MC5
Encyclopedia
The MC5 is an American
rock
band formed in Lincoln Park, Michigan
and originally active from 1964 to 1972. The original band line-up consisted of vocalist Rob Tyner, guitarists Wayne Kramer
and Fred "Sonic" Smith, bassist Michael Davis
, and drummer Dennis Thompson
. "Crystallizing the counterculture movement at its most volatile and threatening", according to Allmusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine
, the MC5's far left
political ties and anti-establishment
lyrics and music positioned them as emerging innovators of the punk movement
in the United States. Their loud, energetic style of back-to-basics rock 'n' roll
included elements of garage rock
, hard rock
, blues-rock
, and psychedelic rock
.
The MC5 had a promising beginning which earned them a cover appearance on Rolling Stone
magazine in 1969 even before their debut album was released. They developed a reputation for energetic and polemical live performances, one of which was recorded as their 1969 debut album Kick Out the Jams
. Their initial run was ultimately short-lived, though within just a few years of their dissolution in 1972, the MC5 were often cited as one of the most important American hard rock groups of their era. Their three albums are regarded by many as classics, and their song "Kick Out the Jams" is widely covered.
Tyner died of a heart attack in late 1991, aged 46. Smith also died of a heart attack, in 1994, also at the age of 46. The band reformed in 2003 with The Dictators
' singer Handsome Dick Manitoba as its new vocalist, and this reformed line-up sometimes performs live.
, Chuck Berry
, Dick Dale
, the Ventures, and what would later be called garage rock
: they adored any music with speed, energy and a rebellious attitude. Each guitarist/singer formed and led a rock group (Smith's Vibratones and Kramer's Bounty Hunters). As members of both groups left for college or straight jobs, the most committed members eventually united (under Kramer's leadership and the Headhunters name) with Michael Fraser on vocals/bass and Grant Palmer on drums, and were popular and successful enough in and around Detroit that the musicians were able to quit their day jobs and make a living from the group.
Kramer felt they needed a manager, which led him to Rob Derminer, a few years older than the others, and deeply involved in Detroit's hipster and left-wing political scenes. Derminer originally auditioned as a bass guitarist, though they quickly realized that his talents could be better used as a lead singer: though not conventionally attractive and rather paunchy by traditional frontman standards, he nonetheless had a commanding stage presence, and a booming baritone voice that evidenced his abiding love of American soul
and gospel music
. Derminer renamed himself Rob Tyner (after Coltrane's pianist McCoy Tyner
). Tyner also invented their new name, The MC5: it reflected their Detroit roots (it was short for "Motor City Five'), was vaguely reminiscent of a sports car
name (like the GTO
), and echoed the Dave Clark Five, at the peak of their popularity in 1964–1965. In some ways the group was similar to other garage bands of the period, composing soon-to-be historic workouts such as "Black to Comm" during their mid-teens in the basement of the home of Kramer's mother.
The music also reflected Smith and Kramer's increasing interest in free jazz
-- the guitarists were inspired by the likes of Albert Ayler
, Archie Shepp
, Sun Ra
and late period John Coltrane
, and tried to imitate the ecstatic sounds of the squealing, high-pitched saxophonists they adored. The MC5 even later opened for a few U.S. midwest shows for Sun Ra, whose influence is obvious in
"Starship". Kramer and Smith were also deeply inspired by Sonny Sharrock
, one of the few electric guitarists working in free jazz, and they eventually developed a unique interlocking style that was like little heard before: Kramer's solos often used a heavy, irregular vibrato
, while Smith's rhythms contained an uncommon explosive energy, including patterns that conveyed great excitement, as evidenced in "Black to Comm" and many other songs.
stated that the sound of the MC5 was like "a catastrophic force of nature the band was barely able to control," while Don McLeese notes that fans compared the aftermath of an MC5 performance to the delirious exhaustion experienced after "a street rumble or an orgy." (McLeese, 57)
Their debut single was released by Trans-Love Energies in early 1968, comprising two original songs: "Borderline" and "Looking at You." The first pressing sold out in a few weeks, and by the year's end, had gone through more pressings totaling several thousand copies.
That summer, MC5 toured the U.S. east coast, which generated an enormous response, with the group often overshadowing the more famous acts they opened up for: McLeese writes that when opening for Big Brother and the Holding Company
audiences regularly demanded multiple encores of the MC5, and at a memorable series of concerts, Cream
— one of the leading hard rock groups of the era — "left the stage vanquished" by the Detroit upstarts. (McLeese, 65) This same east coast tour led to the rapturous aforementioned Rolling Stone cover story that praised the MC5 with nearly evangelistic zeal, and also to an association with the radical group Up Against the Wall Motherfuckers
.
The MC5 became the leading band in a burgeoning hard rock scene, serving as mentors to fellow South-Eastern Michigan bands The Stooges
and Up, and major record labels expressed an interest in the group. As related in the notes for reissued editions of the Stooges' debut album, Danny Fields of Elektra Records
came to Detroit to see the MC5. At Kramer's recommendation, he went to see the Stooges. Fields was so impressed that he ended up offering contracts to both bands in September 1968. They were the first hard rock groups signed to the fledgling Elektra.
/Maoism
of the Black Panther Party
and Fred Hampton
, and poets of the Beat Generation
such as Allen Ginsberg
and Ed Sanders
, or Modernist
's poets like Charles Olson
. Black Panther Party founder Huey P. Newton
prompted John Sinclair
to found the White Panthers, a militant leftist organization of white people working to assist the Black Panthers. Shortly after, Sinclair was arrested for possession of illegal narcotics.
Under the "guidance" of John Sinclair (who dubbed his enterprise "Trans-Love Energies" and refused to be categorized as a traditional manager), the MC5 were soon involved in left-wing politics: Sinclair was active with the White Panther Party
and Fifth Estate. In their early career, the MC5 had a politically provocative stage show: they would appear onstage toting unloaded rifles, and at the climax of the performance, an unseen "sniper" would shoot down Tyner. The band members were also all using the drugs LSD
and marijuana
, though not all group members agreed with Sinclair's politics, as Thompson would later reveal in a 2000 interview for an article published in Goldmine magazine.
The band generated political controversy by performing before the outbreak of violent protests
at the 1968 Democratic National Convention
in Chicago
. The group's appearance at the convention is also notable for their lengthy performance: in an interview featured in the documentary Get Up, Stand Up, Kramer reported that while many musicians were scheduled to perform at a day-long concert, only the MC5 initially appeared. The MC5 played for over eight hours straight; of the other scheduled performers, Kramer stated in Get Up, Stand Up that only Neil Young
actually arrived, though due to the chaos at the convention, Young didn't perform. Dennis Thompson asserted years later that "Country Joe" McDonald (Country Joe and the Fish
) was also present at the scene (Thompson, 2000). Other performers at the convention included the protest
folk singer
Phil Ochs
.
