Scott Asheton

NEW YORK (AP) - Scott Asheton, drummer for the influential punk rock band the Stooges, has died. He was 64.

Publicist Michele Adler confirmed Monday that Asheton died Saturday. No other details were provided.

Bandleader Iggy Pop posted on his Facebook page Sunday that he's "never heard anyone play the drums with more meaning than Scott Asheton."

Asheton was part of the Stooges when they formed in 1967 in Ann Arbor, Mich. His older brother, Ron Asheton, who was the group's guitarist, died in 2009. The Stooges released their self-titled debut in 1969.

"He was like my brother," Pop's statement read of Scott. "He and Ron have left a huge legacy to the world. The Ashetons have always been and continue to be a second family to me. My thoughts are with his sister Kathy, his wife Liz and his daughter Leanna, who was the light of his life."

Asheton suffered from undisclosed illnesses in 2011 and was unable to perform at summer music festi vals in Europe with the Stooges. "He was on a flight to England when all sorts of hell broke loose," Pop told Rolling Stone in 2011. "Without proper medical attention right there he would have bought it. He got very, very good care from the British and all sorts of tests."

While the Stooges weren't a commercial success, they went on to become one of the significant bands in punk music. Their raw sound helped inspire the first generation of punk musicians. The band influenced acts from Patti Smith to the Ramones to Sid Vicious. The group landed in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.

After recording three albums in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the Stooges split and Pop went on to a successful solo career. The band reunited for 2007's "The Weirdness" and "Ready to Die," released last year.

Asheton was born on Aug. 16, 1949, in Washington, D.C. He played drums for other bands, including Sonic's Rendezvous Band, the group led by former MC5 guitarist Fred "Sonic" Smith.

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MESFIN FEKADU, AP Music Writer


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