid the foundation for punk and alternative music. ### 👎 Cons: - **Inconsistent Material**: The inclusion of the **10-minute drone "We Will Fall"** disrupts the album’s flow and is often seen as self-indulgent. - **Limited Musicality**: The band’s rudimentary playing style may alienate some listeners. - **Production Issues**: The flat mixing and lack of dynamism can make parts of the album sound monotonous. --- ## 🏁 7. Conclusion *The Stooges* is a **flawed but revolutionary album** that remains essential listening for rock fans. Its raw energy, minimalist style, and confrontational themes paved the way for countless artists and genres. While not without its weaknesses—such as the indulgent "We Will Fall" and uneven production—the album’s cultural and musical impact is undeniable. It stands as a testament to the power of rock music as a vehicle for rebellion and raw expression. > 💡 **Fun Fact**: The album initially peaked at number 106 on the Billboard charts but has since been recognized as one of the greatest rock albums of all time by publications like Rolling Stone.
Yes! I love when an album I’ve never heard of sneaks up on me! Great energy, excellent guitar, apparently pronto-punk but there is actual melody and vocals that don’t rely on screaming. So exciting to hear an album from the 1960’s that doesn’t sound one bit dated.
Some great high points, but not quite up there with Raw Power. The slower, more experimental tracks not what the band was great at.
This album has a neat sound and it hums along at a good pace. The style is pretty forward-thinking for 1969. Favorite track: "I Wanna Be Your Dog"
In the morning, on discord: I would consider helter skelter as proto metal like how Iggy Pop is proto punk Right now: Woof! Woof woof! Woof! Woof. Woof woof woof woof woof; woof woof. Woof woof woof. Woof woof woof. Woof woof woof woof woof, woof woof woof, woof. Translation: it's (of course) not as good as fun house and raw power, but since it is their debut, it's alright. but its still a 3.5 for me cause these two albums mentioned before impressed me too much and this album didn't impress me much apart from 1969 and I want to be your dog, although i know debut albums are always weaker than later works. Woof.
Really liked how dark and weird this was. Many proto-goths must have been born listening to this. Iggy Pop/Stooges have been an artist I’ve really found myself liking thanks to this list
This album is both punk and psychedelic in the best way. It's weird and chaotic. Some songs drone and the guitar is muffled. I enjoyed it for it's weirdness.
Reminds me of The Doors sound. Pretty good album, raw sounding. “We Will Fall”a bit avant garde, the rest quite punky but in a good way. “Little Doll” a great track, brilliant drums and guitar solo at the end.
Detroit protopunk frá 1969, en ólíkt MC5 þá er þetta bæði skemmtilegt og töff. We will fall er kannski ekki hresst, en restin er það. Við höfum öll gott af smá Osterberg.
Ahead of its time. That has to count for something.
Love this Motor City Classic.
Overall: 8/10 Despite a couple droney tracks that I don't enjoy, this is a really solid effort, and I consider it to be the first true punk album. I love Iggy Pop, but he also wasn't in his most unhinged form yet. Totally worth listening to. Fav Song: I Wanna Be Your Dog
I dig the sound, very much formative for the era of emerging Rock.
Great debut album by a great band.
Dig it.
Great album. Nice and short, lots of fuzzy guitar, weird slightly creepy droning. Loved it.
Loved this one, the two great opening tracks especially . Well ahead of its time and clearly influencing the whole punk movement and loads of alternative artists to come. I picked up hints of Mudhoney, Sonic Youth and The Strokes too. It is also really interesting to pick up the influence of The Rolling Stones and The Beatles.
What is there to say that hasn’t been said?
It is a 30 minute album and one of the songs is a 10 minute long droning chant? Not gonna lie, I kind of dig it. And the opening to I Wanna Be Your Dog is fantastic.
Excellent album. Ironically The Stooges writing a 10 minute song was the most punk thing of all time.
While I lean more toward Iggy's solo work, there's no denying the sheer importance of The Stooges and their primordial ripple effect on punk rock and countless other movements with its beautifully unvarnished appeal.
Good
4/5
We Will Fall is pretty tough to listen to sober. Other than that, it's solid 70s rock. Hard to go wrong with that.
Mind. Blown. Thought this was "yet another" 60's rock band. Was wrong. They blend a psychedelic rock mix that is unique and wholly interesting. I ended up listening way past the original album and didn't even notice for a while. I favorited a few songs just to get them on my playlist. The Stooges are well worth listening to! Great gem of a find from the album generator!
Damn this album is only 20 minutes.. screw it we can stretch this shit out just pretend to be monks for a while. Haha We Will Fall aside, The Stooges to me have always been a masterclass in refinement. Their songs are so simple. It almost seems like folk in a strange way. I feel like I'm in a very small club or basement. I think it's the claps being so loud in the mix. And using sleigh bells?? So sick. And I've always felt like Iggy's coolness was legit, like despite the scene and the genre, he doesn't rouse my bullshit radar. His croon is amazing too.
You'd probably be scared of a heroin blood stained wall if you don't like this.
It's a seminal album, it's worth a listen or three, and whilst some of it resonates today, the bits that don't influenced a whole host of things
"Definitely hear their influence on similar bands from the 2000s. Like The Strokes. I hate The Strokes. Do not like this." I like The Strokes. Weird enough, maybe not compelling enough.
Lotta fun. A little dark, a little weird, very 60s.
why have i never listened to the stooges before? this was great
Remarkably, next Tuesday I'm going to an open air concert by Iggy Pop. I've listened to this album several times before. I always get really carried away by I Wanna be Your Dog. The rest of the album is weaker but still pretty good. 4/5
The late 60’s had a few bands with a psychedelic punk vibe that I really enjoy listening to. This was a very cool record, and I had no clue what to expect from it.
This is #day321 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and... yeah, here comes The Stooges again. I got Fun House less than a week ago, and now it's time for the debut. Legend has it that this record and the idea of starting the band were inspired by Iggy seeing The Doors live. Must've been at Whisky a Go Go, if I'm not mistaken? Morrison's stage alienation and the crowd's indifference apparently left a mark. And that comes through on this debut. From the album cover (a gentle nod to The Doors' own debut), to the music itself. "We Will Fall" sounds like an eerie marriage between The Velvet Underground and The Doors. A psychedelic dirge, a mantra. What a punk move to place a track that runs over 10 minutes as #3 on the record. And then, of course, there's "I Wanna Be Your Dog." This isn't just a record, it's a statement. And what follows will only make that clearer. This is a 4 out of 5. Looking forward to #day322.
Yes. Yes. Yes.
I mean, who doesn’t wanna be your dog?
Oh my god how did I not know this album existed. Flashes of the Sex Pistols, Ramones, Nirvana and Sonic youth. These guys were punk years before anyone knew what punk was. "I wanna be your dog" is attention grabbing but every track is a gritty snarling rebuff of everything that the 60's flower power generation stood for. Some of the slower (softer?) tracks have a Velvet Underground vibe. This is right in my wheelhouse.
Probably the first true punk album and it still holds up today. First three tracks are amazing, including We Will Fall which always puts me in a trance. The second half is more straight forward proto punk but still great stuff.