, recorded live on October 30 and 31, 1968 at Detroit's Grande Ballroom
. A live debut was all but unheard of in 1968 (and is still rare today), but Elektra executives Jac Holzman
and Bruce Botnick
recognized that the MC5 were at their best when playing for a receptive audience. The first song, a version of the obscure Ted Taylor R&B song "Ramblin' Rose," featured a ragged falsetto
lead vocal from Kramer before Tyner joined the group onstage. Containing such songs as the proto-punk classics "Kick Out the Jams" and "Rama Lama Fa Fa Fa", the spaced-out "Starship" (co-credited to Sun Ra
because the lyrics were partly cribbed from one of Ra's poems), and an extended cover of John Lee Hooker's
"Motor City is Burning" wherein Tyner praises the role of Black Panther snipers during the Detroit Insurrection of 1967
. The album is generally regarded as one of the best live rock and roll records: critic Mark Deming writes that the gleefully lusty Kick "is one of the most powerfully energetic live albums ever made ... this is an album that refuses to be played quietly.
The album caused some controversy due to Sinclair's inflammatory liner notes
and the title track's rallying cry of "Kick out the jams, motherfucker
!" (According to Kramer, the band recorded this as "Kick out the jams, brothers and sisters!" for the single released for radio play; Tyner claimed this was done without group consensus (Thompson, 2000) ) . The edited version also appeared in some LP copies, which also withdrew Sinclair's excitable comments. The album was released in January, 1969; reviews were mixed, but the album was successful, quickly selling over 100,000 copies, and appearing for several weeks on the Billboard Hot 100.
mentor Jon Landau
, virtually provided a prototype for punk rock with its short, fast, hard-edged angry guitar rock. The band sounded radically different from Kick, and McLeese writes that except for Tyner's vocals, they were "barely recognizable as the same band." (McLeese, 96) The second album also featured very different production from the first — the MC5 now sounded compressed and somewhat limited in their sonic palette compared to their earlier era — band members later said that Landau was overbearing and heavy-handed in production, trying to shape the group to his own liking.
Reviews were again mixed, sales were mediocre (It peaked at 137 in March 1970) and the MC5's tours were not as well-received as before. Exhaustion was partly to blame, from the band's heavy touring schedule and increasingly heavy drug use.
They had fallen out with Sinclair, as well, and were conspicuous by not being allowed to play at the December, 1971, John Sinclair Freedom Rally
to protest his incarceration on marijuana possession, even though they were at the gig.
-influenced "Skunk (Sonically Speaking)".
-based department store
chain, refused to stock Kick Out The Jams due to the obscenity, the MC5 responded with a full page advertisement in the Fifth Estate saying "Fuck Hudson's!" and prominently including the logo of MC5's label, Elektra Records
, in the ad.
Hudson's pulled all Elektra records from their stores, and in the ensuing controversy, Jac Holzman
, the head of Elektra, dropped the band from their contract, though there were later allegations of strong company support of the controversial content of the LP. Uncommonly, Elektra's classical division (Nonesuch) was operated on a nearly pro bono
basis due to profits generated by popular music releases, and the removal of Nonesuch records from Hudson's represented a significant loss for the corporation.
The MC5 then signed with Atlantic Records
, now part of the same company
as Elektra.
On February 13, 1972, Michael Davis left the band (he was using heroin and was all but forced out by the others). The remaining members recorded two new songs — "Gold Rush" (also known as "Gold" and "Train Music") and "Inside Out" — in London shortly afterwards for the soundtrack of a film called Gold. This would be the band's final recording session.
The group limped along a while longer, eventually reduced to Kramer and Smith touring and playing with Ritchie Dharma on drums and Derek Hughes on bass, playing R&B covers as much as their original material.
The MC5 reunited for a farewell show on New Year's Eve, 1972-73 at the Grande Ballroom. The venue that had only a few years before hosted over a thousand eager fans now had a few dozen people, and, distraught, Kramer left the stage after a few songs.
The band broke up shortly afterward.
, married singer Patti Smith
, retired from music to raise a family, and died in 1994. Sonic's Rendezvous Band
released only the "City Slang" single during their initial time as a group, though later recordings were released post-mortem, and a reconstituted Rendezvous Band (including original member Scott Morgan
, of The Rationals
and newly-added Deniz Tek
of Radio Birdman
) reunited in tribute years afterward.
Wayne Kramer
made scattered appearances on other people's records before being incarcerated for drug offenses (in prison in Kentucky
, Kramer was unexpectedly reunited with MC5 bassist Michael Davis, also behind bars on a drug charge). After his parole, Kramer worked straight jobs for several years and focused on kicking drugs; in the early 1990s, he returned to the music industry, and has released several well-received albums.
Tyner became a successful producer, manager and promoter in Detroit; he released the warmly-reviewed Blood Brothers in 1990 a year before his death in September, 1991. Tyner performed under his own name for many years but also performed under "The MC5" for some live gigs for a brief period, though he was the only active original member involved. During the mid-1980s, Tyner produced a single for Detroit band Vertical Pillows, and occasionally made brief guest appearances during some of their live shows, singing MC5 covers. A tribute concert to Tyner on February 22, 1992, resulted in the first MC5 concert in twenty years, featuring the four surviving members.
in London
with Fred "Sonic" Smith's place temporarily being taken by Nicke Andersson
of The Hellacopters
, vocal chores at that time being filled variously by David Vanian
of The Damned, Lemmy of Motörhead, Ian Astbury
of The Cult
, and singer Kate O'Brien, as well as seeing Charles Moore and Buzzy Jones reprise their roles in the brass section from the High Time album.
The first real public reunion of the band after their recording years as a group was as a four-piece, at a performance celebrating the life of the late Tyner, a concert event at the State Theater in Detroit MI on February 22, 1992. The event was heavily attended, and included The Rationals
, Scot Richardson (SRC
), The Romantics
, Dee Dee Ramone
, The Cult
, and other musicians. The band on this evening was unbilled, but their appearance had been rumored—Kramer was the only group member advertised—and the set lasted about thirty minutes. The recording of this show remains unreleased.
In 2004, the band set out on an extensive world tour using the name DKT/MC5. As with the 100 Club
concert, a host of special guests joined them on tour such as Mark Arm
of Mudhoney, Nicke Royale
of The Hellacopters
, Evan Dando
of The Lemonheads
, Marshall Crenshaw
, Deniz Tek
of Radio Birdman
, Lisa Kekuala of the Bellrays, and others.
, singing lead for the band. This lineup performs live.
In May 2006, Michael Davis injured his back in a motorcycle accident. In August 2007, Davis joined The Lords Of Altamont on bass. He also founded and leads the Michael H. Davis Music Is Revolution Foundation, dedicated to supporting music education programs in public schools.
In the spring of 2006, the MC5 were inducted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends online Hall of Fame. Two years later, "Kick Out The Jams", the band's signature recording, was voted one of Michigan's Legendary Songs.
".
