In 1987, the release of Rubber Legs gave listeners their first ever exposure to the Stooges' so-called CBS rehearsals from spring 1973. Six songs long, it was as tantalizing as it was impossibly exciting. But what a difference a year makes: 1988's Death Trip opens with what can only be described as daylight robbery, the regular LP version of the title track fed through some kind of distortion machine in an attempt to make it sound like an alternate mix. It fails. Slightly more palatable (and realistic) alternates of a couple of Rubber Legs standouts follow, but the two songs that attract the most attention, "I'm a Man" and "The Ballad of Hollis Brown" are -- what? The best guess is, they're Iggy and James Williamson killing time in the studio, jamming through some favorite covers while they wait for some something else to happen. They probably didn't even remember that they'd left the tape machine on. Seriously, it's the kind of thing that gives bootlegging a bad name -- but hey, Stooges fans should be used to that by now! [Dave Thompson]
More Stooges studio rehearsals recorded in 1973. before Raw Power. I know you know but then again... It's a Death Trip allright! Jesus, This is IGGY!