Super solid punk rock proto grunge.
Quick and dirty. Good stuff.
A bit weird, but in a good way! I would listen to most of it again I think.
1969! 4.5
A rocket up the backsides of the music industry, 60s hippiedom, and the American suburban lifestyle. Pretty damn good
Well this is a rarity. An album served up which I’ve never been anywhere near and which I’ve had to change my mind about. Don’t know if I’ve been influenced by Iggy Pop who even in the UK has become a bit of a national treasure. As an aside I love Iggy’s speaking voice which sounds (on the evidence of this album) nothing like his singing voice. But maybe like us all it has got deeper with age. Anyhow back to the music. I can now see why the plaudits value this album highly and accept that it was truly ground breaking at the time. The guitar solos make it for me. Don’t know anything about Ron Asheton but will delve into his back catalog. All in all good stuff and another good reminder why I like this process so much when gems are occasionally thrown up. 4/5 29/5/25
Great album, heard lots of familiar samples in the album too
Perusasioiden äärellä. Iggy rulaa aina
We Will Fall is an overlong, horrible, horrible track. The rest of the album is really cool garagey proto punk.
I've heard most of this album before. Really like it, and then comes the We Will Fall song. Almost knocked it down a full star for that. Finally had to skip the song 7 mins in. The rest of the album is great though. Sounds similar to the other 60s rock albums that were coming out at that time. 4/5
Genius first part, experimental second. Definetly a landmark in proto-punk.
The definitive proton-punk album and one that still sounds fresh and fun decades later. It almost excuses the mind-numbing stupidity of the lyrics. The Stooges would put out better albums, but this one clearly helped set the direction for the future of rock.
Raw and aggressive, lays down a path for punk in the following decade. Some baggers on there but a little consistent in places. A generous 4.
Really good album.
It’s like the best part of The Rolling Stones. They’ve got grit and they are boundary pushing for the era. I love the attitude and the grooves they fine. My only complaint is that there isn’t much variation in sound. I don’t need a band to be someone they’re not mid-album, but a few more key changes would be welcome.
I only know “I wanna be your dog” from this album. Listening and putting in perspective what was happening in America at the time both culturally and musically, I can’t believe this album even caught on and yet I can. This album has a great groove.
Gotta go find this one on vinyl now.
iggy pop is michigan excellence
1969 and I Wanna Be Your Dog are an amazing 1-2 punch to open this album but then the sleepy "We Will Fall" ten minutes of B-grade psychedelia mars that amazing start. Other than We Will Fall, though, this is otherwise a pretty flawless, classic proto-punk album.
p189. 1969. 4 stars. This is what you get if you put early Stones, the 13th Story Elevators and The Doors into a blender. Short, sweet and on point - all it's missing are more standout songs.
Unexpectedly really enjoyed the 10+ minute song
Raw.......I Wanna Be Your Dog is just a phenomenal track - could listen to it all day.
A really good album, I liked I Wanna Be Your Dog, We Will Fall and Little Doll the most.
We will fall got a little weird, but I like this kind of rock
Jag kan nog räkna gångerna jag lyssnat på detta albumet på en hand, och sist under gymnasiet, men jag får fortfarande No Fun och I Wanna Be Your Dog på huvudet OFTA.
Not the innovative explosive monster of Fun House, yet not the off-kilter cult death yawl of Raw Power, but still something magical in its own right. I think of the three albums The Stooges put out initially, this s/t debut is the most entry-level, and the one where the influences are the most obvious. You can hear The Doors, MC5, The Velvet Underground, and The Sonics, and you can see how they took those things and essentially ✨created✨ punk music. Even though that lineage is palpable on wax, though, this is still vitally important and still has a “proto-punk” energy that is incredibly exciting, even by today’s standards. The shredding guitar being high in the mix, as well as the pure energy in the drums and Pop’s vocals really pull me in. Plus, the lyrics have a Black Flag edge to them that I just love and feel in my core. Compared to their later work, this debut has higher highs in “1969,” “I Wanna Be Your Dog,” and “Real Cool Time.” And everything else is pretty much consistently on par with the rest of their discography, even if it lacks the innovation of what would follow. The biggest issue with this debut is that it has one huge flaw: “We Will Fall.” I get if and why you like this track– it is well-made and somewhat interesting, especially with its chanted vocals– but to me, it’s not only so era-specific that it sounds dated, but it’s also soooooo goddamn long. It doesn’t help that I don’t love psychedelic rock, so 10 whole minutes drags me out no matter what; on a proto-punk album, it basically slams the breaks and halts what should be an all-out high-energy experience. As a result, I’d ultimately put this below Fun House, but still above Raw Power overall. Thankfully, The Stooges are a great band across the board, so there isn’t really a such thing as a “bad” Stooges record. This s/t debut is no exception.
This is where Punk begins. The anthem: "I Wanna Be Your Dog" The whole album seems to be a mix of everything that rock had brought us up until then. It mixes this thing they called "Proto-punk" with psychedelic rock in a brilliant way. The album is only not 5 stars because "We will Fall" comes in in a very disconnected way with the rest of the album. It is a slow, drawn out and long track, which does not match the vibe of the rest of the album. That said: Great album! 4 stars.
Not their best - Fun House takes that crown - but still a solid debut. 4/5
i wanna be your dog” is one of the best songs of all time TO ME!!! partly because it reminds me of gen and reading her work in college and discovering so so so much utterly mindblowing new-to-me music as a result of all of her references. and partly because it is actually just that good of a song. well come on!!!!!!!!!!!!! the borderline binaural audio mixing on this album is crazy. the guitar tone especially sounds incredibly alive and dynamic throughout, although it breaks my heart to acknowledge that this was not the work of one john cale…thank god he made up for his insanely shitty mixing job by adding the sleigh bells to “i wanna be your dog”. while listening to this today i also realized for the first time that iggy pop’s delivery/vocal cadence reminds me a lot of jonathan richman which i find charming, lol. fav tracks: i wanna be your dog; no fun; 1969
i actually enjoyed this more than i expected! i didn't love the last stooges album we had but i thought these songs were more interesting to me, although some of them went on for longer than i would've liked (ironically not the ten-minute one, which induced a kind of trance that i enjoyed).
Raw, loud, and sloppy in all the right ways — The Stooges is one of the great progenitors of punk rock. Iggy Pop’s unhinged vocals and the band’s garage rock chaos laid the groundwork for a whole movement. "I Wanna Be Your Dog" is still an absolute beast of a track. It’s not polished, and that’s the whole point. This album didn’t care about being perfect — it just wanted to make noise and leave a mark. Mission accomplished. Favorite song: I Wanna Be Your Dog
Igggggggy :)
We will fall drags on too long, but apart from that this is class
I was really into the stooges years back. I loved this album. I haven’t listened to it in quite a while. We will fall takes up a third of the album and for a 34 minute album is a lot of filler. Everything else on here is great. An influential album for me personally but also to the world. This is raw and energetic, and doesn’t take itself too seriously. The definitive protopunk album.
I Wanna Be Your Dog has to be the hardest song to feature jingle bells. Real Cool Time delivers just that. Very cool and iconic.