On their 2000 album Renegades, Rage Against the Machine
performed a cover of "Kick Out the Jams". Singer Zack de la Rocha
had already left the band, but their version still featured his vocals. Poison Idea
's version of the song appears on their Pajama Party covers album as well as the live album, Dutch Courage
. The song was also covered by Jeff Buckley
on the DVD Live in Chicago
and at the Olympia in Paris
, as well as on the 1994 debut album by The Presidents of the United States of America
, and by Blue Öyster Cult
on their 1978 live album Some Enchanted Evening. A version of the song performed by Bad Brains
with Henry Rollins
also appeared on the soundtrack to the film, Pump Up the Volume
. More recently, Monster Magnet
contributed yet another version of "Kick Out the Jams" to the Varsity Blues soundtrack (it had already appeared as a bonus track on the Japan
ese edition of their 1998 album, Powertrip
). Pearl Jam
also covers the song live in concert. The Boston, Massachusetts hardcore band American Nightmare covered "Kick Out The Jams" on their live album; the version also appears on their compilation Year One. Rocket from the Crypt
recorded an infamous cover of the song "Gold".
The song What Time Is Love?
by the KLF started with the beginning "Kick Out the Jams," although "motherfucker
" was censored in the UK. Interestingly, this led to an MC5 sample being heard in an attraction at a major family theme park.
Spacemen 3
covered "Starship" on their 1987 album "The Perfect Prescription," crediting it to both MC5 and Sun Ra.
The Scandinavian band Dollhouse covered "Human Being Lawnmower" on their debut album, "The Rock & Soul Circus". The album was produced by Michael Davis.
The Australian band Radio Birdman
recorded a cover of The Stooges
' "TV Eye", into which they inserted several lyrics and the characteristic guitar solo from "Looking at You". The Radio Birdman/Stooges/MC5 super-group, New Race
, covered "Gotta Keep Movin'" and "Looking at You".
The Michigan band The Gories
did a cover version of "I Just Don't Know," and the song "Sister Anne" may also be found on their House Rockin' LP. The Vertical Pillows, a 1980s Michigan band with strong MC5 influences, had their debut single ("Jump Back"/"R.U.N.") produced by Tyner, who also did live guest sets with the VPs of MC5 songs.
The band The Didjits
recorded "Call Me Animal" on their 1990 LP "Hornet Pinata".
The band Corrosion of Conformity
released a version of "Future/Now" as a b-side to their "Vote With A Bullet" single.
Swedish metal band Entombed
(with Nicke Andersson
on drums) released a limited digipak edition of the 1997 album "DCLXVI: To Ride Shoot Straight and Speak the Truth
" with a bonus CD titled "Family Favourites" featuring four cover songs. The first one being MC5's "Kick Out the Jams".
In 1999, on their album No.4, Stone Temple Pilots
wrote a song entitled "MC5" in honor of the band.
The Norwegian Band Motorpsycho
covered "Black To Comm" on their live album "Roadwork Vol.1" released in 1999.
Swedish rock band The Hellacopters
has performed Kick out the Jams live on several occasions, released a cover version of "American Ruse" on the split-EP "Respect The Rock USA" (together with Gluecifer) in 1999 and guitarist Robert Dahlqvist
named his sideproject Thunder Express
after the MC5 song as a tribute.
The band Young Heart Attack
covered "Over and Over" as a 2003 single and on their 2004 album Mouthful of Love.
In December 2003, Michael Davis entered a studio in Eagle Rock, Los Angeles, to produce Swedish rock band Dollhouse's debut-album "The Rock and Soul Circus" (Released 2004 on Dim Mak Records). Michael Davis himself appears on backing vocals on the MC5 cover song "The Human Being Lawnmower".
Covers of 'Starship' and 'I Want You Right Now' appear on the 2005 Turbonegro
compilation album, Small Feces
.
"Kick Out The Jams" is included in the 2008 video game Guitar Hero World Tour
. The guitar tracks were re-recorded but the original vocal track from Rob Tyner remains.
The Melvins
covered "Rocket Reducer #62" which was released on the 1994 promo single of "Lizzy". The song can also be found on the bootleg compilation "Leech" from 1996. Additionally, the MC5's own recording of "High School" appeared in the Ramones
film Rock 'n' Roll High School
.
The character Rachel Green
of the TV show Friends
wore an MC5 t-shirt in Series 9, Episode 18 - "The One with the Lottery."
The band The Indelicates
mention MC5 in their song "We Hate The Kids
".
The American garage punk band Mono Men
covered "Kick Out The Jams" on their 1996 album 10 Cool Ones.
American rock band The Fluid
recorded Kick Out The Jams for their 1992 EP Spot the Loon. The band also played this song live regularly, frequently as a final encore.
Compilations
Live
Box sets
Singles
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band formed in Lincoln Park, Michigan
Lincoln Park, Michigan
Lincoln Park is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It lies in an area of cities and communities known as Downriver. The population was 38,144 at the 2010 census . The settlement was organized as a village in 1921, and reorganized as a city in 1925. The area was originally home to...
and originally active from 1964 to 1972. The original band line-up consisted of vocalist Rob Tyner, guitarists Wayne Kramer
Wayne Kramer (guitarist)
Wayne Kramer is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, producer and film and television scorer....
and Fred "Sonic" Smith, bassist Michael Davis
Michael Davis (bassist)
Michael Davis is a bass guitarist, singer, songwriter and music producer.- MC5 :He replaced original MC5 bassist Pat Burrows when singer Rob Tyner and guitarist Wayne Kramer decided that they liked Davis' style and wanted him in the band.MC5 comprises:*Michael Davis, bass,*Wayne Kramer,...
, and drummer Dennis Thompson
Dennis Thompson (drummer)
Dennis Thompson is the drummer with the 1960s/1970s Detroit proto-punk/hard rock group MC5, which had a #82 US single with "Kick Out The Jams" and a #30 US album with the same name....
. "Crystallizing the counterculture movement at its most volatile and threatening", according to Allmusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for Allmusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for Allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the nephew...
, the MC5's far left
Far left
Far left, also known as the revolutionary left, radical left and extreme left are terms which refer to the highest degree of leftist positions among left-wing politics...
political ties and anti-establishment
Anti-establishment
An anti-establishment view or belief is one which stands in opposition to the conventional social, political, and economic principles of a society. The term was first used in the modern sense in 1958, by the British magazine New Statesman to refer to its political and social agenda...
lyrics and music positioned them as emerging innovators of the punk movement
Punk subculture
The punk subculture includes a diverse array of ideologies, and forms of expression, including fashion, visual art, dance, literature, and film, which grew out of punk rock.-History:...
in the United States. Their loud, energetic style of back-to-basics rock 'n' roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
included elements of garage rock
Garage rock
Garage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that was first popular in the United States and Canada from about 1963 to 1967. During the 1960s, it was not recognized as a separate music genre and had no specific name...
, hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
, blues-rock
Blues-rock
Blues rock is a hybrid musical genre combining bluesy improvisations over the 12-bar blues and extended boogie jams with rock and roll styles. The core of the blues rock sound is created by the electric guitar, piano, bass guitar and drum kit, with the electric guitar usually amplified through a...
, and psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
.
The MC5 had a promising beginning which earned them a cover appearance on Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine in 1969 even before their debut album was released. They developed a reputation for energetic and polemical live performances, one of which was recorded as their 1969 debut album Kick Out the Jams
Kick Out the Jams
Kick Out the Jams is the first album by Detroit protopunkers MC5, released in 1969. It was recorded live at Detroit's Grande Ballroom over two nights, Devil's Night and Halloween, 1968. In 2003, the album was ranked number 294 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time...
