Iggy and The Stooges. The Authorized Biography
By Jeffrey Morgan
(New Haven Publishing)
Did we need another Stooges book? Rhetorical question but slap yourself if you answered in the negative. This is a pared-down and re-cut variant of the coffee table format “The Stooges: The Authorized and Illustrated History” published by Abrams in 2009 under the authorship of Jeffrey Morgan and Robert Matheu.
This version is prominently attributed to Morgan although Matheu is acknowledged on the cover and at length throughout.
“Iggy and The Stooges. The Authorised Biography” is still in hardcover and runs to 140 pages as opposed to the original 180-odd. It’s illustrated by the photos of Matheu, John Catto and Jeff Magnum (yes, the onetime Dead Boys bassist) and others, although the reformatting has resulted in much of the original imagery beinbg deleted or replaced.
John Catto’s and Robert Sikora’s 1974 Toronto shots of Iggy and the Stooges are amazing additions but so were Craig Petty’s St Louis photos.
The original book was the brainchild of Morgan and Mattheu after both had been co-opted by Italian uber fan and magazine editor Rosano Ciccarelli to contribute to his own Fun House publication in 2005. They tossed the idea around over some beers, let it slide and revived it a year later with Matheu in the driving seat.
Both had thoroughbred form. Morgan was recruited to work at Creem by none other than a soon-to-leave Lester Bangs and Matheu was a frequent photographic contributor who went on to author his own book about the magazine and was an associate of various Stooges.
Bob Matheu was a true Motor City home boy who moved to the West Coast to build a stellar career (and a regular e-mail pal of mine before his untimely passing.) Morgan was a Canadian import who has a long history of writing behind him, including authorship of Alice Cooper’s authorised biography.
It’s Morgan doing the driving and the word count is up. Alice Cooper’s foreword is intact as are most of the original essays, and the band’s continuation post-Ron Asheton has allowed for more James Williamson content, including a nice introduction.
Iggy gets plenty of conversational airtime (as you’d expect in an authorised book) but if you’re looking for in-depth insights, look to the ephemera-littered “Total Chaos” that he co-wrote with Stooges archivist Jeff Gold.
On the subject of wordage, Morgan has taken a distinctly Creem-like approach to his version of the book, echoing the esteemed magazine’s knowing, smart ass, tongue-in-cheek style and packaging information into updates and mini-profiles of the main players. The original book’s review of “The Weirdness” is intact, and its verdict is non-committal but not unsupportive. Iggy hated the critique, for what it’s worth.
One invaluable insight is the back story of the world’s most intriguing bootleg, “Iguana De Banda. Etiqueta Negra De Lugo”, the oddly packaged, vinyl only 2013 collection of unheard “Raw Power” outtakes and alternative versions. No names no pack drill, but Morgan finally lifts the lid on how it came about (and the culprit wasn’t Strait James as some loony conspiracy theorists opined in various online forums.)
Is “The Authorized Biography” an advance on “The Authorized and Illustrated Story”? No. The oringinal was asswembled with a photographer's eye and looked top class. Like the Jarmusch documentary, it's a love letter and beauty is always in the eye of tthe beer holder. The price was reasonable (about $A50 via Amazon) and it will probably appeal only to Stoogeaholics, anyway. And of course they’ll need both.