I Wanna Be Your Dog
1969 wasn't ready for The Stooges
This is easily a four star album, maybe even five, but then there’s that…what the what is that 10+ minute thing for the third track? Take that out and, sure, it’s a short album, but every track is great. The raw power, pun probably not intended, is undeniable. Maybe not the most musical, but the grittiness of it is kind of the point. I’m going to pretend that I never heard the third track and go with 4/5.
Big fan of the musical stylings of Mr. Ignatius Pop
It really is insane this album came out in 1969. This album in my eyes is revolutionary than some of the early Metal and Hardrock to come. Obviously not taking from those visionaries but this really sounds like it’s 10 years before it’s time. When it’s comes to Punk/Post Punk sound The 10 min long track “We Will Fall” does seem to be there just to extend run time but it’s no offensive and was into how it felt of its 60’s time period 4/5
Iconic punk, all swagger and blood up the walls
Rating: 8/10 The first four songs are excellent, there is a huge drop in quality in the second half but it is thankfully much shorter in length. Really enjoyed the proto-punk vibes on here.
I wanna be your dog
I think this is the third Stooges album we have done, I enjoyed this one, but I don’t think it was quite as good as Fun House, which remains my favourite.
Given that this is 69, it has aged incredibly well (better than me, maybe). It feels fresh still, and I a surprised finding myself thinking "hey, Iggy was a pretty good singer, then". The songwriting is pretty good either, and it is way less rough and way more sophisticated than I had expected. A well worth listen.
Chillin, vibin, rockin
two albums in a row where i kinda dont know what to make of the B side??? the first three tracks really feel like a total statement,,,i definitely buy we will fall as an intentional break in the momentum (and a rly rly good one tbh, kind of impish and semi parodic but still a thick and effective hypnotic experience), and after we come out the other side its like we're treated to all the relatively Normal output of the sessions in a row. its structurally weird in a way that i kinda feel like Has to have something going on under the surface, but if so, its eluded me every time ive heard this record throughout the years. its still p good material but i have to admit it sounds a lil less impressively stripped down/id-driven now that ive heard the monks and the sonics lol. i feel like ive just been complaining but this is definitely a good album and an impressively weird gangly art object generally!!! a surprising amount to Think About for eluding conscious thought this intently
After drawing the unreserved insanity of Fun House before in 1001, The Stooges’ debut is, in comparison, reserved. And that’s something that works to its benefit. Although ‘reserved’ likely wouldn’t be the descriptor used if first hearing this on its release, from the “ironically timeless” opener of 1969 through the ten-minute spatial drawl of We Will Fall up until the last wow-ing guitar at the end of Little Doll, it’s a contained groove that’s still perfectly experimental. I guess the thought process here was, “fuck it, it’s 1969”.
The guitar work on this is really great especially on songs like 1969 and Not Right. This also surprised me as I was not expecting something like We Will Fall to be on this album. The energy is really great. Definitely ahead of its time. Favorites were 1969, I Wanna Be Your Dog, No Fun, and Not Right.
This was really cool. I hadn't heard any of these songs before, and a lot of them reminded me of The Kinks or The Animals, and actually Iggy Pop, which makes sense. I probably wouldn't listen to it again anytime soon though, because it was a little dry musically, but the production quality was really great for the time. Four stars.
Yep, I've heard this one before. Just heard it again. Definitely hits the spot from time to time. "We Will Fall" is probably controversial round these parts, but it certainly sets a mood.
garage/punk noisy riffs
I Wanna Be Your Dog es una tremenda canción.
The Stooges self-titled debut album was not particularly well received at the time of its release. Their simple, unrefined rock could be - as was - described as dirty and grungy. It is, and unapologetically so; Iggy Pop's songs and performances were intended to provoke reactions. The album was not commercially successful, either. The band influenced much of American punk and post-punk music; over time, the album has been recognized as one of the most influential early albums in punk. The album includes two of the band's early singles "1969" and "I Want to be Your Dog," which are great examples of the band's sound: Iggy Pop's confident swagger, backed by guitars with heavy distortion effects and a solid bass line.
Pretty bold move to follow up the all time great opening salvo of “1969” and “I Wanna Be Your Dog” with the 10 minute meditative psychedelic ambient piece “We Will Fall.” It totally kills the momentum of an otherwise killer album. Iggy and the gang really should have stuck that one on at the end of Side B.
Gritty and raw. Like someone took the peaceful feeling of hippy rock and ran it through a filter filled with stale beer and cigarette butts. Not the punk I know by sound, but contains the raw emotion of punk and laid bare the emotional grit it would come to be known for. Short blasting songs bookend the long and erie and ethereal sounds of “We Will Fall” provides the clearest connection to real hippy rock, layered with strings and a haunting refrain, it provides a respite from the more traditional length punk songs. Tracks like “Ann” connect The Stooges to rock predecessors The Doors. “No Fun” challenges the conventional wisdom by substituting hand claps for traditional drum kit, providing a lighter feel despite the heaviness of the lyrics.
Yas man got the vinyl
Yay, I like this album. My favorite is still I Wanna Be Your Dog.
Imagine hearing this in 69. Good stuff
If I've learned nothing else from this adventure, it is that I am an Iggy Pop fan. This album is delightfully sloppy with an organic, sprawling feel to it. This album serves all of the major food groups: crunchy guitars, psychedelic embellishments, spiritual journeys, and some straight rippers. I will say that on a number of songs they sound a bit like they are trying to tap the energy of Rolling Stones; on No Fun particularly sounds like Iggy is channeling his best Mick Jagger. 1969 and I Wanna Be Your Dog get things kicking straight out of the gate -- both solid rippers. Then there is an elongated detour into the vision quest that is We Will Fall during which I swear they are praying to Rumchata gods. A bit long winded, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. A couple more straight rippers before Ann pulls all wind from the sails and launches into a psychedelic deep dive. Love its languid pace. Another solid entry: 4 / 5 for me.
I fw the stooges I wanna be your dog is a banger
I think my reviews for Iggy Pop and his bands have previously been a bit all over the place. There are albums I found awful, and some I thought were pretty good. I went into this one hopeful, as if memory serves correctly I do tend to prefer the earlier stuff. Thankfully, I was correct in this expectation as this was a fun album. It’s got plenty of raw sounding punk rock, but comes before Iggy’s voice started getting grating to my ears. I still wouldn’t say it was amazing, but I would certainly say I enjoyed this.
The Stooges is the debut studio album by the Stooges, originally released in 1969. A lot of people credit the Stooges as the OG punk band. I had their album "Funhouse" earlier in this list and thought that was more aligned with the punk sound we know today. I was surprised to hear this one being more influenced by garage/psych. There is still tons of energy on this record, and you can hear them plant the seeds of what their sound would evolve to on later albums. It certainly sounded ahead of its time in 1969. I couldn't imagine hearing it for the first time back then. They certainly weren't afraid to get a little weird on here, even venturing to drone territory at times.