. Their initial run was ultimately short-lived, though within just a few years of their dissolution in 1972, the MC5 were often cited as one of the most important American hard rock groups of their era. Their three albums are regarded by many as classics, and their song "Kick Out the Jams" is widely covered.
Tyner died of a heart attack in late 1991, aged 46. Smith also died of a heart attack, in 1994, also at the age of 46. The band reformed in 2003 with The Dictators
The Dictators
The Dictators are an American punk rock band formed in New York City in 1973. Critic John Dougan said that they were "one of the finest and most influential proto-punk bands to walk the earth." The Dictators are represented in the "Punk Wing" of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in Cleveland, Ohio...
' singer Handsome Dick Manitoba as its new vocalist, and this reformed line-up sometimes performs live.
Early years
The origins of the MC5 can be traced to the friendship between guitarists Wayne Kramer and Fred Smith. Friends since their teen years, they were both fans of R&B music, bluesBlues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
, Chuck Berry
Chuck Berry
Charles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music. With songs such as "Maybellene" , "Roll Over Beethoven" , "Rock and Roll Music" and "Johnny B...
, Dick Dale
Dick Dale
Dick Dale is an American surf rock guitarist, known as The King of the Surf Guitar. He experimented with reverberation and made use of custom made Fender amplifiers, including the first-ever 100-watt guitar amplifier.-Early life:Dale was born in South Boston, Massachusetts and lived in nearby...
, the Ventures, and what would later be called garage rock
Garage rock
Garage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that was first popular in the United States and Canada from about 1963 to 1967. During the 1960s, it was not recognized as a separate music genre and had no specific name...
: they adored any music with speed, energy and a rebellious attitude. Each guitarist/singer formed and led a rock group (Smith's Vibratones and Kramer's Bounty Hunters). As members of both groups left for college or straight jobs, the most committed members eventually united (under Kramer's leadership and the Headhunters name) with Michael Fraser on vocals/bass and Grant Palmer on drums, and were popular and successful enough in and around Detroit that the musicians were able to quit their day jobs and make a living from the group.
Kramer felt they needed a manager, which led him to Rob Derminer, a few years older than the others, and deeply involved in Detroit's hipster and left-wing political scenes. Derminer originally auditioned as a bass guitarist, though they quickly realized that his talents could be better used as a lead singer: though not conventionally attractive and rather paunchy by traditional frontman standards, he nonetheless had a commanding stage presence, and a booming baritone voice that evidenced his abiding love of American soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
and gospel music
Gospel music
Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
. Derminer renamed himself Rob Tyner (after Coltrane's pianist McCoy Tyner
McCoy Tyner
McCoy Tyner is a jazz pianist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, known for his work with the John Coltrane Quartet and a long solo career.-Early life:...
). Tyner also invented their new name, The MC5: it reflected their Detroit roots (it was short for "Motor City Five'), was vaguely reminiscent of a sports car
Sports car
A sports car is a small, usually two seat, two door automobile designed for high speed driving and maneuverability....
name (like the GTO
Pontiac GTO
The Pontiac GTO is an automobile built by Pontiac Division of General Motors in the United States from 1964 to 1974, and by GM subsidiary Holden in Australia from 2004 to 2006. It is considered an innovative, and now classic muscle car of the 1960s and 1970s...
), and echoed the Dave Clark Five, at the peak of their popularity in 1964–1965. In some ways the group was similar to other garage bands of the period, composing soon-to-be historic workouts such as "Black to Comm" during their mid-teens in the basement of the home of Kramer's mother.
The music also reflected Smith and Kramer's increasing interest in free jazz
Free jazz
Free jazz is an approach to jazz music that was first developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Though the music produced by free jazz pioneers varied widely, the common feature was a dissatisfaction with the limitations of bebop, hard bop, and modal jazz, which had developed in the 1940s and 1950s...
-- the guitarists were inspired by the likes of Albert Ayler
Albert Ayler
Albert Ayler was an American avant-garde jazz saxophonist, singer and composer.Ayler was among the most primal of the free jazz musicians of the 1960s; critic John Litweiler wrote that "never before or since has there been such naked aggression in jazz" He possessed a deep blistering tone—achieved...
, Archie Shepp
Archie Shepp
Archie Shepp is a prominent African-American jazz saxophonist. Shepp is best known for his passionately Afrocentric music of the late 1960s, which focused on highlighting the injustices faced by the African-Americans, as well as for his work with the New York Contemporary Five, Horace Parlan, and...
, Sun Ra
Sun Ra
Sun Ra was a prolific jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, poet and philosopher known for his "cosmic philosophy," musical compositions and performances. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama...
and late period John Coltrane
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of modes in jazz and later was at the forefront of free jazz...
, and tried to imitate the ecstatic sounds of the squealing, high-pitched saxophonists they adored. The MC5 even later opened for a few U.S. midwest shows for Sun Ra, whose influence is obvious in
"Starship". Kramer and Smith were also deeply inspired by Sonny Sharrock
Sonny Sharrock
Warren Harding "Sonny" Sharrock was an American jazz guitarist. He was once married to singer Linda Sharrock, with whom he sometimes recorded and performed....
, one of the few electric guitarists working in free jazz, and they eventually developed a unique interlocking style that was like little heard before: Kramer's solos often used a heavy, irregular vibrato
Vibrato
Vibrato is a musical effect consisting of a regular, pulsating change of pitch. It is used to add expression to vocal and instrumental music. Vibrato is typically characterised in terms of two factors: the amount of pitch variation and the speed with which the pitch is varied .-Vibrato and...
, while Smith's rhythms contained an uncommon explosive energy, including patterns that conveyed great excitement, as evidenced in "Black to Comm" and many other songs.
Success in Detroit
Playing almost nightly any place they could in and around Detroit, the MC5 quickly earned a reputation for their high-energy live performances and had a sizeable local following, regularly selling out to audiences of 1000 or more. Contemporary rock writer Robert BixbyRobert Bixby
Robert Bixby is the Executive Director of the Concord Coalition, a nonpartisan grassroots organization that educates the public about fiscal responsibility. The Coalition was founded in 1992, and Bixby was named the Executive Director in 1999...
stated that the sound of the MC5 was like "a catastrophic force of nature the band was barely able to control," while Don McLeese notes that fans compared the aftermath of an MC5 performance to the delirious exhaustion experienced after "a street rumble or an orgy." (McLeese, 57)
Their debut single was released by Trans-Love Energies in early 1968, comprising two original songs: "Borderline" and "Looking at You." The first pressing sold out in a few weeks, and by the year's end, had gone through more pressings totaling several thousand copies.
That summer, MC5 toured the U.S. east coast, which generated an enormous response, with the group often overshadowing the more famous acts they opened up for: McLeese writes that when opening for Big Brother and the Holding Company
Big Brother and the Holding Company
Big Brother and the Holding Company is an American rock band that formed in San Francisco in 1965 as part of the same psychedelic music scene that produced the Grateful Dead, Quicksilver Messenger Service and Jefferson Airplane. They are best known as the band that featured Janis Joplin as their...
audiences regularly demanded multiple encores of the MC5, and at a memorable series of concerts, Cream
Cream (band)
Cream were a 1960s British rock supergroup consisting of bassist/vocalist Jack Bruce, guitarist/vocalist Eric Clapton, and drummer Ginger Baker...
