American Caesar (album)


American Caesar is the tenth studio album by American rock singer Iggy Pop, released in September 1993 on Virgin Records.

Production

After the success of Brick by Brick, Pop opted to continue with that album's lyrical themes while toughening up the musical foundation. The album is often considered one of his stronger 1990s albums.
Videos were made for "Wild America" and "Beside You", and the album has a cover of the 1960s standard "Louie Louie" for which Pop wrote his own set of politically fueled lyrics.

Release

The first single from the album, "Wild America", reached number 25 on Modern Rock Tracks on October 16, 1993, spending a total of three weeks in the charts.

Musical style

In allusion to the sound of American Caesar, Stephen Thomas Erlewine proclaimed the record a "grungy detour".

Critical reception

Upon release, Melody Maker published a favorable review, saying it was "a glowing testament to the incisive raw power of one of rock's greatest minds, back on the razor-edge of innovation again".
In a retrospective review, Mark Demming of AllMusic called the album "an overlooked masterpiece."

Track listing

All tracks composed by Iggy Pop, except where noted.
  1. "Character" – 1:07
  2. "Wild America" – 5:52
  3. "Mixin' the Colors" – 4:49
  4. "Jealousy" – 6:04
  5. "Hate" – 6:56
  6. "It's Our Love" – 4:09
  7. "Plastic & Concrete" – 2:55
  8. "Fuckin' Alone" – 4:56
  9. "Highway Song" – 3:44
  10. "Beside You" – 4:29
  11. "Sickness" – 3:15
  12. "Boogie Boy" – 4:53
  13. "Perforation Problems" – 3:15
  14. "Social Life" – 4:12
  15. "Louie Louie" – 3:47
  16. "Caesar" – 7:09
  17. "Girls of N.Y." – 4:15
B-sides and alternate versions
  • "Les Amants" – 5:16
  • "Louie Louie" – 5:32
  • "Beside You" – 3:52
  • "Evil California"
  • "Home" – 4:10
  • "Mixin' The Colours" – 4:10
  • "Wild America"
  • "Credit Card" – 2:25
  • "Come Back Tomorrow" – 5:08
  • "My Angel" – 4:10

Personnel

  • Iggy Pop – guitar, vocals
  • Eric Schermerhorn – guitar
  • Malcolm Burn – guitar, keyboards, harmonica
  • Hal Cragin – bass
  • Larry Mullins – drums, percussion
  • Jay Joyce – guitar on "Wild America" & "Mixin' the Colours"
  • Bill Dillon – "atmospheric" guitar on "Mixin' the Colours"
  • Darryl Johnson – percussion on "Mixin' the Colours"
  • Henry Rollins – backing vocals on "Wild America"
  • Katell Keineg – backing vocals on "Mixin' the Colours"
  • Lisa Germano – backing vocals on "Beside You"
Technical
  • Mark Howard – recording
  • George Cowan – engineer
  • Trina Shoemaker – engineer
  • Todd Vos – engineer
  • Paul Mahern – engineer