Love the Stooges, but this is by far their least impactful album. Still enjoy it quite a bit though, but it really lacks vs. Raw Power or Funhouse. 4.5/5
Interesting. I expected more noise being one of the big proto punk albums, but it was a lot better than I expected. It's still grounded in rock and is more melodic than I would have thought. Pleasantly surprised
Hell yeah! Brutalist garage proto punk with never ending riffs that influenced rock to its core.
Power chords and Iggy frontin'. LOUD LOUD LOUD. MORE MORE MORE.
Felt like a Guy Ritchie movie.....raw, powerful, gritty, melodic, rough around the edges. Great great album....too short and a little weak on the back half.
I can’t believe this album came out in 69- completely changes my idea of the timeline of music’s evolution in the 60s and 70s. So ahead of its time and full of so much energy and so different from most albums being released then. I am now a stooges fan.
4 stars
Just the absolute perfect balance of pop and gnarly psych freakouts.
Punk in the 60s is insane. This is arguably more ahead of its time than any other album ever made.
Very interesting record with a cool vibe to it. It's frenzied, lulling and melodic all together. Various moods but all with a lo-fi, down to earth feel. I dig this one a lot.
neat little album. you can tell that this is just the beginning for them. some really solid garage rock here, the highlight being the classic 'i wanna be your dog.' the two lowlights here for me were the unremarkable 'ann' and the incessant 'we will fall.' it definitely has the beginnings of the punk attitude, but doesn't totally bash you over the head with it. it's good, not great.
Love me some Iggy, but some of this just didn't hit the mark. 3.5
It's a vibe Nice for the right mood
This is great
Classic rock with a lot of psychedlic undertones
Favorite Track: 1969
Super relentless garage rock with some darker edges.
Had fun being the dog. Great proto punk album lots of energy lots of fun. Altough felt like they ran out of steam at certain points. All in a great time was had.
Love this, it's ground zero for any number of other great bands that I like
Four stars for the sheer audacity of I Wanna Be Your Dog -> We Will Fall
This is pop punk before it turned into music for pussies. It has the right blend of hardcore punk but it has the type of Melodie’s that could have crossed them over into more prominent radio play if the world was ready to hear it. It’s not a mind blowing album but it does the job to create listeners. Choice cut: No Fun
4*
Punk before punk was even a thought. Raw guitars, raw vocals what is not to like about this album. I wanna be your dog is a track that still sounds so fresh and edgy. Stand out tracks: - 1969 - I Wanna Be Your Dog - Real Cool Time - Little Doll
There was something very fun and free about this, even if I didn't love every minute of it.
Now that I know The Stooges, this is what I expected. Good stuff!
Love how weird this gets. There's plenty of garage rock and proto-punk, but also some borderline noise aspects and the 10 minute wildness of We Will Fall with John Cale on viola. Cool stuff.
*caveman noises intensify*
Yeah. It set the tone for what was to follow. Fantastic! Some songs are better than others, but still a solid album
Now I wanna be your Lester Longlegs
Solid proto punk. I Wanna Be Your Dog is an all time banger. No Fun is wicked cool. Attitude galore. Good stuff.
Late 60’s punk sound
The only thing this has going against it, is that it's not funhouse. Some of this was a bit drawn out (looking at you, We Will Fall) and made up on the spot but otherwis, this is great and raw to a degree.
Kinda funny I got this one just 2 days after Fun House. I already knew I love Fun House (did a rare re-listen for it the other day anyway), but this one was a first listen for me. It's good, I like the slower more psychedelic tracks and I Wanna Be Your Dog may be the best Stooges song, but Fun House is an overall better listen. (went ahead and listened to Raw Power today too, just to round out the trilogy. It's my least favorite of the 3, but still 7/10)
They were influenced by early Stones and mid Beatles. Influenced by Hendrix and the Doors and Poliitics and partying. Pre Zeppelin. Pre Sabbath. This had to really blow everyone’s minds. And they still don’t get the credit they deserve. Iggy Pop may be the grandfather of punk but at one point in the late 60s he was THE FIRST PUNK…. And this is what that sounds like. Raw. Fucking. Power.
Slightly biased as I was obsessed with this album when I was 18. Nice to listen back half a lifetime later and reflect on it. It is slightly simplistic, but sometimes that really helps it. Real cool time - lyrics beyond simple, but unreal guitar sound/tone that makes it sound so raw. Wanna be your dog one of the best 'simple' songs out there - unreal tune. Mad to think this came out when the Beatles were still about. I can understand those who can't get into it, but I can equally understand why it blew me away as a teenager.
Not only am I already familiar with the Stooges, but I’ve already listened to this debut album of theirs before. For what’s it worth, they were able to deliver a righteous rock sound that acts as a precursor to punk music. I’ve always enjoyed Iggy Pop’s abrasive yet controlled vocal delivery, and it’s well complemented by Scott Asheton’s punching drums, and the excellent bass and guitar work of Dave Alexander and Ron Asheton. Songs like “No Fun” and “I Wanna Be Your Dog” exemplify a simple yet aggressive approach to songwriting. The only song that doesn’t quite fit the vibes for me was the ten-minute “We Will Fall” that gets weird in movements, though I’m willing to give some slack cause it’s a debut album where the group will still defining their sound. Overall, a fun time and highly recommended.
What a rad album. I love how punk and psychedelic this is. It's almost as proto-punk as you can get, but it also sounds like LSD. I love how raw it is. The static on the guitars is super cool and something that has been repeated for year. It really feels like they were listening to Hendrix and The Doors and were like "lets just make this more raw." Fuzzier, angier, heavier, and totally unique for the time. Its wild this came out in 1969. I think Raw Power is still my favorite Stooges album, but I really like this one. Also, I didn't realize that John Cale was a producer on this record. That's super cool to see the cross over with the VU. You can definitely hear that influence.
And that's all three Stooges albums. This is the best one. It's slower and that actually makes it feel harder. The better they got, the worse they got, I guess?
The Stooges deliver that delicious raw energy as usual.
This is definitely a good album to listen to when exploring the early days of proto-punk. It’s a great starting point, but I personally enjoy some of the follow-up albums from The Stooges more than this one.
Good proto-punk, worse than Fun House, ‘We Will Fall’ sucks, end.
Ez 5 without We Will Fall. I Wanna Be Your Dog is top 5 songs ever. Ez 4.5.
Best be your dog Worst - we will fall
Not wall to wall but high highs
Este primer disco de los Stooges sonó en 1969 como no lo había hecho ningún álbum de ninguna banda hasta entonces (incluyendo sus influencias: los Stones, los Troggs o la Velvet Underground). Quizás por eso muchos críticos lo han definido como el eslabón entre el rock duro y el punk (muchos lo encasillan en el género "proto-punk"). Pero, para mi gusto, es un rotundo álbum de rock en el que unos jóvenes, poco conocidos entonces, dan rienda suelta a la furia y la rebeldía juvenil con una arrogancia y un desparpajo antológicos, riffs de guitarra brutales y melodías machaconas. El resultado son algunos de los clásicos del rock de todos los tiempos, de los que me gusta especialmente "1969". Pero qué decir de "I Wanna Be Your Dog", "Real Cool Time" o "No Fun". Canciones que sonaban adelantadas a su tiempo, y que hoy siguen sonando intemporales.