— one of the leading hard rock groups of the era — "left the stage vanquished" by the Detroit upstarts. (McLeese, 65) This same east coast tour led to the rapturous aforementioned Rolling Stone cover story that praised the MC5 with nearly evangelistic zeal, and also to an association with the radical group Up Against the Wall Motherfuckers
Up Against the Wall Motherfuckers
Up Against the Wall Motherfuckers was an anarchist affinity group based in New York City...
.
The MC5 became the leading band in a burgeoning hard rock scene, serving as mentors to fellow South-Eastern Michigan bands The Stooges
The Stooges
The Stooges are an American rock band from Ann Arbor, Michigan first active from 1967 to 1974, and later reformed in 2003...
and Up, and major record labels expressed an interest in the group. As related in the notes for reissued editions of the Stooges' debut album, Danny Fields of Elektra Records
Elektra Records
Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....
came to Detroit to see the MC5. At Kramer's recommendation, he went to see the Stooges. Fields was so impressed that he ended up offering contracts to both bands in September 1968. They were the first hard rock groups signed to the fledgling Elektra.
Radical political affiliations
According to Kramer, the MC5 of this period was politically influenced by the MarxismMarxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
/Maoism
Maoism
Maoism, also known as the Mao Zedong Thought , is claimed by Maoists as an anti-Revisionist form of Marxist communist theory, derived from the teachings of the Chinese political leader Mao Zedong . Developed during the 1950s and 1960s, it was widely applied as the political and military guiding...
of the Black Panther Party
Black Panther Party
The Black Panther Party wasan African-American revolutionary leftist organization. It was active in the United States from 1966 until 1982....
and Fred Hampton
Fred Hampton
Fred Hampton was an African-American activist and deputy chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party...
, and poets of the Beat Generation
Beat generation
The Beat Generation refers to a group of American post-WWII writers who came to prominence in the 1950s, as well as the cultural phenomena that they both documented and inspired...
such as Allen Ginsberg
Allen Ginsberg
Irwin Allen Ginsberg was an American poet and one of the leading figures of the Beat Generation in the 1950s. He vigorously opposed militarism, materialism and sexual repression...
and Ed Sanders
Ed Sanders
Ed Sanders is an American poet, singer, social activist, environmentalist, author and publisher and has been a longtime member of the band The Fugs. He has been called a bridge between the Beat and Hippie generations.-Biography:...
, or Modernist
Modernist poetry
Modernist poetry refers to poetry written between 1890 and 1950 in the tradition of modernist literature in the English language, but the dates of the term depend upon a number of factors, including the nation of origin, the particular school in question, and the biases of the critic setting the...
's poets like Charles Olson
Charles Olson
Charles Olson , was a second generation American modernist poet who was a link between earlier figures such as Ezra Pound and William Carlos Williams and the New American poets, which includes the New York School, the Black Mountain School, the Beat poets, and the San Francisco Renaissance...
. Black Panther Party founder Huey P. Newton
Huey P. Newton
Huey Percy Newton was an American political and urban activist who, along with Bobby Seale, co-founded the Black Panther Party for Self Defense.-Early life:...
prompted John Sinclair
John Sinclair (poet)
John Sinclair is a Detroit poet, one-time manager of the band MC5, and leader of the White Panther Party — a militantly anti-racist countercultural group of white socialists seeking to assist the Black Panthers in the Civil Rights movement — from November 1968 to July 1969...
to found the White Panthers, a militant leftist organization of white people working to assist the Black Panthers. Shortly after, Sinclair was arrested for possession of illegal narcotics.
Under the "guidance" of John Sinclair (who dubbed his enterprise "Trans-Love Energies" and refused to be categorized as a traditional manager), the MC5 were soon involved in left-wing politics: Sinclair was active with the White Panther Party
White Panther Party
The White Panthers were a far-left, anti-racist, White American political collective founded in 1968 by Lawrence Plamondon, Leni Sinclair, and John Sinclair. It was started in response to an interview where Huey P. Newton, co-founder of the Black Panther Party, was asked what white people could do...
and Fifth Estate. In their early career, the MC5 had a politically provocative stage show: they would appear onstage toting unloaded rifles, and at the climax of the performance, an unseen "sniper" would shoot down Tyner. The band members were also all using the drugs LSD
LSD
Lysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated LSD or LSD-25, also known as lysergide and colloquially as acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family, well known for its psychological effects which can include altered thinking processes, closed and open eye visuals, synaesthesia, an...
and marijuana
Cannabis (drug)
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or for medicinal purposes. The English term marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish word marihuana...
, though not all group members agreed with Sinclair's politics, as Thompson would later reveal in a 2000 interview for an article published in Goldmine magazine.
The band generated political controversy by performing before the outbreak of violent protests
Protests of 1968
The protests of 1968 consisted of a worldwide series of protests, largely participated in by students and workers.-Background:Background speculations of overall causality vary about the political protests centering on the year 1968. Some argue that protests could be attributed to the social changes...
at the 1968 Democratic National Convention
1968 Democratic National Convention
The 1968 Democratic National Convention of the U.S. Democratic Party was held at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois, from August 26 to August 29, 1968. Because Democratic President Lyndon Johnson had announced he would not seek a second term, the purpose of the convention was to...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. The group's appearance at the convention is also notable for their lengthy performance: in an interview featured in the documentary Get Up, Stand Up, Kramer reported that while many musicians were scheduled to perform at a day-long concert, only the MC5 initially appeared. The MC5 played for over eight hours straight; of the other scheduled performers, Kramer stated in Get Up, Stand Up that only Neil Young
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young, OC, OM is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation...
actually arrived, though due to the chaos at the convention, Young didn't perform. Dennis Thompson asserted years later that "Country Joe" McDonald (Country Joe and the Fish
Country Joe and the Fish
Country Joe and the Fish was a rock band most widely known for musical protests against the Vietnam War, from 1966 to 1971, and also regarded as a seminal influence to psychedelic rock.-History:...
) was also present at the scene (Thompson, 2000). Other performers at the convention included the protest
Protest song
A protest song is a song which is associated with a movement for social change and hence part of the broader category of topical songs . It may be folk, classical, or commercial in genre...
folk singer
Folk Singer
Folk Singer is a 1964 album by Muddy Waters. Waters plays acoustic guitar, backed by Willie Dixon on string bass, Clifton James on drums, and Buddy Guy on acoustic guitar...
Phil Ochs
Phil Ochs
Philip David Ochs was an American protest singer and songwriter who was known for his sharp wit, sardonic humor, earnest humanism, political activism, insightful and alliterative lyrics, and haunting voice...
.
Kick out the Jams
The MC5 earned national attention with their first album, Kick Out the JamsKick Out the Jams
Kick Out the Jams is the first album by Detroit protopunkers MC5, released in 1969. It was recorded live at Detroit's Grande Ballroom over two nights, Devil's Night and Halloween, 1968. In 2003, the album was ranked number 294 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time...
