By early 1982 Iggy Pop’s commercial stock had sunk so low that he was without a record deal. His last album Party had been another smash flop despite the record label investing heavily in a last ditch attempt to sweeten Iggy’s sound. Unsurprisingly, grafting a chirpy horn section onto Iggy’s low-life tales of groupies and drugs failed miserably and Arista promptly dropped him. As his recent record sales were poor at best, touring had been his only viable source of regular income. But with no record company to bankroll gigs, Iggy’s funds dried up very quickly. By 1982 he had assumed responsibility for his eleven-year-old son Eric who was dividing his time between Iggy’s small apartment in an Italian area of Manhattan and a relatively expensive private school.
In the spring of 1982 Iggy knuckled down to writing a bunch of new songs with his guitarist Rob Duprey. Most of the tunes came from Duprey’s left-field homemade experiments. These instrumental fragments would be twisted and poked and prodded into something approaching a song for Iggy to finish. Iggy wanted the new music to show him in the best possible light and later commented, ‘I felt that, particularly on my last two albums, I was losing the articulation of what I wanted to be saying.’ With sparse backing tracks many of these songs would stand or fall on their lyrics and top line melodies. Fortunately these were some of the strongest Iggy had written in years.
In late 1981 Blondie’s Chris Stein had set up Animal Records to release low-key albums by underground New York artists. As soon as the company was formed Clem Burke (Blondie’s drummer, but touring with Iggy at the time) suggested signing Iggy. When Iggy was dropped by Arista Stein jumped in, telling Iggy, ‘I’d like to record you. It’s a rumour now anyway, we might as well go ahead.’ Keen to record Duprey’s quirky songs, but desperate to avoid the major label hassles he’d had with Arista, Iggy was delighted to sign with Animal for a one-off album deal. The recording process became a family affair in order to keep the costs low – Stein played occasional bass and produced the album, Clem Burke played drums and Rob Duprey is credited with ‘all else.’ From the two weeks of sessions in June 1982 at Blank Tapes studio in New York, to the final production of the record, the costs were kept to a very reasonable $30,000.
Iggy’s old girlfriend, photographer Esther Friedmann, took the cover photo, showing Iggy seated at a café table with a Coke and a 7-Up, during a holiday in Hawaii. Iggy spent a fraught few weeks there during the summer of 1982 ostensibly completing work on his collection of reminiscences (though he seemed to become accidentally involved with voodoo curses and other bizzare happenings too). Over the previous year Iggy had intermittently got together with journalist Anne Wehrer as she taped his autobiographical recollections. Often hysterically funny, and full of absurd road stories, the finished book, I Need More, was published by Karz-Cohl shortly after the release of Zombie Birdhouse in September 1982. It was a smart bit of marketing synchronicity as the book and the album complemented and promoted each other. With its wealth of pictures, an introduction by Andy Warhol, song lyrics and previously unpublished poems, I Need More was much more than just a book of stories about the ‘Stooges and other guys.’ Strangely, Iggy has all but disowned the book in recent years, blaming alcohol for some of the wilder accounts. If you can find the original with all the pictures, then do so, as the more recent reprinting by Henry Rollins’ 2.13.61 Publications sadly omits the photos.
“Run Like A Villain” opens the record with a barrage of growling guitars, a lopsided semi tribal beat and some of Iggy’s most committed singing. Chris Stein’s production captures Iggy’s vocals up close - every nuance of his delivery is clear and precise. But pushing the vocals so far to the forefront occasionally reveals Iggy’s limitations as a singer.
“The Villagers” features Iggy at the edge of his usual register and sometimes beyond, hitting some slightly cracked notes at times. The solidly pounding rhythm of the song is superb however.
Conversely “Angry Hills” finds Iggy’s opening line winding it’s way from an almost subterranean depth to the top end of his register, in one breath. This impressive trick is repeated a couple of times. Oddly, the melody is partly stolen from the hymn “Oh Come All Ye Faithful.”
