Hi Marshall: Interesting stuff. I was at CBS Records when "Raw Power" was released; my first job after college was there (1972-1974) writing and editing the house magazine Playback. If the marketing, sales, and promotion teams weren't enthusiastic about Springsteen's 1973 debut a month earlier, they really weren't crazy about Iggy. "Raw Power" had great songs but, as you hint at, no bottom, little audible bass. Bad mix, bad mastering. But at least Clive stuck with Iggy at Arista for three albums. He once explained to me (pre-Whitney) that having Barry Manilow and Kenny G. sell millions gave him the elasticity to sign Patti Smith, the then-commercially dubious Kinks, Iggy, Grateful Dead, and others. Also, "Lust for Life" on RCA 1977 showed Iggy's potential to make good records post-Columbia/pre-Arista. The drugs at the time didn't help.
Yeah the drugs never helped and were always a problem. My impression was that once out on the road for New Values, old habits started to reassert themselves. Yes, Arista gave a good home to a number of acts who were not commercially successful in the U.S. Some of them were able to find a period of strength and renewed career growth--the first two Kinks albums for the label managed to meld Ray Davies' pretty melodies and sense of nostalgia with an arena-filling rock sound, and they continued to be successful for a few years after that. And I've always loved the Dead's Arista records, probably because I'm not really a Deadhead.
Clive always had a soft spot for the outside artists-Patti Smith especially, and her presence always brought, if not sales, a certain cachet. On the other hand, he kind of got burned by Lou Reed, even though Lou did manage to produce Street Hassle and The Bells while he was on the label. But Davis understood there had to be reliable hit artists in order for a label to remain a going concern.
Thanks for reading and commenting, Wayne. Always love to hear your thoughts.
Hey, Nat! I completely agree. I mean, Iggy clearly had a sense of humor about everything at the time, going on Letterman and talking mostly about playing golf. Yeah, songs like "I Need More" and "I'm a Conservative" were just so damn funny and made you want to jump around the room. Joy--that;s the right word for it.
Hi Marshall: Interesting stuff. I was at CBS Records when "Raw Power" was released; my first job after college was there (1972-1974) writing and editing the house magazine Playback. If the marketing, sales, and promotion teams weren't enthusiastic about Springsteen's 1973 debut a month earlier, they really weren't crazy about Iggy. "Raw Power" had great songs but, as you hint at, no bottom, little audible bass. Bad mix, bad mastering. But at least Clive stuck with Iggy at Arista for three albums. He once explained to me (pre-Whitney) that having Barry Manilow and Kenny G. sell millions gave him the elasticity to sign Patti Smith, the then-commercially dubious Kinks, Iggy, Grateful Dead, and others. Also, "Lust for Life" on RCA 1977 showed Iggy's potential to make good records post-Columbia/pre-Arista. The drugs at the time didn't help.
Yeah the drugs never helped and were always a problem. My impression was that once out on the road for New Values, old habits started to reassert themselves. Yes, Arista gave a good home to a number of acts who were not commercially successful in the U.S. Some of them were able to find a period of strength and renewed career growth--the first two Kinks albums for the label managed to meld Ray Davies' pretty melodies and sense of nostalgia with an arena-filling rock sound, and they continued to be successful for a few years after that. And I've always loved the Dead's Arista records, probably because I'm not really a Deadhead.
Clive always had a soft spot for the outside artists-Patti Smith especially, and her presence always brought, if not sales, a certain cachet. On the other hand, he kind of got burned by Lou Reed, even though Lou did manage to produce Street Hassle and The Bells while he was on the label. But Davis understood there had to be reliable hit artists in order for a label to remain a going concern.
Thanks for reading and commenting, Wayne. Always love to hear your thoughts.
Thanks for this!
I love those three albums SO MUCH!
I think these three are very much, witty, playful, fast and rocking. Very much Iggy.
You just gotta let loose and not take them seriously. They have brought me so much joy.
Hey, Nat! I completely agree. I mean, Iggy clearly had a sense of humor about everything at the time, going on Letterman and talking mostly about playing golf. Yeah, songs like "I Need More" and "I'm a Conservative" were just so damn funny and made you want to jump around the room. Joy--that;s the right word for it.
Yeah all those old Iggy interviews (on YouTube) are awesome!!!
Great stuff - I love reading about Iggy, even if I’m convinced New Values is the only great album in the run. I wrote more about that here: https://rockandrollglobe.com/punk/iggy-pops-new-values-at-40/