, recorded live on October 30 and 31, 1968 at Detroit's Grande Ballroom
Grande Ballroom
The Grande Ballroom is a historic live music venue located at 8952 Grand River Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. The building was designed by Detroit engineer and architect Charles N. Agree in 1928 and originally served as a multi-purpose building, hosting retail business on the first floor and a large...
. A live debut was all but unheard of in 1968 (and is still rare today), but Elektra executives Jac Holzman
Jac Holzman
Jac Holzman was the founder, chief executive officer and head of both Elektra Records and Nonesuch Records.-Biography:He founded Elektra Records in his St. John's College dorm room in 1950 and Nonesuch Records in 1964...
and Bruce Botnick
Bruce Botnick
Bruce Botnick is an American audio engineer and record producer, best known for his work with The Doors, and with Love. He engineered Love's first two albums, and co-produced their third album, Forever Changes, with the band's singer-songwriter, Arthur Lee.In November 1970, he took over production...
recognized that the MC5 were at their best when playing for a receptive audience. The first song, a version of the obscure Ted Taylor R&B song "Ramblin' Rose," featured a ragged falsetto
Falsetto
Falsetto is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds, in whole or in part...
lead vocal from Kramer before Tyner joined the group onstage. Containing such songs as the proto-punk classics "Kick Out the Jams" and "Rama Lama Fa Fa Fa", the spaced-out "Starship" (co-credited to Sun Ra
Sun Ra
Sun Ra was a prolific jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, poet and philosopher known for his "cosmic philosophy," musical compositions and performances. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama...
because the lyrics were partly cribbed from one of Ra's poems), and an extended cover of John Lee Hooker's
John Lee Hooker
John Lee Hooker was an American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist.Hooker began his life as the son of a sharecropper, William Hooker, and rose to prominence performing his own unique style of what was originally closest to Delta blues. He developed a 'talking blues' style that was his trademark...
"Motor City is Burning" wherein Tyner praises the role of Black Panther snipers during the Detroit Insurrection of 1967
12th Street riot
The 1967 Detroit riot, also known as the 12th Street riot, was a civil disturbance in Detroit, Michigan, that began in the early morning hours of Sunday, July 23, 1967. The precipitating event was a police raid of an unlicensed, after-hours bar then known as a blind pig, on the corner of 12th and...
. The album is generally regarded as one of the best live rock and roll records: critic Mark Deming writes that the gleefully lusty Kick "is one of the most powerfully energetic live albums ever made ... this is an album that refuses to be played quietly.
The album caused some controversy due to Sinclair's inflammatory liner notes
Liner notes
Liner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:...
and the title track's rallying cry of "Kick out the jams, motherfucker
Motherfucker
Motherfucker is a vulgarism which, in its most literal sense, refers to one who participates in sexual intercourse with a mother, either someone else's mother, or his own.- Variants :...
!" (According to Kramer, the band recorded this as "Kick out the jams, brothers and sisters!" for the single released for radio play; Tyner claimed this was done without group consensus (Thompson, 2000) ) . The edited version also appeared in some LP copies, which also withdrew Sinclair's excitable comments. The album was released in January, 1969; reviews were mixed, but the album was successful, quickly selling over 100,000 copies, and appearing for several weeks on the Billboard Hot 100.
Back in the USA
Their second album, Back in the USA, produced by future Bruce SpringsteenBruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
mentor Jon Landau
Jon Landau
Jon Landau is an American music critic, manager and record producer, most known for his association in all three capacities with Bruce Springsteen.He is currently the head of the nominating committee for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame....
, virtually provided a prototype for punk rock with its short, fast, hard-edged angry guitar rock. The band sounded radically different from Kick, and McLeese writes that except for Tyner's vocals, they were "barely recognizable as the same band." (McLeese, 96) The second album also featured very different production from the first — the MC5 now sounded compressed and somewhat limited in their sonic palette compared to their earlier era — band members later said that Landau was overbearing and heavy-handed in production, trying to shape the group to his own liking.
Reviews were again mixed, sales were mediocre (It peaked at 137 in March 1970) and the MC5's tours were not as well-received as before. Exhaustion was partly to blame, from the band's heavy touring schedule and increasingly heavy drug use.
They had fallen out with Sinclair, as well, and were conspicuous by not being allowed to play at the December, 1971, John Sinclair Freedom Rally
John Sinclair Freedom Rally
The John Sinclair Freedom Rally was a protest and concert in response the imprisonment of John Sinclair for possession of marijuana held on December 10, 1971, in Crisler Arena at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan...
to protest his incarceration on marijuana possession, even though they were at the gig.
High Time
Their third album, High Time would also prove influential on 1970s hard rock bands. The album was poorly promoted, and sales were worse than ever, but High Time was the best-reviewed of the band's original records upon its initial release. The group had much more creative control, and were very satisfied with the results. This release saw the band stretch out with longer, more experimental pieces like "Future/Now" and the Sun RaSun Ra
Sun Ra was a prolific jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, poet and philosopher known for his "cosmic philosophy," musical compositions and performances. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama...
-influenced "Skunk (Sonically Speaking)".
Record label controversy
When Hudson's, a DetroitDetroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
-based department store
Department store
A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...
chain, refused to stock Kick Out The Jams due to the obscenity, the MC5 responded with a full page advertisement in the Fifth Estate saying "Fuck Hudson's!" and prominently including the logo of MC5's label, Elektra Records
Elektra Records
Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....
, in the ad.
Hudson's pulled all Elektra records from their stores, and in the ensuing controversy, Jac Holzman
Jac Holzman
Jac Holzman was the founder, chief executive officer and head of both Elektra Records and Nonesuch Records.-Biography:He founded Elektra Records in his St. John's College dorm room in 1950 and Nonesuch Records in 1964...
, the head of Elektra, dropped the band from their contract, though there were later allegations of strong company support of the controversial content of the LP. Uncommonly, Elektra's classical division (Nonesuch) was operated on a nearly pro bono
Pro bono
Pro bono publico is a Latin phrase generally used to describe professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment or at a reduced fee as a public service. It is common in the legal profession and is increasingly seen in marketing, technology, and strategy consulting firms...
basis due to profits generated by popular music releases, and the removal of Nonesuch records from Hudson's represented a significant loss for the corporation.
The MC5 then signed with Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
, now part of the same company
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...
as Elektra.
Late career and disbandment
Both Back in the USA and High Time lost money for Atlantic Records, which dropped the band.On February 13, 1972, Michael Davis left the band (he was using heroin and was all but forced out by the others). The remaining members recorded two new songs — "Gold Rush" (also known as "Gold" and "Train Music") and "Inside Out" — in London shortly afterwards for the soundtrack of a film called Gold. This would be the band's final recording session.
The group limped along a while longer, eventually reduced to Kramer and Smith touring and playing with Ritchie Dharma on drums and Derek Hughes on bass, playing R&B covers as much as their original material.
The MC5 reunited for a farewell show on New Year's Eve, 1972-73 at the Grande Ballroom. The venue that had only a few years before hosted over a thousand eager fans now had a few dozen people, and, distraught, Kramer left the stage after a few songs.
