The Stooges - "The Battle of New Orleans"
Voodoo Music Experience
City Park
New Orleans, LA
November 1, 2003

Lineage: Soundboard > CD-R > AIFF > xACT 1.62 > FLAC > You
(No artwork)

Track listing:

01. Loose
02. Down On The Street
03. 1969
04. I Wanna Be Your Dog/T.V. Eye*
05. Dirt
06. Real Cool Time/No Fun*
07. 1970
08. Fun House
09. Skull Ring
10. I Wanna Be Your Dog

*Tracks 4 and 6 are as they appear on the original master. I chose not to separate them.

Band members:
Iggy Pop - Vocals, Guitar
Ron Asheton - Guitar
Scott Asheton - Drums
Mike Watt - Bass
Steve Mackay - Saxophone

This fantastic soundboard recording was given to me by a musician/producer friend, who obtained it direct from the soundboard engineer. As far as I know, no tweaking has been done to the original master. The recording has only been distributed privately, and on an extremely limited basis, until now.

Quality is superb, but what really makes this recording stand out from the pack is the interaction between Iggy and the audience. Unlike every other gig on the Stooges' reunion tour, this was no love-fest. In fact, the audience was downright hostile, and Iggy reacted as only he can. As anyone who has ever heard "Metallic K.O." will testify, Iggy is at his best when his back is against the wall.

The following concert review appeared in OffBeat Magazine, December 2003:

Artist: Iggy & the Stooges
Date: November 1, 2003
Venue: Voodoo 2003, City Park, New Orleans

"I am you, motherfucker," screams 56-year old James Osterberg. He
pulls his cock out of the top of his pants, feigning masturbation. "I
am YOU!"

It's a warm Saturday evening in City Park, and James Osterberg -
better known as Iggy Pop - is stood on the edge of the Voodoo stage
berating a Metairie mall punk (young enough to be his granddaughter)
for her utter indifference to his performance. You can't blame her,
really. She's never seen the Godfather of Punk on MTV, never heard
him on 106.7 The End. He's just some old fart she must endure for an
hour before Marilyn Manson totters on in his high heels. "You suck
like the bands you like," Iggy offers encouragingly, then spits at
her.

Alas, was it ever so. Nobody liked the Stooges in 1969, and precious
few more seem to like 'em in the New Orleans of 2003. "No Fun" wakes
a handful of kids from their slumber, but you have to suspect they are
familiar with the song only from the Sex Pistols' cover.

Guitarist Ron Asheton looks dressed for a trip around Home Depot, but
those flashing Detroit fingers still work the fretboard like a master
craftsman. Brother Scott pounds out the same simple, primal rhythms
that drove the Stooges back in the day, while Ônew guy' Mike Watt
holds it all together on bass in lieu of the late, great Dave
Alexander. Amazingly, they've managed to dig up avant-jazz
saxophonist Steve Mackay to reprise his role on 1970's Funhouse. The
extraordinary three-song sequence that makes up side two of that album
is played in its entirety, much to the delight of, well, me.

There is enough applause to persuade Iggy to return for an encore, but
he's gonna make 'em beg before he gives them a second rendition of "I
Wanna Be Your Dog". Make your mind up, Jim. Are you the sadist, or
the masochist, this evening?