Listen to David Bowie’s final concert backing Iggy Pop in 1977
In 1974, following their David Bowie-produced masterpiece Raw Power, The Stooges split up in disarray, with frontman Iggy Pop spiralling out of control as his affair with hard drugs and alcoholism caught up with him. This dark patch for Iggy reached its low point when he checked himself into a Californian mental institute for a period as he attempted to get his head straight. In 1976, the ever-loyal Bowie visited Iggy and coaxed him out to join him on his Isolar Tour.
At the end of the tour, Iggy and Bowie agreed to distance themselves geographically from their addictions. They travelled to Château d’Hérouville, the same French location where Bowie had recorded his covers album, Pin-Ups, in 1973. It was here where Bowie began recording his 1977 masterpiece Low, which would become the first instalment of his famed experimental Berlin trilogy. Meanwhile, Bowie helped Iggy shape his debut solo record, The Idiot, which marked a pivotal moment in his life.
“The friendship was basically that this guy salvaged me from certain professional and maybe personal annihilation — simple as that,” Iggy said following Bowie’s death in 2016. “A lot of people were curious about me, but only he was the one who had enough truly in common with me, and who actually really liked what I did and could get on board with it, and who also had decent enough intentions to help me out. He did a good thing.”
“He resurrected me,” Iggy added. “He was more of a benefactor than a friend in a way most people think of friendship. He went a bit out of his way to bestow some good karma on me.”
In his 1982 book, I Need More: The Stooges and Other Stories, Iggy recalled a touching anecdote from around the time the pair were piecing together The Idiot.
“One day, we were in Chateau d’Herouville in France, outside Paris, taking a ping-pong break. Never in my life had I been able to play ping-pong. I never had the coordination—literally couldn’t play.
“David said, ‘Come on, give me a game.’
‘I can’t. I can’t play.’
“But I tried it, and suddenly that I day I could play, and I’m playing and were about tied and I said, “You know, man, this is weird. Really weird. I always failed at this game and now I can play it.”
“He said, ‘Well, Jim, it’s probably because you’re feeling better about yourself.’ In the most gentlest way he said that, because usually, you know, nobody wants to be anybody’s teacher or leaner. You know what I mean? In the very gentlest way he said that. I just thought that was a nice answer. Three games later, I beat him and he never played me again. I got good REAL fast.”
On March 1st, 1977, Bowie joined Iggy for a six-week touring campaign in support of The Idiot, with dates across the UK and North America. Iggy’s band consisted of Bowie on piano and keyboards, Ricky Gardiner on guitar, Tony Sales on bass, and Hunt Sales on the drums.
The final date of the tour took place at the San Diego Civic Auditorium on April 16th. Below, you can hear an audio recording of the entire show.