So raw and dirty. Does not feel like it's from 1969. Love it
So long ''My Sharona'', I found a new song to masturbate to! 4 tissues out of 5
I bet a live show was off the chain
Shows great promise, not nearly as exciting as later work
No Fun and I Wanna Be Your Dog are two of the best songs ever.
I can’t believe I’ve never listened to this. It’s a nastier, dirtier version of The Stones - so raw. I love Iggy’s vocals. “I’m Wanna Be Your Dog” is my new favorite song.
There are three MASSIVE jams on this debut album that are impossible to ignore: "1969", "I Wanna Be Your Dog", and "No Fun". They're massive, era-defining hits. But they're doing a lot of heavy lifting. In fact, those three tracks kinda carry the whole album on their backs. Don't get me wrong: I like them ALL. Even the 10-minute slog that is "We Will Fall". But, even though I like them, they're not all winners. But "I Wanna Be Your Dog", though. Hard to argue against it being worth at least a star on its own. Maybe two.
"It's 1969, baby...it's 1969, baby!" With that catchy intro and swagger, The Stooges' debut album slinks between songs between tracks that are straight blues rockers and sticks in the disarming, drugged-out, Middle Eastern-meets-Velvet Underground-inspired 10-minute track We Will Fall. The first half of this 8-song original album version is more enjoyable and interesting than the back half, which I found fine but sort of forgettable jammy blues rock. Given how seminal this debut is to garage rock and especially the punk movement, I'll give this album as a whole an extra star to move it from 3 to 4 stars. Interesting Factoid from Wikipedia: *The main guitar riff to "I Wanna Be Your Dog" was inspired by the opening guitar riff to "Highway Chile" by The Jimi Hendrix Experience and the song arrangement to "No Fun" was inspired by Johnny Cash's "I Walk The Line". Interesting Factoids from SongFacts: *In this punk classic [I Wanna Be Your Dog], Iggy Pop sings about how he wants to be used sexually by a woman. Songs like this helped establish Iggy as a punk icon known for unpredictable and outrageous behavior...Yes, those are sleigh bells that play throughout the song. Iggy Pop was always looking for unusual instrumentation - on "Search And Destroy" (featured on 1973's "Raw Power" album) you'll hear swords in the background. *"We Will Fall" is a 10-minute ethereal piece that is completely out of place on The Stooges' first album. It's driven by a yogic background chant and the viola of producer John Cale. The spoken word lyrics are Iggy Pop describing a night at the Chelsea Hotel waiting for his girlfriend (Nico from The Velvet Underground) to arrive. *According to Iggy Pop, the riff (from "No Fun") came out of a jam session when the whole band was stoned and Iggy made up lyrics to go with it based on "I Walk The Line" by Johnny Cash. Standout Tracks: 1969, I Wanna Be Your Dog, We Will Fall, No Fun
Great songs, loud guitar and a real Doors influence.
Back in the day, I was a prolific creator of mixtapes and mix CDs. I made them for everybody. I received just as much joy from sharing my favourite music as I did from listening to it. If you were anything like me, you'll understand that a worthwhile mixtape not only had a great collection of songs, but the order in which the songs played was vital. I believe they call this "sequencing". It needed to have the correct balance and flow. With this in mind, The Stooges' decision to place "We Will Fall" immediately after "I Wanna Be Your Dog" (an all-time banger!) is completely misguided. "We Will Fall" is a 10-minute snoozer that derails the momentum of the opening two tracks. Plus, they run the risk of people abandoning this album before ever reaching "No Fun" and the remaining gems that follow. It's completely out of place. At a push, "We Will Fall" should have been the closing track on this record. Otherwise, it should have been excluded altogether. It's the only low point in this kickass collection of songs. But like Meatloaf said, "7 Out of 8 Ain't Bad". The Stooges knocked it out of the park with their debut album. It's fucking awesome. 👍👍
This was a cool record. Really dig the vibe and production. Favourite tracks: 1969, I Wanna Be Your Dog, We Will Fall.
dark and groovy
The Stooges sound quite ahead of their time. Great stuff for the most part. I'm not sure how I felt about "We Will Fall"; I don't think it quite worked for me on today's listen, but I could see myself really getting into it on another day.
Really good album, enjoyed it a lot
Gear: Letshuoer S12 PRO Mix (2019 Remaster): (nicht nur) laut und scheiße - teils mit faszinierenden Stereo-Späßen Musik: der rohste Diamant 💎 Wertung: 🐶🐶🐶🐶/5
Just finished a Byrds album from 2 years prior to this and it's another world. Only VU can compare with this and the impact it had. This is crude, energetic and in your face.
Opening with 1969... that distorted guitar, the perfect proto-punk lyrics, and that Bo Diddley rhythm... moving into one of the best songs of the 60s with I Wanna Be Your Dog. The sleigh bell and constant single piano note.. I've heard both songs a million times but they never get old. It was my first time hearing the rest of the album, and I liked it (aside from the mediocre attempt at riffing on the Velvet Underground with We Will Fall)! One note in many ways, sure, but it's still good, and that can be ignored because it's short and tight. A very strong 4 for me!
Classic punk pioneers
Arguably among the founding fathers of Punk. To say that this album isn't very good is kind of like arguing that the Wright brothers didn't make a very good airplane: true in a vacuum, but it misses the significance. You should listen once then move on to better music.
I am not always in the mood for "We Will Fall", but when I am, the run of 1969-I Wanna Be Your Dog-We Will Fall-No Fun hits like a sledgehammer. Back half is a little more slight, but it still rips.
It's funny that no matter how boundary pushing the rock album is, if it came out around this time, you'll always hear the blues in it whether it's Sabbath or Stooges.
1969 offers up a psychedelic screamer to open the album, giving the wah a workout and the rhythm section holding a steady, repetitive beat that hearkens to a darker version of the psychdelic soul starting to come out of motown around this time. I wanna be your dog eschews any sort of pop leanings and goes hard into the proto punk, and we're off to the races. Wah tinged guitars appear throughout the album, as is Iggy's distinctive snarl. We Will Fall is a 10 minute spoken word doom spiral. Ann is a sad sludgy love song. Little Doll closes out with a familiar sounding vocal delivery and some guitar heroics. Overall the album dances with greatness but always in the shadows, afraid to come out of the basement.
So delightfully raw and wonderful.