Although the sleeve of Zombie Birdhouse announces, ‘There are no synthesizers on this record,’ an ominously dragging electronic drone introduces “Life Of Work” and proceeds to waver uncertainly throughout the song, as the lyrics are sung/chanted. It’s an impressive piece of writing, commenting obliquely on the daily grind – an unusual subject for someone who’s barely done a regular days work in his life.
On first hearing “The Ballad Of Cookie McBride” is a cheerful and goofy piece, with its twisted tale of a trapper complete with twangy guitar. Yet the somewhat disturbing lyrics talk of how the trapper is headed for an ‘unmarked grave’ and later still a ‘rain filled grave’ - images which are starkly at odds with the upbeat and faintly daft music.
Short and sweet, deftly sung and gently performed, “Ordinary Bummer” ends side one. Of course, as it’s Iggy, the girl of his affections swears like a sailor, but that, he claims, was when he knew he had to love her…
Side two kicks off with squealing keyboards, some frantically sharp drumming and a manic Iggy whining ‘It’s nervy, that's what it is…’ Sounding like Talking Heads on speed “Eat Or Be Eaten” is one of the catchiest tracks on Zombie Birdhouse, and once heard, the ants in your pants rhythm lodges itself firmly in your brain. There are further references to tribes and hunters, giving the album an air of uniformity.
Set to a pounding riff, which genuinely does conjure up images of big machinery, “Bulldozer” finds Iggy seemingly making the lyrics up as he goes along. The opening cry of ‘Bulldozer’ is fabulous – a massive roar from within that is, unbelievably, topped by an even longer and more absurdly drawn out ‘Bullllldozzzeerrrrr’ toward the end. It’s performed with far more passion than the stupid lyrics really demand, but it all adds to the absurdist feel. There’s even a bit in the middle where Iggy breaks off to giggle infectiously at the ridiculousness of it all.
“Platonic” by contrast is very understated, with some surprisingly tender lyrics – ‘but then I turn around and she’s very delicate’ - matched by shimmering synthetic strings and assured guitar from Duprey. Iggy’s singing is a revelation – a commandingly deep croon, tender and passionate.
“The Horse Song” is characterised by Rob Duprey’s constantly neighing guitar as Iggy is left tongue-tied and embarrassed, staring at his shoes - as a study of nervousness it is exemplary. The verses buzz with multitracked guitars over Clem Burke’s delightful clip-clop drumming. It also contains the album’s most revealing line as, with a burst of passion, Iggy declares - ‘I think you noticed, that I don’t wanna be the bad guy anymore.’
The album concludes with two of the oddest tracks ever recorded by Iggy Pop. First up is “Watching The News”, a truly bizarre, improvised piece of paranoid nonsense. Over a backing of sound effects, random dialogue and chattering percussion Iggy spits out an off key monologue, climaxing with a weird line about the President pushing all the buttons ‘in a giggling fit.’
“Street Crazies” is based around a loose African influenced rhythm as Iggy aligns himself once again with those who’ve been pushed out of society. It’s a gruff chant, underpinned by bongos and whistling, whining keyboards as other instruments fade up and down, seemingly at random. Somehow it hangs together.
Added to nearly all the CD issues of Zombie Birdhouse is “Pain And Suffering” from the 1983 Canadian animated film Rock and Rule. Directed by Clive Smith, this bizarre film tells the story of Angel, a member of a punk band from an apocalyptic future and features a stellar soundtrack from Iggy, Debbie Harry, Lou Reed, Cheap Trick and perhaps surprisingly, disco legends Earth Wind And Fire. Iggy narrates much of the song as a hugely echoed monster, before singing the title in his exaggerated bulldozer voice. It makes for a slightly unsatisfying postscript to the album.
Although the years of hard drugs were behind him Iggy was still using coke and drinking heavily. As a result he had real problems sleeping and his general health was suffering. Nevertheless he embarked on a lengthy tour, which was seen as something of a last chance for Iggy. The 1983 leg was dubbed “The Breaking Point” as Iggy seriously began to wonder if he’d make it through another year.
