Ann Arbor High School students
Iggy Pop, then known by his birth name Jim Osterberg (drums, vocals), and Jim McLaughlin (lead guitar, vocals) first came together as a duo, extensively rehearsing before making their debut at the school's talent show. By 1963, the two were joined by classmates Nick Kolokithas (rhythm guitar, vocals), Don Swickerath (bass guitar), and Sam Swisher (saxophone, flute, backing vocals) to form the Iguanas. Through the mid-1960s, the band performed
covers of
British Invasion songs at high school concerts and fraternity parties at the
University of Michigan, while also conducting two demo recording sessions. Alluding to the Iguanas, fans of the band, particularly Osterberg, began to address him as "Iggy", inspiring the drummer's later stage name he adopted while performing with
the Stooges. By early 1965, the Iguanas were one of the hippest bands among Michigan's teen garage scene.
Cub Koda, the leader of
Brownsville Station, recalled spectating at the group's concerts several times, and praised Osterberg's drum work and re-interpreted versions of songs like "
Louie, Louie" and "Wild Weekend". Around the same time, the Iguanas pressed 1,000 copies of their debut single, a rendition of "
Mona", on the group's own Forte Records label. Conflicts arose between Osterberg and his bandmates over the record's
B-side, which eventually was filled by Kolokithas's "I Don't Know Why". Osterberg had insisted that his song "Again and Again", the first original composition penned by him, be the flipside, but he was overruled. Osterberg negotiated the band's residency at the
Club Ponytail in mid-1965, a teen dance club located in the Harbor Springs resort area. At the venue, the Iguanas often shared the bill with acts like
the Four Tops,
the Shangri-Las, and
the Kingsmen. However, the Iguanas's British pop sound was soon losing favor with the region's fanbase. Osterberg took notice to the change and departed in 1966 to join the
blues rock band
the Prime Movers. Although the Iguanas attempted to continue without Osterberg, the group disbanded in 1967 when a record deal with
Columbia Records failed to materialize. The Iguanas were inducted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame in 2018. == Discography ==