Though his popularity has fluctuated through the years, many of Pop's songs have become well-known, including "Lust for Life", "The Passenger", "Real Wild Child", "Candy" (a duet with Kate Pierson of The B-52's), "China Girl", "Nightclubbing", "Search and Destroy" and "I Wanna Be Your Dog".
In 2010, The Stooges were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Pop was the lead singer of The Stooges, a late 1960s/early 1970s band that featured brothers Ron and Scott Asheton and Dave Alexander and was highly influential in the development of hard rock. The debut album was produced by the Velvet Underground's John Cale. The band's "I Wanna Be Your Dog" is a garage punk standard.
Raw Power was first released in1973, perhaps the first record that could truly be called punk. It was the confluence of The Stooges ages, hormones, creativity, ability, experience, tastes, lack of supervision, contempt for authority and ambition that has made Raw Power one of the most influential albums of all time.
The Stooges were infamous for performances in which Pop leapt off the stage (hence, the "stage dive"), smeared raw meat or peanut butter over his chest and cut himself with broken bottles. A glimpse of the vibrating intensity of Iggy live can be seen in the Ramones movie "End of the Century." Guitarist James Williamson became a key collaborator, a partnership documented on the 1978 album Kill City.
In 25 years as a solo artist, Pop's best-known songs have included the thumping Lust for Life, to be heard on the soundtrack of the find-a-vein, shoot-it-up movie Trainspotting, I'm Bored and The Passenger (the latter based on a poem written by Jim Morrison). David Bowie played a key role in reinvigorating Pop's post-Stooges career and was a collaborator on the albums Lust for Life and The Idiot. Iggy may be under-rated as a songwriter. Bowie and Tina Turner covered his "Tonight". Bowie also put out his own version of "China Girl," while Grace Jones covered the icey "Nightclubbing".
Skull Ring
Iggy Pop Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Fast cars
Hot chicks
Money
Skull rings
Fast cars
Hot chicks
The touch of a hand in the wasteland
You're walking asleep and dreaming cheap
A bird's wing don't beat for free
You're freezing cold and your family
Skull rings
Fast cars
Hot chicks
Money
Skull rings
Fast cars
Hot chicks
Fancy things
Fingers on fire to do what's bad
Ring on the finger is a skull man
Strong as a bar of steel
Weakness is that you can't feel
Skull rings
Fast cars
Hot chicks
Money
Skull rings
Fast cars
Hot chicks
Fancy things
My life is dirtied, my mind is loaded
I'm feeling and breathing and fighting
To see
People get ready now
Baby come on give your heart to me
Skull rings
Fast cars
Hot chicks
Money
Skull rings
Fast cars
Hot chicks
Fancy things
The song "Skull Ring" by Iggy Pop & The Stooges consists of repetitive lyrics depicting a life of materialism and instant gratification. The lyrics emphasize the four elements of a luxurious lifestyle - skull rings, fast cars, hot chicks, and money. The song starts with the repetitive lyrics of these elements and goes on to describe a dystopian wasteland where a touch of a hand is the only comfort. The lyrics describe the bleakness of this world where people are "walking asleep and dreaming cheap".
The song emphasizes the materialistic ways of people who seem lost in their own world of fancy things. Their fingers are on fire to do what is bad, as depicted by the skull ring on their fingers which symbolizes the dark side of humanity. Despite their external strength, they are weak on the inside and unable to feel anything. The song portrays a sense of loneliness and desperation in the midst of all these materialistic possessions.
The chorus line of "Skull Ring" reinforces the repetitive nature of the lyrics, emphasizing how these things are important to the people who live this lifestyle. The song portrays a world of excess where the only thing that matters is the accumulation of materialistic possessions.
Line by Line Meaning
Skull rings
A symbol of rebellion and danger, worn to show a disregard for societal norms and expectations.
Fast cars
A representation of wealth and power, used to sate primal desires and fulfill luxurious whims.
Hot chicks
An objectified representation of desirable femininity, sought after purely for their aesthetic value.
Fancy things
Material possessions that demonstrate prestige and affluence, often used as a signal of social status.
The touch of a hand in the wasteland
The simple human connection of touch, juxtaposed against the bleakness and isolation of the wasteland.
You're walking asleep and dreaming cheap
In a state of emotional and physical numbness, seeking cheap thrills to briefly awaken from the monotony of everyday life.
A bird's wing don't beat for free
Everything in life has a cost, whether it is physical or emotional.
You're freezing cold and your family
The feeling of being emotionally distant and disconnected from loved ones and family members.
Fingers on fire to do what's bad
A potent desire to engage in misdeeds, with the overwhelming compulsion of impulse taking precedence over rational thought or morality.
Ring on the finger is a skull man
A skull ring worn as a symbol of identity and aggression, demonstrating a willingness to embrace darkness and danger.
Strong as a bar of steel
Emotional and physical fortitude, likened to the strength of a steel bar.
Weakness is that you can't feel
The inability to feel emotional or physical pain, causing a sense of isolation and detachment from the world around you.
My life is dirtied, my mind is loaded
A sense of corruption and degradation, with a mind heavy with festering thoughts.
I'm feeling and breathing and fighting
A persistent will to survive, despite the overwhelming weight of despair and negativity.
To see
A desire for clarity and understanding, to perceive more clearly the world around you.
People get ready now
A call to action, to prepare for the tumultuous and unpredictable journey of life.
Baby come on give your heart to me
An earnest plea for connection and intimacy, a desire to bridge the emotional gap between two individuals.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: IGGY POP, RONALD ASHETON, SCOTT ASHETON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
R Robinson
on Livin' On The Edge Of The Night (edit)
Here are corrections to incorrect lyrics - outrageously, stupidly incorrect: The first line is, "ILL WIND off the river". (And that's ill, not I'll.) The second line is, "smoke stacks fade to BLACK". Second verse: "I've made my bed but I can't REST my head". And "so much COULD be misunderstood". Bridge: "WELL maybe it's just my life". An artist crafts his work meticulously , then this is what happens to it. Disgusting.