Hall of Lame: Final Thoughts

Let's bask in the reflected glory of the Stooges' induction one more time and consider some news that recently popped up. A read of The Hounbdblog's latest entry reminded me that I'd seen these kernels a few days ago on the unofficial Stooges forum:

1. Rhino Handmade will be issuing the first Stooges LP with more alternate takes and the unheard song "Asthma Attack". Twenty six tracks, it's said.

2. The same label has a Live at Ugano's tape in their possession.

I'll let The Houndblog have the last word on the Hall of Lame broadcast. I watched a download but he got to watch it with Danny Fields.

Stooges miss out on R & R Hall of Lame (again)

This was just reported by here The Ultimate Nullifier (aka Box Taylor from Powertrane, Mazinga et al.) Excuse the endless Stooges posts over the last 10 days but this is beyond belief.

Stupid, myopic dipshit judges. The timing is nothing to do with Ron Asheton's passing (the votes would have been compiled weeks ago) but that just proves what numb-nutted, clueless cockscratchers they are.

Hall of Lame (2)

For the truly obsessive, here's the whole two-song performance by the Stooges. "Burning Up" is better than "Ray of Light" (thanks for the prompt on that title) but Ig singing someone else's song off-key isn't the same as him mangling his own tunes. Ron's solo is pretty cool though.

Sneak peek of "The Weirdness"

Yeah, it's been a long time betweeen posts but the pace will pick up from here, I can assure you.

First up, have a listen to "My Idea Of Fun" from the forthcoming Stooges album "The Weirdness" at the band's official myspace. If you've been paying attention you'll recognise the tune from the Skydog live release "Telluric Chaos". It's OK with all-too-obvious nihilstic lyrics but there's better to follow, I hear. At least the production is suitably raw and in your face. Expect the album in early March.

Next, go jump into the band-approved website for Sonic's Rendezvous Band, the legendary Michigan band from the late '70s/early '80s. There's a message board if you like that stuff, and a growing collection of photos, handbills and articles.

If you were wondering about that often-threatened Hitmen reunion, you can glean the line-up from a quick perusal of their new myspace site. The principals say the shows are happening, if only the person writing the liners for the CD re-issues (chockful of bonus tracks) would pull his finger out, the world would be happy.

That's all for now.

No R n R Hall for the Stooges

They missed out - Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five being deemed the more notable contributors to rock and roll, of course - but who really gives a toss? Sure, it would have been great to see an acceptance speech by Rock Action or his brother Ron wearing black tie to go with his (Deniz Tek-donated) camo jacket, but when it's all said and done the Hall of Fame in Cleveland has very little to do with Rock and Roll. It could have done with a little subversion from within but if the Stooges are left outside, looking in on all that comodification of music, maybe that's not altogether a bad thing.