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".
Street Crazies
Iggy Pop Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I am hungry
I am hungry
Give me something
I am hungry
Feed me
Give me something
Street crazy
I am nobody, I am nobody, I am nobody
[Chorus]
Yes, they're cropping up now with alarming frequency
These little group eyes
Wasted people standing around
Those who've been kicked ass backwards
Hard out of our society
As we try for the better,
For the higher in man
They may as well be apes, you know
Trying to comprehend the way of death
[Chorus]
Shovel it up the street, shovel it up the street, shovel it up the street
And it gets me down
And it gets me down
This is the vision I see
Street crazy
Iggy Pop's song "Street Crazies" is a haunting lament for wasted people left behind by society. The chorus repeats the words "I am hungry, give me something, feed me," which can be interpreted both literally as a need for food and figuratively as a need for meaning or purpose. The repeated phrase "street crazy" reinforces the idea that these people have been marginalized and rejected by society.
The second verse paints a picture of these "little group eyes" standing around, lost and forgotten. They are described as "wasted" and "kicked ass backwards" - in other words, they have been left behind by a society that prioritizes progress and success over compassion for the most vulnerable. Iggy Pop suggests that these people are not valued by the "higher" or "better" aspects of humanity, and are thus dehumanized and dismissed as "apes" in a world that does not value their lives.
The third verse is perhaps the most striking, as Iggy Pop describes the literal act of shoveling people into the street. This imagery reinforces the idea that these people have been discarded like trash, and serves as a powerful critique of a society that treats the poor and marginalized as disposable. The final line "This is the vision I see, street crazy" brings the song full circle, emphasizing the idea that the singer's experience of the world is defined by the poverty and desperation of those around him.
Line by Line Meaning
I am hungry
I am in need of something to satisfy my figurative or literal hunger
I am hungry
I am still hungry and need something else to eat or consume
Give me something
I am requesting some sort of sustenance or material object
I am hungry
Despite already asking for and receiving sustenance, I am still hungry
Feed me
Please provide me with sustenance to satiate my hunger
Give me something
I am once again requesting some type of item or sustenance
Street crazy
Referring to the marginalized individuals who are often considered outcasts by society
I am nobody, I am nobody, I am nobody
Feeling invisible and overlooked by society
Yes, they're cropping up now with alarming frequency
The presence of marginalized individuals is becoming more noticeable and concerning
These little group eyes
The marginalized people are often pushed to form small communities amongst themselves
Wasted people standing around
Those who have fallen through the cracks of society are aimlessly existing in public spaces
Those who've been kicked ass backwards
People who have been failed by society and have fallen through the cracks
Hard out of our society
These individuals have been isolated and left behind by society
As we try for the better, for the higher in man
Society as a whole is pursuing a better future and advancement, but not for these individuals
They may as well be apes, you know, trying to comprehend the way of death
Society often views these individuals as primitive or unintelligent simply because they don't understand why they are being left behind
Shovel it up the street, shovel it up the street, shovel it up the street
Metaphorically cleaning up the mess and pushing these individuals to another part of town
And it gets me down
The situation is depressing and disheartening
This is the vision I see
This is the reality and perspective I have on the world
Street crazy
Reinforcing the idea of the marginalized individuals being considered insane or out of touch with reality by society
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: IGGY POP
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.