The tour band consisted of old hands Rob Duprey (guitar / keyboards) and Mike Page (bass), joined by yet another ex-Blondie member, guitarist Frank Infante, plus drummer Larry Mysliewicz. Iggy was determined to push Zombie Birdhouse as best he could with the result that on many nights every song from the album would be performed – even the loopy “Watching The News.” After travelling all over the States between October and December, the tour jumped the Atlantic to play Paris and London. On 17th December Iggy made a memorable appearance on a new TV music show called The Tube performing a fiery “Run Like A Villain” and “Eat Or Be Eaten” plus a superbly sleazy “Sixteen.”
Touring continued into 1983 with further US dates, Iggy’s first concerts in Japan and concluded with a jaunt through Australia in July. Then, for the first time in years Iggy took some time off. David Bowie had recently released his massive hit album Let’s Dance, which contained a cover of a song that he’d co-written with Iggy in 1976. Also issued as a single the success of Bowie’s version of “China Girl” brought in enough income for Iggy to retire for nearly three years. He was able to pay off his debts, buy an apartment, successfully detox, and even get married. Iggy re-emerged with the Bowie produced Blah-Blah-Blah in 1986 and nothing from the Zombie Birdhouse period was ever performed again.
When Zombie Birdhouse was issued in September 1982, it was pretty much ignored by reviewers and record buyers alike. The album seemed baffling - trappers and bulldozers and street crazies were not popular song topics in 1982. However those who persevered found that Zombie Birdhouse contained not only some of Iggy’s most imaginative songs in ages, but also some of his most impassioned and impressive singing.
Nearly thirty years on Zombie Birdhouse stands alone amongst Iggy’s many albums. It is an album that required time to get used to, and has stood the test of time remarkably well, primarily by being so resolutely out of step, commercially and artistically, with anything else that 1982 had to offer. Intriguingly Zombie Birdhouse also has no obvious antecedents or descendents in Iggy’s canon which gives it a charm and fascination all of it’s own. The deal with Animal records was for a one-off album, and that’s exactly what we got.
Although the sleeve of Zombie Birdhouse announces, ‘There are no synthesizers on this record,’ an ominously dragging electronic drone introduces “Life Of Work” and proceeds to waver uncertainly throughout the song, as the lyrics are sung/chanted. It’s an impressive piece of writing, commenting obliquely on the daily grind – an unusual subject for someone who’s barely done a regular days work in his life.
On first hearing “The Ballad Of Cookie McBride” is a cheerful and goofy piece, with its twisted tale of a trapper complete with twangy guitar. Yet the somewhat disturbing lyrics talk of how the trapper is headed for an ‘unmarked grave’ and later still a ‘rain filled grave’ - images which are starkly at odds with the upbeat and faintly daft music.
Short and sweet, deftly sung and gently performed, “Ordinary Bummer” ends side one. Of course, as it’s Iggy, the girl of his affections swears like a sailor, but that, he claims, was when he knew he had to love her…
Side two kicks off with squealing keyboards, some frantically sharp drumming and a manic Iggy whining ‘It’s nervy, that's what it is…’ Sounding like Talking Heads on speed “Eat Or Be Eaten” is one of the catchiest tracks on Zombie Birdhouse, and once heard, the ants in your pants rhythm lodges itself firmly in your brain. There are further references to tribes and hunters, giving the album an air of uniformity.
Set to a pounding riff, which genuinely does conjure up images of big machinery, “Bulldozer” finds Iggy seemingly making the lyrics up as he goes along. The opening cry of ‘Bulldozer’ is fabulous – a massive roar from within that is, unbelievably, topped by an even longer and more absurdly drawn out ‘Bullllldozzzeerrrrr’ toward the end. It’s performed with far more passion than the stupid lyrics really demand, but it all adds to the absurdist feel. There’s even a bit in the middle where Iggy breaks off to giggle infectiously at the ridiculousness of it all.
“Platonic” by contrast is very understated, with some surprisingly tender lyrics – ‘but then I turn around and she’s very delicate’ - matched by shimmering synthetic strings and assured guitar from Duprey. Iggy’s singing is a revelation – a commandingly deep croon, tender and passionate.
