I first met Iggy via Countdown and the notorious I'm Bored/Dogface episode.
You know the one, where Iggy stuck the mic down his pants grinning, when he was meant to be miming but giving the appearance of singing live. He also got up a bit close and personal with the Countdown audience, scaring the living daylights out of some of them. Later in a crazed/hyperactive - read: typical Iggy - interview, he punched Molly and called him dogface, amongst other things.
The year was 1979, I was 8 and my little freaking mind was blown!!!
Whilst not the hugest fan out there, I have always loved Iggy and his brand of punk/rock/pop.
He is part of what I call the Holy Trinity; David Bowie, Lou Reed, and Iggy Pop.
And so this past Monday, I got to finally complete seeing the Holy Trinity live!
With Lou and Bowie sadly gone, Iggy - weirdly - is the last man standing.
And by god, he was fucking awesome!!!!
My lovely friend A, got us supreme tickets to the gig, at Sydney Opera House no less!
I didn't think that much about the concert leading up to it, I was excited, but was unsure what to expect. I listened a lot to his latest album, Post Pop Depression and the work he did with Josh Homme on American Valhalla. It was pretty good, I'd also seen live footage and knew he would also sound great.
But I guess I also knew deep down, Iggy was a bit nuts and who knew what to expect.
Seeing anything at the Opera House never ever grows old. There is something extra special about gigs there. We had brilliant seats 7 rows from the front and right on the edge of the row which gave us wriggle room to move about a little.
The crowd was mixed ages, but mostly middle aged rockers like ourselves!
Henry Rollins was even there!!!
At exactly 8pm the band appeared on stage followed by a cheeky grinning Iggy - exactly as you would imagine.
From the get go, the audience was on their feet, and remained there for the entire concert. A rarity for the Opera House.
His band were tight and cracking, breathing perfect life to all his tunes and then some.
And he was on fucking fire, he bounced all over the stage with delight and naughtiness. Given he will be 72 in less than a week from the date of the gig, and his physical health has never been great (back issues etc) he gave his all, seemingly easily. He sounded fabulous and more importantly looked like he was having the best night of his life. The more he gave, the more we gave back and so on it blossomed.
The gig was sheer joy from start to finish, and I've seen a lot of gigs, so I know that is rare.
Such an engaging performer - as he always has been - he laughed and waved, shook hands, engaged with audience participation, kept asking for the house lights to be turned on to see us, and even invited the audience to join him on stage during No Fun.
There wasn't much new stuff, it was mostly loads of Stooges stuff. It was a wild concert, loud and epic.
There was a lovely tribute to Bowie with The Jean Genie, and his nod to Australia ending with Real Wild Child and Red Right Hand.
His antics gave me great pics, and I just beamed with joy. Easily one of the best nights I had had in a long time.
My friend A edged her way to the front - eager to show him her very special Iggy dress she had made especially for the occasion - and got a moment with him as she held his hand. She said he wasn't sweating at all and his skin felt like a comfy old leather lounge! Perfect!!
Nights like that don't come along very often, and I know I am still smiling thinking about it!!
Setlist, Monday 15 April 2019
I Wanna Be Your Dog
Gimme Danger
The Passenger
Lust For Life
Skull Ring
I'm Sick of You
Some Weird Sin
Repo Man
Search and Destroy
TV Eye
Mass Production
The Jean Genie
1969
No Fun
Down on the Street
Real Cool Time
Nightclubbing
Sixteen
Five Foot One
Real Wild Child
Red Right Hand
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