Stooges guitarist Ron Asheton

Stooges guitarist found dead

Stooges' Ron Asheton dead at 60

Asheton was guitarist for influential band of late '60s, early '70s Stooges nominated for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction

By Mike Bruno

(Entertainment Weekly) -- Ron Asheton, the guitarist for the influential punk rock band The Stooges, was found dead this morning, police tell the Detroit Free Press.

Ron Asheton helped form The Stooges in 1967 with his brother Scott and Iggy Pop.

The 60-year-old's deceased body was found in his Ann Arbor, Michigan, home after a caller phoned police saying they hadn't heard from him in a few days. Authorities are investigating the cause of death, but foul play is not suspected.

The Stooges were founded in 1967 in Ann Arbor by Iggy Pop, Asheton, and his brother, Scott Asheton. Though never a major commerical success, the band has been cited by artists like Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth and Jack White of the White Stripes as a major influence.

The group's albums included a self-titled debut, which was released in 1969, and 1970's "Fun House." Among the group's songs are "I Wanna Be Your Dog," "1969" and "Raw Power."

The Stooges are nominated for induction in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, with inductees set to be announced later this month. They reunited for a series of shows in 2003, and released a new record, "The Weirdness," in 2007.

Ron Asheton: 'You just play 'til you drop'

Jan 6, 2009, 03:16 PM | by Simon Vozick-Levinson

Sad news today: Ron Asheton, the guitarist from The Stooges, has died at age 60. He and his brother, drummer Scott Asheton, never became household names the way frontman Iggy Pop did, but Ron's raucous guitar parts on those first two Stooges albums in 1969 and 1970 laid the groundwork for so much rock 'n' roll to come.

I was lucky enough to interview Ron in January 2007, after the reunited Stooges had just finished recording their first studio album in over three decades with producer Steve Albini in Chicago. Asheton was in a great mood then, talking proudly about how he'd eased right back into the old Stooges groove without any of the old drama. "When you're the reckless rebel, when you're a kid, everything is, 'The girls will like this record, and then when we're done, we can go to the club and we'll smoke some dope!'" he told me. "But now it's the satisfaction after the day's work, to ride back in the van from the studio to our hotel in Chicago, and then be on the expressway, and see the whole Chicago skyline, which is a beautiful skyline, lit up at night, listening to your day's work." Ron wanted to keep those good vibes going, and he had no intention of putting down his guitar anytime soon. "You're a professional musician. You can't be forced to retire. Look at B.B. King, what is he, 80-something? That's the beauty of being a musician. They can't take it away from you. It's your music, and you're pumping it out. You just play 'til you drop."

And now, those are such bittersweet words.

Gettin' Iggy With It

Stooges' guitarist Ron Asheton talks about the band's new CD 'The Weirdness,' and what it's like to be back with Pop and brother Scott after a 34-year hiatus

By Simon Vozick-Levinson

On March 6, the Stooges will unleash The Weirdness, their first studio album in 34 years. Much has changed since the Michigan garage-rockers split up: Frontman Iggy Pop went on to solo stardom long ago, and the three noisy, nihilistic LPs that he recorded with the band unexpectedly have become cultural touchstones. Largely ignored or reviled in their day, the Stooges have served as patron saints for anti-establishment movements from punk to grunge. What should fans should expect from the band's second act?

'They're gonna enjoy it, and they're gonna be surprised,' says Ron Asheton, the Stooges' guitarist. '[We're] treating the Stooges as a living band. We could go out and be an oldies band and just play shows and the same songs, but [Iggy] wanted to get more out of it.'

The three surviving members of the original quartet — Iggy, Ron, and Ron's brother Scott Asheton on drums — spent the last three years writing new material, with the Minutemen's Mike Watt filling in for late bassist Dave Alexander. Last fall, they cut the album in producer Steve Albini's Chicago studio. 'It wasn't like having to start over, or any kind of struggle,' Asheton says. 'When I hook up with those guys, I'm right back where I started. It was like all those years [in between] just evaporated.'

Of course, with their 60th birthdays looming, the old friends aren't quite as wild as the Stooges of legend. 'Now there's no drugs, there's no crazy times,' Asheton says. But he assures us that their new jams are as raw as ever. 'It's still the Stooges. It's still sex, it's still anger. And there's always that little tinge of humor. It's just dissing all the proper things, and loving all the right things.'

With The Weirdness ready to hit stores, the Stooges are already contemplating their next move. Spring tour dates are in the works, and Asheton is looking forward to recording another new album with the band as soon as next year. 'We're having a good time,' he says. 'I love being in the studio. So we're going to continue as long as the people want us.'

R.I.P. ron

A legend dies.