The Stooges came up quiet a bit on the Velvet Underground podcast that got me into this whole thing, so I'm a bit familiar but haven't actually listened to much of them. Like the Velvets, a good bit of their appeal at the time was their live shows. Iggy Pop was wild on stage (huge understatement), so obviously that doesn't quite come through in the recorded albums. This is still super raw though in a great way. It's also produced by John Cale (after he got kicked out of the Velvets), and his involvement is clear from the sound (though his mix was actually rejected by the band). I guess they had been playing live shows in NYC for a bit with 7 songs, and they originally intended to just record those 7 songs for this album. Elektra didn't like this though so they had to scramble to write and record a few other songs pretty last minute. They got it done, but it's interesting how sometimes things just get thrown together. This starts super strong with "1969" and "I Wanna Be Your Dog", both awesome songs that are straightforward but raw and great. Then there's the 10-minute "We Will Fall", which is not my favorite on it's own, but it creates this really dark brooding type mood. The drone sounds in the background of "We Will Fall" are so clearly John Cale inspired, he has his fingerprints all over this one. A 10-minute chant song is also a great way to kill some time if Elektra wants more music (the whole album is under 35 minutes). The B-side starts with "No Fun", and then there's 4 shorter songs to round it out. "No Fun" is back to the formula, simple, raw, building intensity through the song, strong guitar on the second half. "Real Cool Time" is a bit of a miss for me, but "Ann" (which I think was the last song they added to the album) is awesome, it's got this really understated, slow-burn intensity. "Not Right" and "Little Doll" are both solid to wrap things up. This is a really strong album top to bottom that just falls a little short of perfection to me. I think the album format doesn't quite fully capture what they were about, and while "1969" and "I Wanna Be Your Dog" are both great, it's not the most deep album. "We Will Fall" is fine for the mood, but if you take that out it's only 25 minutes long. Still, a really great album and a pretty notable departure from a lot of what was getting made at this time. I think Iggy is going to continue to grow on me too, so I'm excited to get more of their music. Favorite song: 1969 Other: I Wanna Be Your Dog, No Fun, Ann, Not Right, Little Doll 2/17/24
Really good! 1969 is my favourite track off the album.
Mantienen una armonía y no son tan estridentes.
Yes! More of this, please -- going straight on the "to buy" list
Classic album. The Stooges are the band that to this day inspire modern artists.
Perhaps infamous Iggy Pop with his band of raw rockers have their most well-known songs from this album. Of course they don’t have many albums to choose from and they made more of a name for themselves from Iggy’s wild live antics. But I can get down with this.
Good, wasn’t expecting a 10 minute track by the guys who did “i wanna be your dog” (only song i knew from them)
more and less intimidating than i always thought it would be
Classic, cant believe it came out so long ago
the stooges
Given the era and general cultural goings-on at this time, this album could be considered way ahead, if not just “ahead” of its time. It’s both genre bending and inventive. Classic sound but with something still creatively unique in 2024. Production is crisp, layered and clean. The architecture is on point.
I recognize many tracks there which have been sampled, such as from 2manydjs. Great, raw album.
The birth pangs of punk. Raw and unfiltered.
I’m always amazed that music like this was being made at the same time as the Beatles.
Keywords: Vibrant Alt Rock Notable Song: I Wanna Be Your Dog
Fuzzy guitar punk sound, def a classic
Täähän oli kova, huimat soundit! Selvästi enemmän mun juttu kuin vaikka Ramonesin ja Clashin debyytit. Toivottavasti Fun House tulee myös, ehkä ymmärtäisin sitäkin nykyään.
Virkistävästi brittirock-aikalaisistaan poikkeavaa saundia. 4/5
Huh, The Stooges really made an asian-sounding post-punk album a good decade before everyone else? Impressive and wild, but also dragging a bit in the extended jam parts.
An important lesson on album structuring. . It’s obvious that Side A & B should’ve been switched. I’m emotionally and mentally exhausted when the first three songs are over. There’s no reason “We Will Fall” is not the final song of the album. Tha being said it’s still one hell of a debut album. Had Side B not been this good I would quickly have lost interest. But it’s hard not taking an interest in whatever The Stooges are up to.
I'd only previously heard "I Wanna Be Your Dog" and loved this. Reminds me a lot of the Velvet Underground and I got into them the more I listened, so I will give this more spins to see if it grows on me. Docked a star because We Will Fall is long and nonsensical
I knew of The Stooges and the later named, Iggy Pop and The Stooges. This is my first listen to the album, and while I knew Iggy was from Michigan, it was cool to learn that bassist Dave Alexander grew up in the Whitmore Lake, mere miles from my hometown. I really dug the opening track, 1969. Oddly, the more well-known songs didn't do it for me. I really wanted to love this, but besides 1969, the rest of the tracks blend together. I'm giving it a four, but only because of their Michigan roots!
Highlight: I wanna be your dog Quality late 60s rock
Not what I was expecting. Legend is a strange thing. Was expecting 35 minutes of Anarchy, but there are a lot of flavors here. Some funky groove, and the aggression is measured.
Enjoyed this album couple of stand out songs better than the rest.
Prefer the punk parts to the meandering bits.
Actually enjoyed this quite a bit and the guitar playing was sick. Not something I would listen to often but I enjoyed my listen. 3.8 or so
Saying that they were ahead of their time doesn't even make half the point.
Honestly better than I was expecting. Pre punk rock and it shows. Great diversity and I dig the fun aspect of the songs
Great album, never realised significance of the band (and that it was Iggy Pop’s band). Felt very Rolling Stones etc. Whole album start to finish flows very well, will be added into playlist rotation. 4.2/5.
Summary: An album that was surely ahead of its time. Monotony of chords (monoharmony?) isn't normally my jam, but it's incorporated into a sort of proto-punk/proto-grunge style here that works excellently. All tracks except the 10-minute slog "We Will Fall" are very strong. The vocal, bass, drums, and guitar (particularly the latter) all have chances to shine throughout the album, and the band is consistently a cohesive unit. 1969: Wacky panning - very distinctive. Intensely late-60s rock sound, but with an almost proto-grunge/punk feel. Progressive sound, but anthem-like in structure. The lead guitar is intense! A fantastic song. I Wanna Be Your Dog: From the beginning, strong drumming and guitarwork. Simple riff that I'm hoping won't grow stale (it didn't). Vocal inflections are a lot like Mick Jagger (mid-60s era) and Lou Reed from the Velvet Underground. Definitely an inspired style. We Will Fall: An unusual atmosphere - like a group of old men chanting in a cave. The percussion even sounds like water dripping onto cold, hard stone. Not sure what to think about this track, other than that it's out of place and the novelty wears off quickly and brutally. The casual, matter-of-fact "g'bye!"s near the end are pretty funny, though. No Fun: Again, very Velvet Underground inspired (I'm Waiting For The Man!). That grungy distortion on the guitar is tasty. The singer gets strangely excited at around 2:45 and it's really entertaining. Nice guitar solo, although it being in the left ear behind the vocal going all-out "Come on!" on loop means it's easy to miss at first. The five-minute track length flies by, and it's all jolly fun. Poorly named. Real Cool Time: The triumphant return of the wah-wah guitar. The lyrics are silly, but this can easily be forgiven because the track is just great. Adventurous bassline is especially noticeable from 1:45 onward when the vocal halts. I imagine an extended version of this would be great to play live. Ann: A change of atmosphere that actually makes sense (unlike a certain earlier track). The vocal is fairly low in the mix and panned entirely to the left channel. Actually, the panning feels entirely wrong, and after noticing this I flipped my headphones around. It felt more normal after that. Slow, moody little song. Not Right: The lyrics get goofy again. They're also delivered pretty slowly, with plenty of time between lines to ponder how goofy they actually are. Lead guitar with a low-resolution, slightly goopy texture that differs weirdly from lead guitars on earlier tracks. A good (albeit forgettable) track. Little Doll: Nice repeating drum lick - absolutely the star of this track. Melody stands out as being almost too brashly rock'n'roll. It works, though. The chords aren't anything special (but still better than the 10-minute We Will Fall, which was exactly 1 chord).
