Robin Danar
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Hate posting these things, but they'll never really stop. Just heard about Ron's passing on KCRW. Here's the only press I see on it so far. Since my version of this song is protected, i can't upload the audio. Hopefully the MOG link will work.
The Stooges’ Gutarist Has Left the World.
6-Jan-2009
Written by: Mic Mell
The 60 years old guitar player has passed away.
In Ann Arbor, Mich., Ron Ashton was found dead on the morning of January 6. His personal assistant called police to check up on him, as he had not been in communication in several days. The cause of death has not been determined yet, and he was reported as looking at peace, leading officials to suspect he had a heart attack.
The Stooges were Iggy Pop's backing band, and in the 1970's their punk and rock sound was immensely popular. One of the keys to their popularity was Ashton's guitar work. The band is considered one of the innovators of punk rock. The Stooges' three albums are on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of all Time, and all three clock in in the top 200. On top of that, Ashton has also been acknowledged by RS as one of the 100 Greatest Guitar players of All Time.
His career including playing with several bands, and the Stooges reunited to release an album in 2006, after over 30 years of inactivity. he had been on the road the last few years, enjoying a commercial success this time around that The Stooges did not receive in the 1970's.
Wow…..everyone’s really doing it. Guess it’s time to "fess up".
Since this is a music site, I’d say 1973 is when it became real for me.
Walking through the dorms at Albany State University in NY, I heard a jam going on that I dug and went into the room. Steve Cohen, playing bass, told me I should check out his band "Neon Park". Sure, man. Why not?
I went to check them out and even though they were a college band doing 3-4 sets a night of covers, besides the usual they were also covering Zappa, Beefheart, and Yes. This was trippin’ me out. I became a fan and went to see them every weekend, sometimes twice. I got plowed at all of their shows, but somehow I (usually) made it back to my room. Meanwhile, I was listening to late night college radio, and actually making friends with some DJ’s that played cool shit. It was fuckin’ cold in Albany, so days didn’t really matter.
Then Springsteen happened. I heard this album "Greetings From Asbury Park" that blew my mind. This guy had his own shit going on. I ended up seeing the album cover hung on someone else’s dorm room, and we ended up becoming friends and going to any shows we could. At that time, they were usually around $2-$5 a pop with 20-30 of us in the audience. Maybe it was too cold to go out where we were, but we had to go. He’d actually recognize us at the gigs—"Hey Donnie!! How are ya, Wayne??". "The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle" just kept it going through ’74.
Fast forward. Even though I had a glimpse of what I wanted to pursue, my parents talked me out of taking a job I knew about in Nashville as a janitor in a recording studio in ’75. Probably a decent move, even though I ended up taking that same job in NY later. Some sort of business sense came out of college, which has been useful. But meanwhile, I spent my summer months at home in NY, driving a cab. A great week was when Bruce played the Bottom Line, 2 shows a night. I’d pick up my cab at 4, smoke some joints, do a bunch of trips, then park in the East Village and go see Bruce twice a night. At the end of the last show I met the owner of the Bottom Line, Allen Pepper, who became my friend much later. "You’ll never see anything like that again" was a ballpark quote. He was right. I had to answer for my empty trip sheets to the cab company, but hey—biz was slow that week!
Back to Albany. Somehow (go figure) we had a scene going on. "Neon Park" had moved on, added Val Haynes to sing and become "The Units". We were still friends, and all of a sudden they were writing original music and fitting it into their sets. Those were my favorite songs!! This was a whole new concept. At the same time, a commercial radio station actually began playing alternative music! Around ’77 WQBK emerged in Albany and DJ’s like Lin Brehmer were part of our "extended family". Meanwhile, another local band called "Blotto" had kind of a hit with "I Wanna Be a Lifeguard", while "The Units" were being signed by Miles Copeland to IRS Records (as "Fear of Strangers") and doing gigs in NY at CBGB’s. This was the beginning of another part of my life.
I started doing freelance gigs at CB’s in the mid 70’s as a "sound guy" for a lot of bands. I had stumbled into another scene, but this one was kind of huge. Can you say, "life changing experience"? It had it’s good sides and bad.
I got lucky. Besides being at what I think was the epicenter of a NY scene in those days (it actually started earlier for me and I got lucky with the Warhol crew as well), I somehow came out healthy. I ended up "on staff" at CB’s and while working on gigs covering Blondie, the Ramones, the Talking Heads, Television the NY Dolls and the Dead Boys, I somehow survived drugs. It was that heavy. Fun, but heavy. I don’t know how I pulled this one off, but I did.
So, where did this go? I realized that if I didn’t need a "puke bucket" under the soundboard and kept meeting talented people, I was really good at what I was doing and might be able to enjoy my life doing it. I took a day job at RPM Studios in NY and engineered on albums featuring Paul Simon, Billy Joel, Steely Dan, Chaka Khan and Material, but the live sound thing progressed faster, as I worked with artists like Suzanne Vega when "Luka" came out and the B-52’s when "Love Shack" hit. I did a lot of huge tours mixing front-of-house sound, but my heart was always as a producer/artist.
These days I mostly work on alternative music with influences like Radiohead and Tom Waits, but still loving flat-out pop. Looking back, it all makes sense. Besides now being an artist myself, I’m still producing albums and doing periodic live tours, but I’m still mostly focused on new artists, their development and things getting them heard. My "Altered States" CD was meant to be a vehicle for artists like Rachael Yamagata, Pete Yorn, Inara George, Gary Jules, Jesca Hoop and others to be heard. While I’ve been lucky enough to work with KCRW in LA to make that happen, my friend Nic Harcourt has become an absolute icon globally for getting new things heard and I love that association.
It may be a lot warmer in Santa Monica than it was in Albany, but I guess it’s not about the weather.
Comments
Wow - no one cares about RD?
Well, let me be the first then . . .
You rule, dude! You totally rule.
In fact, "you are the wind beneath my wings"
dude
;-)
It also gets lonely in outer space (and no one can hear you scream)
But - whattya gonna do?
Have you guys seen this? If not, it's worth watching. Hope you like it!
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Yeah...Jim Boggia was on the telephone telling me all about it. I couldn't wait to see it. Watched a few times this afternoon.
:=)
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Sad news indeed but that is quite a legacy to leave behind.
Yeah, I've been hearing about this too today - across all the usual social networking sites.
Sad news. Iggy and The Stooges were tremendously influential in my life.
I think this video says it all:
selfishly, i am saddened that my birthday is now the same day of the passing of a legendary guitar player that has made my ears and soul scream with joy over the years!