Iggy Pop Praises Ron Asheton's 'Beautiful Musical Touch'

Iggy Pop has paid tribute to The Stooges former guitarist Ron Asheton, who died last week at the age of 60.

In his first interview since Asheton's death, Pop said the guitarist had a “beautiful touch as a musician”.

“As long as I don’t think about it, I’m OK. And then when I think about it, I’m not OK,” he told a Detroit radio station.

Asheton’s body was found by police at his home in Michigan last Tuesday (January 6th). He is thought to have suffered a heart attack.

The guitarist was one of the group's founding members and was responsible for some of The Stooges' most infamous guitarist riffs.

Pop, who in a statement last week described Asheton as his “best friend”, told the Deminski & Doyle show: “He developed such a unique sound and approach to his instrument and writing that I don’t think that everybody got it at first, but over the years other generations caught on.

“I think a lot of good musicians were influenced by what Ron pioneered.”

When asked to name bands that might have been influenced by Asheton's playing, Pop gave an example of the “dissonance and overdrive” used by Sonic Youth.

“I hear a little bit in Smashing Pumpkins… also in Nirvana,” he added.

The Stooges toured extensively throughout 2007 and 2008, playing a number of high profile festival slots around the world.

CLICK HERE to read Gigwise's full obituary.

Ron Asheton - A Tribute