Iggy Pop’s favourite songs of the 1960s
Iggy Pop really shines a light on what it means to be a true rock star. It’s not about excessive materialism or being overly affected—because at the end of the day, if you can’t take to a stage and perform, you’re toast. The vivacity of Iggy’s stage presence has been central to his persona since the early days of the Stooges in the 1960s, helping give proto-punk its name by simply becoming the prototype for pulling audiences into an electric rock and roll journey.
The 1960s is the operative era to consider here because it was the time that the full force of Iggy Pop was first unleashed into the world, and he has never stopped wreaking havoc since. But in the same vein, we can’t just claim that the Godfather of Punk appeared out of nowhere, sent down from the heavens to bless the rock and roll world – even though it might seem like it. In fact, the music of the ‘60s that swirled Iggy’s brain arguably made as much an impression on his sonic sights as any of his own contrived ideas of persona and subsequently deserve as much of the credit.
Growing up in Michigan, fellow exports MC5 inevitably became a pertinent influence on Iggy’s burgeoning creative vision, especially with their song ‘Kick Out the Jams’. He later recalled: “The MC5 had a certain ethic about what was good and real and righteous. A certain politics that was tough to live up to but had its place. The song ‘Kick out the Jams’ is perhaps the most sincere expression of that they had.”
Later joining forces with the quintet, it’s clear much of Iggy’s inspirations from the period were those he had his sights set on down the line, as he picked out another tune, ‘Remember (Walking in the Sand)’ by the Shangri-Las, whom he also played drums for. Reminiscing on his memories of the song, Iggy said: “I just remember being very happy in the back, you know, playing ‘ts, ts, ts,’ while [Mary Weiss, lead singer] was going, ‘remember, walking in the sand.’”
Iggy was clearly going for an all-out American dream in those early days, but inevitably, within that moment specifically, the British invasion couldn’t entirely be avoided. He cited the spearheads, the Rolling Stones, highlighting their 1964 tunes ‘Good Times, Bad Times’ and ‘Congratulations’ as two particular favourites, but almost in the same breath singled out ‘Be My Baby’ by The Ronettes as a steering influence, representing polar opposite ends of a brimming musical spectrum at the time.
Another fairly inevitable name that appears for any American who has even so much as picked up a guitar is Bob Dylan – a pair of his 1965 tracks, ‘Subterranean Homesick Blues’ and ‘It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue’ fill out the ranks of Iggy’s ‘60s top spots, as well as a cover by the Belfast band Them – fronted by a pre-fame Van Morrison – of the latter tune. Lastly, there could also be no other talk of guitar greatness without mentioning Jimi Hendrix, whose ‘Purple Haze’ clinches the final place in Iggy’s esteem.
Iggy Pop’s top 1960s songs:
- ‘Kick Out the Jams’ – MC5 (1969)
- The Ronettes – ‘Be My Baby’ (1963)
- The Shangri-Las – ‘Remember (Walking In The Sand)’ (1964)
- Bob Dylan – ‘It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue’ (1965)
- Them – ‘It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue’ (1966)
- Bob Dylan – ‘Subterranean Homesick Blues’ (1965)
- Jimi Hendrix – ‘Purple Haze’ (1967)
- The Rolling Stones – ‘Good Times, Bad Times’ (1964)
- The Rolling Stones – ‘Congratulations’ (1964)
