Stooges Guitarist Asheton Dies

Seminal punk rockers, The Stooges, lost a valued member of the band when Ron Asheton was found dead on Tuesday. The influential guitarist was found at his home in Ann Arbor, Michigan and appeared to have been dead for several days. The Ann Arbor police do not suspect foul play in the 60 year-old rocker’s death.

Along with his brother, Scott (drummer), the pair were the founding members of the Iggy Pop-lead Stooges. The band was known for their often violent and primitive style that featured over-the-top theatrics by Pop. The band partied hard and played hard and backed by Asheton’s legendary guitar riffs, their music has been credited as a powerful influence on many punk bands; including the Sex Pistols and the Ramones. In fact, Asheton is ranked as the 29th greatest guitar player by Rolling Stone Magazine.

The Stooges broke up in 1974 after just three albums and limited commercial success. They were also limited by the antics and drug problems of Pop. Their concerts were legendary and Pop’s outlandish behavior only fueled audience behavior. Pop would force himself to vomit, jump chest-first into broken glass and on one occasion told the audience to beat him up and they obliged.

After the Stooges broke up, Asheton tried to break into acting and was cast in several low-budget horror films in the 1980s and 1990s. He rejoined the Stooges when the group reformed in 2003 and for the 2007 album “The Weirdness.” Asheton loved his music and had no intention of laying his guitar to rest.

“You’re a professional musician,” he explained. “You can’t be forced to retire. Look at B.B. King, what is he 80-something? That’s the beauty of being a musician. They can’t take it away from you. It’s your music, and you’re pumping it out. You just play ‘til you drop.”