Much fun. Diverse but similar but not but quirky but fun!
Iggy Pop yes.
lite kort men bra
It's not really for me, but I can see the greatness
How have I not heard of this group?
the audio mixing is surprisingly good on this album (notably track 1)—I guess it's just stereo, but it almost sounds like atmos surround sound. track 1 (1969): it sure was 1969. track 2 (I Wanna Be Your Dog): ummmmmmmmmm... ig they're saying they wanna chill about all day? track 3 (We Will Fall): i like the spooky amp noises at the beginning. it's looooooong though track 4 (No Fun): this one's kinda fun track 5 (Real Cool Time): forgot to listen to this one track 6 (Ann): saaaaaaame deal track 7 (Not Right): some fun guitar things goin on here, relatively chill (its not that chil its just the rest of the album is soooooooooo not chill). The fade out was NOT subtilely done. track 8 (Little Doll): title reminds me of 'little freak' by Sir Harry Styles. Why does singer have a southern twang now? overall: pretty cool rockin album, not my usual style but i enjoyed.
Loved it! Heard of The Stooges, but never gave them a listn. Classic Rock with garage band styling and a great sound! The spacey jam (believe it was 3rd track) was a bit much, but thought the album was great!
will will have a real cool time. music: appreciated. (⌐■ ̮ ■)
It’s the Stooges!
3.5
Gritty rock at its best.
Great pre-punk.
It's basic, but powerful and 1969 and I wanna be your dog are brilliant. Had not realised John Cale was involved (and plays sleigh Bell on I wanna be your dog).
Albores del punk. Un megahit. Un 4.
There are really only 7 songs here - Little Doll is basically 1969 with different lyrics. Excellent bookends all the same. The highlights are definitely the opening cuts on Side 1 - 1969 & the distorted-guitar classic I Wanna Be Your Dog ; and the opening track of Side 2 - No Fun, which less than a decade later would be covered by The Sex Pistols. As for the the ten- minute elephant-in-the-room, We Will Fall, I love Seth Jacobsen’s description of it : “..a ten-minute slab of druggy stupor straight from the Velvet’s canon”, complete with viola courtesy of producer John Cale. I’m extremely fond of this - Iggy’s first album.
Did this really came out in 1969 ??
A milestone record and one that set the scene for so many others. How this must have been received by the masses must have been one of shock. I Wanna Be Your Dog has one of the greatest riffs ever written, a dirty and toxic sound.
Good old music, it's not in the middle of my heart, but it's not in the bottom either.
Very good punky disc, with some being top song and other being mid. The kind of album that serves for a playlist and not by its own
Albores del punk. Un megahit. Un 4.
Classic album
raw but powerful
I love that one of the most interesting songs on the album was literally made as filler lmao
Not as good or as dangerous as Fun House, but 1969, I Wanna Be Your Dog and No Fun are so mandatory that it justifies its inclusion here. I just can imagine hearing this for the first time in 1969 and think "this is my life now".
So great for 1969. I rarely listen to them, but everytime I do, it's a blast!
Great album!
I saw these live in 2011. I wonder how many of the lads on stage actually played on this album
Starts strong with 1969 and I Wanna Be Your Dog. Then it wanders through a variety of oddities. Some hints of Pink Floyd influence.
4.5 really, great proto punk
First listen and it's a great album. Very 1960s to its core.
I love The Stooges and Iggy Pop in general. This is a really strong debut album and an awesome first few tracks in particular as an introduction to the band. There are a few tracks on here that tend to skip cause they're more low energy and just feel a little like filler to me, which is the only thing keeping this one from a full 5 for me. Standout Tracks: 1969, I Wanna Be Your Dog, No Fun, Real Cool Time
Massive
I have been relatively new to the Stooges (courtesy of Luke of course) and really like them. Hadn't heard a full album yet and I thought this was weird and wonderful
This was a belter. I generally like the Stooges and Iggy Pop but can't say I listen to albums much but this was really enjoyable.
Fun album, reminded me of Velvet Underground at times, but also not lol. I'll lean high ang give it the 4
Gnarly
4.5
Where it all started
Iggy Pop igår och The Stooges idag. Denna är bättre än gårdagens skiva.
Really dig that 60s blown speaker guitar sound. The writing is pretty elementary, but it's still makes for some pretty good tunes.
Another good Stooges album. Songs are a little more hit or miss on this one, but I love how raw it sounds, and I never realized some of these songs were from the late 60's; crazy!
I really liked this one. It was enjoyable all the way through. 4/5
Still sounds as raw as it did 50+ years ago and it might be my favorite Stooges album. Sadly it loses steam on side B, but you can’t take away its legacy. B+
When they are on they are really on, but some of these tracks were certainly not on.
I was expecting this album to be too punky for my tastes but it was actually pretty great. More mellow than I was expecting but a great sound.
This was Iggy before he really became Iggy Pop and that is a very good thing. I don't like Iggy Pop but I do really like this album. Especially the 10 minute gregorian chant that was something else.
Strong 7
Still so fucking great.
This is a cool album. I like listening to this infinitely more than their second album with Search and Destroy on it, because with that one the mix makes it unlistenable. This has a lot of the proto-punk harshness of that one, mixed with the always confounding, earnest and boyish delivery of Iggy Pop, which still sounds captivating. It's like, what combination of brain cells caused The Stooges to exist? I'm still wondering. I listened to this a ton a few months back without penning a review, and now I'm here to say that I really enjoy it. 4/5
Very good varied album, was surprised to hear songs that I recognized. Strays a little close to being brit rock but keeps itself unique enough to enjoy without thinking of Brit Rock all the time
This is the third Stooges album that I have gotten, and by far this is my favorite. I listened to it twice.
I would like to thank this exercise for showing me that I do, in fact, enjoy Iggy Pop. 3.5/5
Like a surprising number of us, I'm not a huge Iggy Pop fan but this had more appeal than I expected. I was not even bothered by the 10 min long song. Maybe its cuz I decided to listen when I was already pretty worn out and it was mellow in a way that felt sympatico? Idk if any of you know the Aussie band King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard but they definitely take a lot of inspiration from this Stooges album
This was good. First two tracks are standouts but I was also fascinated by how dark We Will Fall was. Will listen again.
This is the most prepunk punk album I think I’ve heard. I generally don’t like Iggy Pop but I have admit that this is the version of him. Would like the 1/2 star option but I’ll round up.
Interesting half-way point between psychadelic rock and punk rock. Cool wah guitar effects much more similar to Hendrix than I expected. Not my favorite music in the world but this was certainly a cool record and it's crazy that it came out before the Beatles even broke up. Did not like the 10 min long song. A record ahead of its time for sure. Fave Tracks: 1969, Real Cool Time
Great protopunk.
Ignore the cover which is very dated and these songs are timeless. Massively, gloriously adolescent and rough at times but they ‘were’ young and basically having a laugh. I could recognise the John Cale production values - I hope he had fun doing it. I certainly had fun listening to it.
