Year of the Iguana - The Stooges

There's little doubt that in the 20 years plus since their demise as a group, Iggy and the Stooges have achieved legendary status as the seminal and defining influence on the late-'70s punk rock movement; without them, there would have been no Sex Pistols, etc. And in those intervening years, they have found themselves being exhaustively documented, with seemingly every scrap of magnetic tape bearing their imprint coming up for reissue air at one time or another. This is an interesting collection that's primarily culled from other Bomp CD collections and 10" vinyl LPs. If you're into Iggy and the Stooges enough to have made it this far, this collection of alternate mixes ("Death Trip"), raw rehearsal tapes ("Rubber Legs," "Head On," "Till the End of the Night," "Wild Love," and an extended run-through of "Raw Power"), and "suppressed masters" from the original Raw Power sessions ("I Got A Right," "Gimme Some Skin," and "Scene of the Crime") will almost seem like a greatest-hits package of sorts. And for the new fan who's just discovered the chaotic magic that was the Stooges -- and has heard the rumors that there's material far more incendiary than their three studio albums -- this compilation will serve just that purpose, sifting through the unending maze of unissued Stooges material to make a single-disc package that hits on the spots. This make a nice stopping-off point before moving on to the group's live masterpiece, Metallic K.O.. The transfers are well done here (considering the point of origin of several of them) and for a compilation pulled from multiple and disparate sources, this collections hangs together remarkably well, providing the hardcore fan with a one-stop loaded with rarities. ~ Cub Koda, All Music Guide