Hippodrome Paris '77

Among the plethora of discs (official and otherwise) that capture the sound of Iggy Pop in 1977, this set -- recorded on the second of the year's two tours, in September -- is one of the very strongest. With two solo albums now under his belt (The Idiot and the recently released Lust for Life), Iggy was no longer dependent upon his Stooges' back catalog for ammunition. He responded with a show that included just two "oldies" ("Raw Power" and the inevitable "I Wanna Be Your Dog") plus the recently resuscitated "I Got a Right," allowing him instead to begin stretching out the new material. Certainly there is no more dynamic a rendition of "The Passenger" than that which grew to eight-plus minutes on this tour, while a similarly protracted "Fall in Love with Me" is likewise a career milestone. And what could be better than to hear the Ig vamping through "That's How Strong My Love Is"? The sound quality is a little shaky, although fidelity fans will be pleased to hear it at least makes more sense than the official TV Eye. And the excitement level is in the red throughout. Essential live Iggy! ~ Dave Thompson|