Ron Asheton
| Ron Asheton | |
|---|---|
Ron Asheton in 1970
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Ronald Franklin Asheton |
| Born |
July 17, 1948 Washington, D.C., |
| Died | January 6, 2009 (aged 60) Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA |
| Genres | Punk rock, hard rock, garage rock |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, actor |
| Instruments | Guitar, bass, accordion |
| Years active | 1963–2008 |
| Labels | Elektra, Columbia, Virgin |
| Associated acts | The Stooges, The New Order, Destroy All Monsters, New Race, Dark Carnival |
| Notable instruments | |
| Reverend Ron Asheton Signature Guitar (Custom Volcano 390) | |
Ronald Franklin Asheton (July 17, 1948 – early January, 2009) was an American guitarist, bassist and co-songwriter with Iggy Pop for the rock band the Stooges. He formed the Stooges along with Pop and his brother, drummer Scott Asheton, and bassist Dave Alexander. Asheton, once ranked as number 29 on Rolling Stone's list of 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time is currently (as of November 2014) ranked at number 60.
Asheton was born in Washington, D.C. He already had five years of practice on the accordion behind him when he began playing bass guitar at age 10. When he was 13 the family relocated to Ann Arbor. He played guitar with some local bands including The Chosen Few (briefly overlapping with James Williamson (musician), later of the Stooges).
By 1967 Asheton was jamming with his brother Scott and friend Dave Alexander. They were soon joined by James "Iggy" Osterberg who remembered Asheton from the Chosen Few. The "Psychedelic Stooges" played their first show Halloween 1967. In 1968 they were signed to Elektra Records along with the MC5 by Danny Fields. He played guitar on and wrote most of the music for their first two albums, the eponymous debut (1969) and Fun House (The Stooges album) (1970). Shortly after they recorded the second roadie Billy Cheetham joined as a second guitarist, James Williamson replaced Cheetham in December. By the summer of 1971 the band beset by drug abuse and dropped by Elektra broke up.
In 1972 David Bowie invited Pop and Williamson to London to reform the band and record a new album. Eventually, after being unable to find suitable local replacements, Pop invited the Asheton brothers to rejoin but with Ron on bass. When the Stooges reformed in 2003 he once again appeared as the band's guitarist. He stayed with the band until his death and was replaced by Williamson.
His raw, distorted guitar work with the Stooges was greatly influential for many punk bands to come.
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