Back in 1967, a wild group of in-your-face rockers, The Psychedelic Stooges (later The Stooges), were born in Michigan, led by the freakishly energetic Iggy Pop.

The Stooges broke up in the 70s, and Pop’s lifestyle was a list of “don’t try this at home” from his self-mutilating performances, to his mental breakdowns to his drug abuse. Yet, his music was certainly a defining part of the Gen X punk rock rebellions.

One of his biggest hits. “Lust for Life,” from 1977 that later reemerged with the movie Trainspotting.

He also wrote and performed the iconic “The Passenger,” covered famously by 80s gothy new wave queen Siouxsie Sioux:

What’s interesting is some of his coolest hits were his own covers of other artists, like his 1986 version of the of the 1957 rockabilly anthem, “The Wild One,” titled “Real Wild Child (Wild One)”:

There was also his anarchy-tinged cover of “Louie Louie” with The Stooges, because every punk, rock and hip-hop band and musician has cover this at least once.

One of the best autobiographies of Iggy’s weird life, is from his 1993 video for “Wild America” where you see a glimpse of his buddy Henry Rollins of Black Flag. The only downside of this is the reciting of Allen Ginsburg’s overbearingly pretentious “America” by an actress named Patty Sylvia. Yet, if you want to hear Iggy’s life in a nutshell and in his own words, this is it. Plus, the song itself really moves.

I saw a 22-year-old emerging rock star sporting an Iggy Pop tee in one of his publicity pics this week. It’s cool to see some old school punk still having a musical impact.

Iggy Pop was not the type of guy you’d want your sons to hang out with or daughters to date…but you do want them to discover his discography.