The band broke up shortly afterward.
Post-break up
Fred "Sonic" Smith formed a new group called Sonic's Rendezvous BandSonic's Rendezvous Band
Sonic's Rendezvous Band was a rock and roll band from Ann Arbor, Michigan in the 1970s, featuring veterans of the 1960s Detroit rock scene.- Background :Sonic's Rendezvous Band came from the ashes of four Michigan rock bands:...
, married singer Patti Smith
Patti Smith
Patricia Lee "Patti" Smith is an American singer-songwriter, poet and visual artist, who became a highly influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album Horses....
, retired from music to raise a family, and died in 1994. Sonic's Rendezvous Band
Sonic's Rendezvous Band
Sonic's Rendezvous Band was a rock and roll band from Ann Arbor, Michigan in the 1970s, featuring veterans of the 1960s Detroit rock scene.- Background :Sonic's Rendezvous Band came from the ashes of four Michigan rock bands:...
released only the "City Slang" single during their initial time as a group, though later recordings were released post-mortem, and a reconstituted Rendezvous Band (including original member Scott Morgan
Scott Morgan
Scott Morgan is an American rock & roll and soul musician, most known for his work with the Sonic's Rendezvous Band, the Rationals, The Solution as well as his solowork.-The Rationals:Morgan's first band was The Rationals...
, of The Rationals
The Rationals
-History:The Rationals formed in 1964 and first recorded a single for a local label, A2 Records, in 1965. After scoring a local hit with the tune "Gave My Love", they recorded a cover of Otis Redding's "Respect". This won them a contract for national distribution by Cameo/Parkway, and the single...
and newly-added Deniz Tek
Deniz Tek
Deniz Tek is an American singer, guitarist and songwriter and a founding member of Australian group Radio Birdman who broke up, for the last time, after their last European tour in 2007...
of Radio Birdman
Radio Birdman
Radio Birdman was one of the first punk bands in Australia along with The Saints. Deniz Tek and Rob Younger formed the group in Sydney, Australia in 1974...
) reunited in tribute years afterward.
Wayne Kramer
Wayne Kramer (guitarist)
Wayne Kramer is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, producer and film and television scorer....
made scattered appearances on other people's records before being incarcerated for drug offenses (in prison in Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, Kramer was unexpectedly reunited with MC5 bassist Michael Davis, also behind bars on a drug charge). After his parole, Kramer worked straight jobs for several years and focused on kicking drugs; in the early 1990s, he returned to the music industry, and has released several well-received albums.
Tyner became a successful producer, manager and promoter in Detroit; he released the warmly-reviewed Blood Brothers in 1990 a year before his death in September, 1991. Tyner performed under his own name for many years but also performed under "The MC5" for some live gigs for a brief period, though he was the only active original member involved. During the mid-1980s, Tyner produced a single for Detroit band Vertical Pillows, and occasionally made brief guest appearances during some of their live shows, singing MC5 covers. A tribute concert to Tyner on February 22, 1992, resulted in the first MC5 concert in twenty years, featuring the four surviving members.
First reunions
2003 saw the three surviving members of MC5—Kramer, bassist Michael Davis, and drummer Dennis Thompson—performing as the MC5 at the 100 Club100 Club
The 100 Club is a music venue in London situated at 100 Oxford Street, W1, originally called The Feldman Swing Club.The 100 Club attained legendary status in modern British music, having played host to live music since 24 October 1942....
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
with Fred "Sonic" Smith's place temporarily being taken by Nicke Andersson
Nicke Andersson
Nicke Andersson , born 1 August 1972 is a singer, guitarist, drummer, songwriter and composer most known for his work as the singer and guitarist of the successful Grammy award winning rock band The Hellacopters as well as the former drummer for Swedish death metal band Entombed...
of The Hellacopters
The Hellacopters
The Hellacopters were a Swedish garage rock band that was formed in 1994 by Nicke Andersson , Dregen , Kenny Håkansson and Robert Eriksson . Andersson had been the drummer for death metal band Entombed and Dregen was taking a break from his full-time band Backyard Babies...
, vocal chores at that time being filled variously by David Vanian
David Vanian
Dave Vanian is a rock musician, famous for being the lead singer of the punk rock band The Damned. The band formed in 1976 in London and Vanian is the only ever-present member of the group...
of The Damned, Lemmy of Motörhead, Ian Astbury
Ian Astbury
Ian Astbury is an English rock musician and songwriter best known as the lead vocalist for the rock band, The Cult.-Pre-Cult:...
of The Cult
The Cult
The Cult are a British rock band that was formed in 1983. They gained a dedicated following in Britain in the mid 1980s as a post-punk band with singles such as "She Sells Sanctuary", before breaking mainstream in the United States in the late 1980s as a hard rock band with singles such as "Love...
, and singer Kate O'Brien, as well as seeing Charles Moore and Buzzy Jones reprise their roles in the brass section from the High Time album.
The first real public reunion of the band after their recording years as a group was as a four-piece, at a performance celebrating the life of the late Tyner, a concert event at the State Theater in Detroit MI on February 22, 1992. The event was heavily attended, and included The Rationals
The Rationals
-History:The Rationals formed in 1964 and first recorded a single for a local label, A2 Records, in 1965. After scoring a local hit with the tune "Gave My Love", they recorded a cover of Otis Redding's "Respect". This won them a contract for national distribution by Cameo/Parkway, and the single...
, Scot Richardson (SRC
SRC (band)
The SRC was a Detroit-based rock band from the late 1960s. From 1966 to 1972, they were a staple at many Detroit rock venues, such as the Grande Ballroom.-The early years:...
), The Romantics
The Romantics
The Romantics is an American New Wave band from Detroit, Michigan, formed in 1977. The band adopted the name "The Romantics" because they formed on Valentine's Day, 1977. The Romantics achieved popularity in the United Kingdom, The U.S...
, Dee Dee Ramone
Dee Dee Ramone
Dee Dee Ramone was an American songwriter and musician, best known as founding member, bassist and main songwriter of the punk rock band the Ramones....
, The Cult
The Cult
The Cult are a British rock band that was formed in 1983. They gained a dedicated following in Britain in the mid 1980s as a post-punk band with singles such as "She Sells Sanctuary", before breaking mainstream in the United States in the late 1980s as a hard rock band with singles such as "Love...
, and other musicians. The band on this evening was unbilled, but their appearance had been rumored—Kramer was the only group member advertised—and the set lasted about thirty minutes. The recording of this show remains unreleased.
In 2004, the band set out on an extensive world tour using the name DKT/MC5. As with the 100 Club
100 Club
The 100 Club is a music venue in London situated at 100 Oxford Street, W1, originally called The Feldman Swing Club.The 100 Club attained legendary status in modern British music, having played host to live music since 24 October 1942....
concert, a host of special guests joined them on tour such as Mark Arm
Mark Arm
Mark Arm is the vocalist for the grunge band Mudhoney. He is also credited with coining the term "grunge" to describe his style of rock music...
of Mudhoney, Nicke Royale
Nicke Andersson
Nicke Andersson , born 1 August 1972 is a singer, guitarist, drummer, songwriter and composer most known for his work as the singer and guitarist of the successful Grammy award winning rock band The Hellacopters as well as the former drummer for Swedish death metal band Entombed...
of The Hellacopters
The Hellacopters
The Hellacopters were a Swedish garage rock band that was formed in 1994 by Nicke Andersson , Dregen , Kenny Håkansson and Robert Eriksson . Andersson had been the drummer for death metal band Entombed and Dregen was taking a break from his full-time band Backyard Babies...
