The Stooges: The Authorized and Illustrated Story [Hardcover]

Robert Matheu (Author), Jeffrey Morgan (Editor), Alice Cooper (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2009

Formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967, the Stooges are icons of modern rock, influencing the fledgling sounds of punk, heavy metal, and hard core. From the beginning, lead singer and provocateur Iggy Pop (b. James Osterberg) astounded audiences with his outrageous stage performances, accompanied by guitarist Ron Asheton, his drummer brother Scott Asheton, and bassist Dave Alexander with their raw and bracing sound. The group disbanded in 1974, but reunited in 2003 to play before a vastly expanded fan base of over 10 million devotees worldwide, and they continue to tour today.

 

In this book, rock photographer Robert Matheu compiles the first ever authorized book about the band, including iconic photographs, classic interviews, and vintage articles and ephemera dating from the band's breakout performances in Detroit in the late 1960s through their most recent shows in 2009. With new interviews from every significant member of the Stooges, past and present, previously unpublished photography, and a Stooges discography, The Stooges is the definitive book about this trailblazing band.

                                    

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Robert Matheu is a rock photographer based in Los Angeles who began working for CREEM magazine in the late 1970s. He photographed the Stooges at some of their earliest shows and has maintained a close relationship with the group. His work has appeared in countless publications worldwide. Alice Cooper is a rock-n-roll icon with over 50 million albums sold who continues to record and tour. He is the author of the bestselling Alice Cooper, Golf Monster.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Abrams (October 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0810982897
• ISBN-13: 978-0810982895
• Product Dimensions: 12.4 x 9.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #829,813 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Nice Stooges Book that Pays Respect to All Memebers, October 9, 2009

By 

A. Woodley "A Stooge" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Stooges: The Authorized and Illustrated Story (Hardcover)

Let me level with you. I have picked up a number of Stooges books over the years. The Stooges are musical heroes of mine and I guess I'm a bit obsessed with Iggy himself. I saw them in concert about two years ago, and have never seen a concert that compares to that in my life. I've seen a lot of concerts too. I have collected many "lost" Stooges albums and box sets. I have overpaid many times. I am telling you all this so you understand where I am coming from when I review this book. It is by far one of the better books on the Stooges around. The book is littered with pictures of the band with chapters written by fans. In Alice Cooper's forward he explains the first time he saw the Stooges and how they were unlike anything he had ever seen, a band of over the top theatrics and raw power. This is Alice Cooper, a man of over the top theatrics himself, and he is saying the Stooges were over the top. The book also utlizes quotes from the members to enhance the story (similarly to The Beatles anthology). The book is not written in this manner though. In addition, this books spanns the Stooges entire career. Starting in Ann Arbor with pictures of the boys hanging outside the Ashtons' house, and bringing us through today as the Stooges have reunited. Another plus to the book is the equal value placed on all members. I have read different biographies of the band that try to place blame on different memebers of the band for what happened. A lot of these books have been unkind to James Williamson also. Please Kill Me (a great book on punk music by Legs McNeil) quoted the Ashtons' sister as saying "James Williamson was like a dark cloud descending on the band." Did James Williamson play a hand in changing the sound of the band? Yes, but we went from the realms of madness with Funhouse to the raw power of the riff driven Raw Power. Give Williamson some credit for his amazing guitar playing. It's not that the book isn't honest about the troubles and problems in the band, it's that it spreads the blame equally amongst the members (when it's called for). If you've read all this, I appreciate it and I'm sure you know my opinion. If you are a Stooges fan, BUY THIS BOOK.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Authorized IS better, December 24, 2009

By 

Zebba-9 (Northern MI) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Stooges: The Authorized and Illustrated Story (Hardcover)

Straight to the point, there are only three books on the Stooges you NEED: Raw Power, I Need More and this one. If you only want one get this. The photos are great. If you've not heard much on the Stooges saga, that's covered too. I have seen about everything and heard everything since 1972 and this is the real deal. I even picked up a few tidbits and the discography was good too.A few pics were in CREEM but not so huge as they appear here. If you want petulant bickering pick up Grit, Noise + Revolution, if you want scabs and warts, try Wonderland Avenue. If you want a comprehensive look at the most powerful band ever to come out of Michigan (and chock full of rare photos), pick up this one.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars (fortunately) one picture speaks 1,000 words, August 13, 2010

By 

Charles Miller "objective clarity" (Baltimore, Maryland U.S.A.) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Stooges: The Authorized and Illustrated Story (Hardcover)

This book is surprisingly large; truly a "coffee-table" book. The photographs are excellent beyond measure; many unseen and spanning the entire history of the The Stooges (pre-1968 through 2009). In that regard, nothing better has been published regarding this historic band. The book finishes with an excellent discography, featuring thumbnail images of the releases, which is really quite a nice touch (although track listings would have made it even better). Virtually every release, be it official or semi-bootleg is included; even Russian releases.

The text was a disappointment however. First off, there is very little actual text; mainly double-spaced essays. You can read the entire book in an hour. And there is very little in the way of revealing journalism here, but rather, the type of material you would read as promotional material on the back of an album. Yeah, yeah, I get it... a bad Stooges album is better than anyone else's... blah, blah, blah.

At one point, the author intentionally does not reveal the big "secret" held in Ron Asheton's room that caused the loss of a record contract. Having read what the secret was in another book, it is obvious the writer did not want to offend any of the band members as it reflected badly on the guitarist, but this is not good journalism. The "hip" style of writing also detracts from readability.

Overall, this book has to be highly-recommended for long-time fans and newcomers to The Stooges, if nothing else, for the best compilation of photographs of this band ever published, and again, the discography is also of value. Unfortunately, the actual text remains what it is: cool-guy conversational-style suck-ups, which is quite tedious and sheds little light on the subject at hand. The photographs are far more informative than the text... one picture speaks a 1,000 words.