Rhino Factoids: Bowie, Iggy, and the Vibrators

39 years ago today, The Vibrators kicked off a tour which doubtlessly made them feel like the luckiest bunch of punks in the UK: not only were they serving as the opening act for a punk icon, but Mr. Pop’s keyboardist on the tour was an icon in his own right.

To support the release of his latest album, The Idiot, Iggy Pop kicked off a series of live dates with a six-pack of performances in the UK with The Vibrators as his opening act. Needless to say, The Vibrators were not seen as the biggest deal in regards to this particular tour: rumors had been flying that Bowie might be popping up to play with his buddy Iggy, but confirmation proved elusive, and even when the show started on March 1, 1977 at Friars Hall in Aylesbury, England, Bowie made a point of staying out of the limelight, playing keyboards and drawing as little attention to himself as possible. In turn, he enjoyed the experience immensely, later saying, “It was great not having the pressure of being the singer up front: Iggy would be preening himself before he went on, and I’d be sitting there reading a book.”

When Ian “Knox” Carnochan, lead singer and guitarist for The Vibrators, was interviewed for Cleopatra Records’ website a few years ago and asked about his favorite musician he’d worked or played with, he didn’t hesitate in his response: “I think the biggest highlight for me was The Vibrators touring as the support band for Iggy Pop when he had David Bowie playing keyboards. It would probably be impossible to top that.”

As for Iggy, the six-pack of UK dates was immediately followed by the release of the first single from The Idiot, a co-write between himself and Bowie which ultimately failed to chart, but if you’re about to call it a total flop, just you shut your mouth: when Bowie released his own version of the song in 1983, it went to #10 in the US and #2 in the UK. Perhaps you’ve heard of it? It’s called “China Girl.”