Some live albums are musical breakthroughs for bands, some are simply released as stopgaps and some are cultural artifacts. One of the important moments in rock history is now released with The Stooges – Live At Goose Lake: August 8th, 1970, this set captures the end of the original furious Detroit four-piece.
Newly released on vinyl from Third Man Records to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the performance the forty-minute set is from the Goose Lake International Music Festival held in Michigan. That gathering acted as a Midwestern Woodstock a year later and six months after the disastrous Altamont Free Concert. The summer of love was dead as years of turmoil and confusion were starting to descend upon youth culture. Goose Lake as a whole is remembered more for its open drug sales, hundreds of arrests and prison-like barbed wire fences than musical performances.
That is the case with the local up and comers set as well, things were aligning so that this performance would be the huge breakthrough moment for Iggy Pop, Dave Alexander, Ron and Scott Asheton but partaking in various substances pre-show lead to mayhem on the stage.
Alexander is the main focus as he was so out of it that he forgot bass parts, comes in slow at times and plays low in the mix when he decides to strum at all. His performance led a furious Pop to effectively fire Alexander the minute they got off stage, just after getting their power pulled and just before being nearly arrested for inciting a riot.
Amongst all that frenzied background there is the music, the sound of the release is on par with a bootleg, so if sonic fidelity is a must, look elsewhere. After an intro the group is clearly not on the same wavelength for “Loose” as a messy band searches for a linking moment with Alexander nonexistent.
Things improve for “Down On The Street” as the dirty chugging of the group calls to mind a filthy version of The Doors with Iggy trying to get across the moat and huge barbed wire fence put in place specifically to keep him on stage and out of the audience. Lyrically the song calls for no walls and the police took these ranting’s (as well as Pop literally asking to go into the crowd during “Dirt”) as riot inducing, a charge the band was able to avoid.
There is virtually no bass on this version of “T.V. Eye” but things become very interesting on “Dirt” as Asheton’s gnarly guitar work is awesome, wrapping around a slow warped bass line with the sound levels from the unearthed tapes all over the map. Like the record as a whole, this is not a definitive performance from the band but a unique version for fans to enjoy.
When saxophonist Steve Mackay joins the group, the best song of the set flows out via the blasting free jazz flavored “1970 (I Feel Alright)” before the chaotic “Fun House” becomes overloaded with psychotic sounds that are as distorted as the players’ minds. Surprisingly Alexander seems to snap back into the groove for “L.A. Blues” and the band hits a stride right at the finale. Unfortunately, the group’s power plug was pulled as they threatened to go over their allotted time.
There are rumors and stories about the fractious conclusion and aftermath but this release presents the last time the original Stooges would ever take the stage. The moment is captured adequately sonically, but special attention should be given to Jaan Uhelszki Grammy-winning level liner notes which are just as important as the sound in capturing this fully realized moment in rock history.
Reading Uhelszki’s writing while hearing the album spin places the listener right into that chaotic drug-fueled night and while not a must-own for non-fans, it is the truest testament possible to the finale of The Stooges original lineup.
