5. Iggy Pop
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LDbxOFWZyg After heroin addiction had torn The Stooges apart, Iggy Pop became good friends with David Bowie, who gave the substance-addled front mans floundering career a shot in the arm, similar to the one he had administered to Lou Reed. The revival kick-started when Bowie produced the reformed and re-shuffled (James Williamsons lead guitar relegated a disgruntled Ron Asheton to bass duties) Stooges third album, Raw Power. But, constantly plagued by Iggys drug dependency and behavioural problems, the band disbanded for definite shortly after, forcing Pop to embrace a solo career that remarkably is still going strong today. Once again enlisting Bowies help, Pop released two albums in 1977; the rockier Lust For Life and his magnum opus and close relative of the Berlin Trilogy, The Idiot. Although the latter was essentially a vehicle for Bowie to play about with ideas for his own forthcoming Heroes LP, it is undoubtedly Pops most interesting (despite his indulgence in free-form jazz and New Wave) and best record to date.
Worth the (solo) effort? A varied solo career has allowed Iggy to become regarded as much more than just a prowling, debauched individual, displaying the reflective side of an extremely extroverted man.