“The Horse Song” is characterised by Rob Duprey’s constantly neighing guitar as Iggy is left tongue-tied and embarrassed, staring at his shoes - as a study of nervousness it is exemplary. The verses buzz with multitracked guitars over Clem Burke’s delightful clip-clop drumming. It also contains the album’s most revealing line as, with a burst of passion, Iggy declares - ‘I think you noticed, that I don’t wanna be the bad guy anymore.’
The album concludes with two of the oddest tracks ever recorded by Iggy Pop. First up is “Watching The News”, a truly bizarre, improvised piece of paranoid nonsense. Over a backing of sound effects, random dialogue and chattering percussion Iggy spits out an off key monologue, climaxing with a weird line about the President pushing all the buttons ‘in a giggling fit.’
“Street Crazies” is based around a loose African influenced rhythm as Iggy aligns himself once again with those who’ve been pushed out of society. It’s a gruff chant, underpinned by bongos and whistling, whining keyboards as other instruments fade up and down, seemingly at random. Somehow it hangs together.
Added to nearly all the CD issues of Zombie Birdhouse is “Pain And Suffering” from the 1983 Canadian animated film Rock and Rule. Directed by Clive Smith, this bizarre film tells the story of Angel, a member of a punk band from an apocalyptic future and features a stellar soundtrack from Iggy, Debbie Harry, Lou Reed, Cheap Trick and perhaps surprisingly, disco legends Earth Wind And Fire. Iggy narrates much of the song as a hugely echoed monster, before singing the title in his exaggerated bulldozer voice. It makes for a slightly unsatisfying postscript to the album.
Although the years of hard drugs were behind him Iggy was still using coke and drinking heavily. As a result he had real problems sleeping and his general health was suffering. Nevertheless he embarked on a lengthy tour, which was seen as something of a last chance for Iggy. The 1983 leg was dubbed “The Breaking Point” as Iggy seriously began to wonder if he’d make it through another year.
The tour band consisted of old hands Rob Duprey (guitar / keyboards) and Mike Page (bass), joined by yet another ex-Blondie member, guitarist Frank Infante, plus drummer Larry Mysliewicz. Iggy was determined to push Zombie Birdhouse as best he could with the result that on many nights every song from the album would be performed – even the loopy “Watching The News.” After travelling all over the States between October and December, the tour jumped the Atlantic to play Paris and London. On 17th December Iggy made a memorable appearance on a new TV music show called The Tube performing a fiery “Run Like A Villain” and “Eat Or Be Eaten” plus a superbly sleazy “Sixteen.”
Touring continued into 1983 with further US dates, Iggy’s first concerts in Japan and concluded with a jaunt through Australia in July. Then, for the first time in years Iggy took some time off. David Bowie had recently released his massive hit album Let’s Dance, which contained a cover of a song that he’d co-written with Iggy in 1976. Also issued as a single the success of Bowie’s version of “China Girl” brought in enough income for Iggy to retire for nearly three years. He was able to pay off his debts, buy an apartment, successfully detox, and even get married. Iggy re-emerged with the Bowie produced Blah-Blah-Blah in 1986 and nothing from the Zombie Birdhouse period was ever performed again.
When Zombie Birdhouse was issued in September 1982, it was pretty much ignored by reviewers and record buyers alike. The album seemed baffling - trappers and bulldozers and street crazies were not popular song topics in 1982. However those who persevered found that Zombie Birdhouse contained not only some of Iggy’s most imaginative songs in ages, but also some of his most impassioned and impressive singing.
Nearly thirty years on Zombie Birdhouse stands alone amongst Iggy’s many albums. It is an album that required time to get used to, and has stood the test of time remarkably well, primarily by being so resolutely out of step, commercially and artistically, with anything else that 1982 had to offer. Intriguingly Zombie Birdhouse also has no obvious antecedents or descendents in Iggy’s canon which gives it a charm and fascination all of it’s own. The deal with Animal records was for a one-off album, and that’s exactly what we got.
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