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Saturday 7 May 2011

Avenue B



In 1999 Iggy Pop released Avenue B. It got some good reviews but poor sales and soon after Iggy reverted to garage punk, and eventually back to The Stooges. Avenue B was an attempt of sorts to grow up and record a mature album. There are short spoken word interludes, jazzy lounge backing tracks and meditations on mortality and divorce. And a song called Nazi Girlfriend. There's also a cover of Shaking All Over and some rockier stuff towards the end- the curse of late 90s cd-itis I suppose (80 minutes of disc, must fill it). This song- Avenue B- is one of the best. Over bongo backing Iggy sings of the view from his apartment window, and fame, death, money, loss and heartbreak. The deep crooner's voice and reflections on his life should make this one of Iggy's key solo albums. Instead it's seen as an oddity, a detour.


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