Here are The Iguanas. Five high school kids with matching suits and cool sunglasses. Truth is, no-one would still remember them if it wasn't for their drummer Jim Osterberg, who later found fame as a member of... let me see you guess. If you already know, don't tell the others and spoil the fun. Noo... nooo...
Hint: in
this group he was the singer, not the drummer.
Yes, you found it! Iggy And The Stooges, Jim Osterberg is actually Iggy Pop! How did you guess? Yes, "Iggy"
does come from Iguana. Plus, if you look closely you
can recognize him. Even with his sunglasses and pants on. These recordings come from 1963/1964 which would make him 16 and 17 year old at the time, respectively. They were re-issued on CD and vinyl by Norton Records in '96. The '63 recordings are instrumental demos featuring just a trio: Iggy/Jim (drums), Jim McLaughlin (guitar) and Sam Swisher (sax). They're joined by Nick Kolokithas (guitar/vocals) and Don Sickerath (bass) for another demo from '64 as well as 3 songs cut in a professional 4-track studio. These consist of a Stones-y cover of Bo Didley's "Mona" and two originals: the folk rock "I Don't Know Why" and Iggy's primitive garage punk "Again And Again". The rest of the album consists of the band's live set, amateur recordings never intended for release, just a sample of their work they circulated in order to get gigs. It's a nice selection of covers, basically what the kids danced to in those days, which is way cooler than what kids dance to now... or in
my time. Surf, frat rock, and the nascent sounds of the British Invasion: a couple of Beatles covers and a Rolling Stones one. As is evident, especially in the instrumentals, the band are rather proficient for a bunch of schoolkids, especially the guitar and sax. Iggy's sole lead vocal is "Louie Louie", a song that remained with him throughout his career, although it took him 30 years to put in an album (1993's "
American Caesar"). The liner notes inform us that he used to sing it with naughty lyrics live, even back then. "If I Had A Hammer", "Johnny B. Goode" and "Surfin' Bird" are instrumental versions, while the rest are similar to the originals, maybe with a bit more sax than usual.
Is it any good? you ask. Well, it's a bunch of semi-competent kids playing music they love to make other teens dance. What's
not to like?
*** for Mona, I Don't Know Why, Out Of Limits, California Sun, Walk Don't Run, Louie Louie, Twist And Shout, Slow Down, Johnny B. Good, Tequila
** for Things We Said Today, Surfin' Bird, Wild Weekend, Tell Me, I Feel Fine, Pipeline, If I Had A Hammer
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