Lust for Life (1977). Bowie was adamant about not taking the spotlight away from Pop, often staying behind his keyboard and not addressing the audience; Giovanni Dadomo of Sounds reported, "If you wanted David, you also got the band." Pop's stage presence was praised, although some, including Nick Kent, believed that Bowie was still in charge. The tour lasted until April 16, 1977. The Idiot and his subsequent tour earned Pop greater fame and success than he had ever achieved with the Stooges. However, during interviews, he was often asked about Bowie more than his own work. As a result, Pop took a more direct approach when making Lust for Life, resulting in a sound more reminiscent of his earlier work. Critical reception Critical reception to The Idiot was largely positive, although it did confuse a number of reviewers. Doggett writes that listeners' perceptions of Pop generally influenced their views on the record. In a contemporary review of the album, John Swenson of Rolling Stone termed it "the most savage indictment of rock posturing ever recorded" and "a necrophiliac's delight". In Melody Maker, Allan Jones praised the record as a "disturbingly pertinent expression of modern music". Strick positively compared The Idiot to Pop's prior work with the Stooges, noting the difference in his vocal performance: "[He] doesn't sound alive... he sounds automated." He further complimented Pop's lyricism, stating, "Iggy's got the tainted charisma of a dead poet." Like Strick, Riegel noted the difference in The Idiot and Raw Power, writing: "Where Raw Power represented the final apotheosis of the Detroit-metal rock band, The Idiot puts Iggy right out in front as a kind of rarefied, continent-seasoned singer-songwriter." Billboard magazine noted the "less frantic" pace of Pop's earlier efforts and found Bowie's parts make the record more "commercially palatable". Similar to other reviewers, Kris Needs of ZigZag magazine was perplexed upon hearing The Idiot for the first time, noting the major difference between it and Pop's work with the Stooges. Calling it "a very strange, morbid, obscure and unsettling [album]", Needs praised the record, stating he listened to it on repeat for hours at a time, and it "chill[ed] [him] to the marrow". John Rockwell of The New York Times called it "a powerful record", describing Pop's vocals as a blend of Morrison and Lou Reed and Bowie's music as "Germano‐British progressivisms". Meanwhile, Record Mirror Jim Evans found "little emotion" in