I didn’t know any of their songs by name except ‘I Wanna be Your Dog’ and I forgot that Iggy Pop was in the band. The album was fun.
A great debut, years ahead of its time. Yes, the band is sloppy as hell. Yes, the production is weak. Yes, there are two clunkers. But the other five songs are brilliantly messy and bold. There is no punk without I Wanna Be Your Dog, 1969, No Fun, or Not Right. Great stuff, if flawed. They got it right on their next album.
As this project shows me that I have an appreciation for punk, it's interesting to listen to one of the OGs. It really wasn't what I expected - it sounds a lot more like the Doors or Hendrix than I would have anticipated. Makes sense for the time. But has less of a crushing impact than their live shows must have had with Iggy up there bleeding on people.
This is a very weird album. In one aspect it is a great proto-punk record that is clearly inspirational to much of the genre and rock in general but on the other hand it feel sort of flat to my ears. The 10 minute dirge that is "We Will Fall" is completely out of place on this album and really sucks the life out of a third of this record. The rest of the songs are solid and it has some outstanding tracks like "1969", "Ann", "I Wanna Be Your Dog" and "Real Cool Time" but the inclusion of "We Will Fall" completely baffles me to the core. I see the appeal of the song to an extent but not in the context of this album. Also to some extent I feel like some of the songs sound a bit similar to each other but not to the extent where it takes away from the listening experience of this record. I personally think this album is really good still but it would be much improved as a full work if that song was removed. I would give this an 8/10 despite that track.
Fuzzy groovy proto-punk goodness.
Bloody classic, love it. Get rid of We Will Fall tho.
This album is a very strong four for me. If we hadn’t been listening to such great albums recently, I might give it a five. The proto punk is cool to see and the album still feels pretty fresh
I’ve been disappointed by the majority of “influential” albums we’ve gotten so far. Very happy to be surprised here — it’s entirely listenable, and even though it’s not my ideal thing, a really cool album i wouldn’t’ve encountered otherwise.
Birth of punk rock right right here in 1969 Detroit. Biting and stealing everything they can get their hands on: Mick Jagger, Jim Morrison, Bo Diddley, Johnny Cash, Jimi Hendrix, you name it. Some really great songs here like "1969," "I Wanna Be Your Dog," "No Fun," and "Real Cool Time," but this is getting docked a star for the monotonous chanting drag on the album that is "We Will Fall." Maybe if they had saved that one for the end it wouldn't have been so bad, but third song in really kills the vibe. A little unfocused in their infancy but still absolutely vital rock and roll.
Yeah, always slept on The Stooges but love the proto-punk going on here. Some parts are down right experimental/noise-rock. I'm into it. Lovely counter-point to everything else in 1969 for sure. Strong debut.
Score: 80 Album art: 60 Well I didn't expect a 10 minute drone song when I booted up this album. It's so weird that it's the 3rd song and not at the end. Whoever did this track list was on crack. That being said it's a beautifully dark and harrowing song. The sound of it is amazing and it really elevates the album to something more. Some of the songs are mixed like demos and don't feel as clean but there's a lot of rocking moments and the performances are really good. I don't think you could really do much better than this in 1969, I can definitely see why it's on this list.
So freakin’ cool. It’s hard to believe some of these tracks were made in 69 as they feel so contemporary. A great listen. Some tracks didn’t do it for me but the bangers banged.
my favorite era of rock
DETROIT LEGENDS!! 😍😍
Iggy's introduction to the world, and he came out swinging. The first two songs here still sound so modern. Things hit a brick wall with "We Will Fall", featuring John Cale. I have nothing against drone music per se, but this song goes nowhere. Following it, though, things pick right back up, and feature the Stooges doing what they do best.
I've always had a massive amount of respect for people who are anwsering a question that no one asked and that certinally holds true for the Stooges. Yes there was a lot of interesting stuff happening in 1969 but you get the impression that the Stooges had a vision of the future which just didn't exist in anyone elses head. In this 30 minute album you get punk (which didn't exist) but also a full third of its runtime is taken up with this avant garde drone chant. Thats quite the juxtaposition and from what I hear their early live shows had that same energy but amped up to 11 with bizzare homemade instruments and extended jam sessions which decended into walls of feedback and noise. Iggy Pop was also doing transgressive punk style performances half a decade before GG Allin came on the scene and the best part of a decade before Sid Vicious. Ultimately it feels like The Stooges were hooked into what would happen with noise and punk subcultures many many years before it had even occured to anyone else that could be a thing and they were making some bloody good music while doing it.
the first few songs rocked so hard i still haven't made it through the entire album. another one of those foundational bands i didn't have much exposure to. i'd be happy if every dive bar i ever walk into ever again is playing the stooges.
good good good
"The Stooges" is a pretty remarkable statement in a debut album, and stands out tremendously amongst its 1969 peers. "We Will Fall" is a misstep, but I was in such a good mood coming off of "I Wanna Be Your Dog" that it can be mostly forgiven.
NO FUN
On this album Iggy was testing waters that the rest of the music world wasn't testing in 1969. Nonetheless, one still hears some 1969 flavours like psychedelic. I wonder what the San Fran summer of love types would have thought about this album. The first two songs are insane and are the highlights. We Will Fall reminds me of the quieter spooky parts of The End. The End, unlike We Will Fall, built to a crescendo which is what made that song so amazing musically. We Will Fall could have been as good if The Stooges put a little " meet me at the back of the blue bus" into this song. I could say the same about Ann although it thinks about hopping on the blue bus near the end but then changes its mind. No Fun is pure punk. It's crazy that Iggy was doing this in 69. No Fun and Not Right are pure fuzz fests and it really works It's telling that Spotify algorithm played Janie Jones after this album.
The first two songs are such classics, especially the guitar intros, which are real waker-uppers. The third song reminds us that we’re still in the sixties and speaks to the fact that they showed up at the studio without enough material for an album. Speaking of the sixties, the first half of “Ann” sounds like it could be a throw-away track from Soft Parade. This LP reminds me of what the so-called punk artists kept saying a decade later: it’s just rock n’ roll. I think their following album is more consistent with better overall song-writing but without the signature tune(s). This LP had my vote as the “first punk album” until I heard The Sonics.
This is a huge inspirational work for all Punk, Garage and Rock & Roll to come. At times it sounds like a punkier Doors album! This album features some of the gritty themes The Stooges would write about, but still lacks a bit of the power and energy, later records would have. Still it's an amazing record and one I can't recommend enough for lovers of Punk and Rock & Roll. And I love the psychedelic influence brought by John Cale. Key tracks: 1969, I Wanna Be Your Dog, We Will Fall, No Fun, Real Cool Time, Ann, Little Doll. 8,5 out of 10
4.2 + Lots of bands purport to be about sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll. But few write songs like "Not Right" that convey that lifestyle so succinctly ("She wants something tonight/But I can't give it/Cause I'm not right"). Other highlights: "I Wanna Be Your Dog", "We Will Fall" (10 minute dirge with Indian raga influences). Proto-punk is best punk!