, Evan Dando
Evan Dando
Evan Griffith Dando is an American musician, most famous for fronting the alternative rock band The Lemonheads. He is the only original member left in the current Lemonheads line-up, having served as lead singer since the band's original formation in 1986...
of The Lemonheads
The Lemonheads
The Lemonheads are an American alternative rock band first formed in 1986 by Evan Dando, Ben Deily and Jesse Peretz. Dando has remained the band's only constant member....
, Marshall Crenshaw
Marshall Crenshaw
Marshall Crenshaw is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist best known for his song "Someday, Someway".-Biography:...
, Deniz Tek
Deniz Tek
Deniz Tek is an American singer, guitarist and songwriter and a founding member of Australian group Radio Birdman who broke up, for the last time, after their last European tour in 2007...
of Radio Birdman
Radio Birdman
Radio Birdman was one of the first punk bands in Australia along with The Saints. Deniz Tek and Rob Younger formed the group in Sydney, Australia in 1974...
, Lisa Kekuala of the Bellrays, and others.
Reformation
Since February 2005, the MC5 has stabilized its new lineup, with Handsome Dick Manitoba, vocalist of the 1970s New York punk band The DictatorsThe Dictators
The Dictators are an American punk rock band formed in New York City in 1973. Critic John Dougan said that they were "one of the finest and most influential proto-punk bands to walk the earth." The Dictators are represented in the "Punk Wing" of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in Cleveland, Ohio...
, singing lead for the band. This lineup performs live.
In May 2006, Michael Davis injured his back in a motorcycle accident. In August 2007, Davis joined The Lords Of Altamont on bass. He also founded and leads the Michael H. Davis Music Is Revolution Foundation, dedicated to supporting music education programs in public schools.
In the spring of 2006, the MC5 were inducted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends online Hall of Fame. Two years later, "Kick Out The Jams", the band's signature recording, was voted one of Michigan's Legendary Songs.
Covers and tributes
The Damned covered "Looking at You" on their third album, 1979's "Machine Gun EtiquetteMachine Gun Etiquette
Machine Gun Etiquette is the third album by the British punk band The Damned, released in November 1979. The album was the group's first since reforming with Dave Vanian on vocals, Captain Sensible on lead guitar, Rat Scabies on drums and Algy Ward on bass...
".
On their 2000 album Renegades, Rage Against the Machine
Rage Against the Machine
Rage Against the Machine is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1991, the group's line-up consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commerford, guitarist Tom Morello and drummer Brad Wilk...
performed a cover of "Kick Out the Jams". Singer Zack de la Rocha
Zack de la Rocha
Zacarías Manuel "Zack" de la Rocha is an American rapper, musician, poet, and activist best known as the vocalist and lyricist of Rage Against the Machine.-Early life and childhood:...
had already left the band, but their version still featured his vocals. Poison Idea
Poison Idea
Poison Idea was an American hardcore punk band formed in Portland, Oregon in 1980. The band originally dissolved in 1993, but has been playing intermittently since 1998.-Formation, 1980's and 90's:...
's version of the song appears on their Pajama Party covers album as well as the live album, Dutch Courage
Dutch Courage
Dutch Courage is a live album by Poison Idea which was released in 1991 on Blitzcore.- Track listing :# Plastic Bomb# Just to Get Away# Getting the Fear# Painkiller# Hangover Heartattack# Time to Go# Cop an Attitude# Feel the Darkness...
. The song was also covered by Jeff Buckley
Jeff Buckley
Jeffrey Scott "Jeff" Buckley , raised as Scotty Moorhead, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was the son of Tim Buckley, also a musician...
on the DVD Live in Chicago
Live in Chicago (Jeff Buckley)
Live in Chicago is a live DVD by Jeff Buckley, recorded on May 13, 1995 at Cabaret Metro during the Mystery White Boy tour. Originally broadcast on Chicago music video program JBTV, it was released on DVD and VHS on May 9, 2000...
and at the Olympia in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, as well as on the 1994 debut album by The Presidents of the United States of America
The Presidents of the United States of America (band)
The Presidents of the United States of America, commonly referred to as Pot USA or "PUSA" or The Presidents, are a twice Grammy-nominated American alternative rock band. The band formed in Seattle, USA, in 1993. The three-piece group currently comprises vocalist and "basitarist" Chris Ballew,...
, and by Blue Öyster Cult
Blue Öyster Cult
Blue Öyster Cult, often abbreviated BÖC, is an American rock band, most of whose members first came together in Long Island, NY in 1967 as the band Soft White Underbelly...
on their 1978 live album Some Enchanted Evening. A version of the song performed by Bad Brains
Bad Brains
Bad Brains is an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1977. They are widely regarded as among the pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members objected to this term to describe their music. They are also an adept reggae band, while later recordings featured elements of...
with Henry Rollins
Henry Rollins
Henry Rollins is an American singer-songwriter, spoken word artist, writer, comedian, publisher, actor, and radio DJ....
also appeared on the soundtrack to the film, Pump Up the Volume
Pump Up the Volume (film)
Pump Up the Volume is a 1990 comedy-drama film written and directed by Allan Moyle and starring Christian Slater and Samantha Mathis.- Plot summary :...
. More recently, Monster Magnet
Monster Magnet
Monster Magnet is an American stoner rock band. Hailing from Red Bank, New Jersey, the group was founded by Dave Wyndorf , John McBain and Tim Cronin...
contributed yet another version of "Kick Out the Jams" to the Varsity Blues soundtrack (it had already appeared as a bonus track on the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese edition of their 1998 album, Powertrip
Powertrip
Powertrip is a studio album by Monster Magnet, released on June 16, 1998. The album was the band's commercial breakthrough, achieving mainstream success due largely to the hit single, "Space Lord". Other hit songs on the album include "Powertrip", "Temple of Your Dreams", and "See You in Hell"...
). Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included Eddie Vedder , Jeff Ament , Stone Gossard , and Mike McCready...
also covers the song live in concert. The Boston, Massachusetts hardcore band American Nightmare covered "Kick Out The Jams" on their live album; the version also appears on their compilation Year One. Rocket from the Crypt
Rocket from the Crypt
Rocket from the Crypt was an American rock band led by John Reis, formed in 1989 in San Diego, California and disbanded in 2005.The band gained critical praise and the attention of major record labels after the release of their 1992 album Circa: Now!, leading to a recording contract with Interscope...
recorded an infamous cover of the song "Gold".
The song What Time Is Love?
What Time Is Love?
"What Time Is Love?" is a song released, in different mixes, as a series of singles by the band The KLF. It featured prominently and repeatedly in their output from 1988 to 1992 and, under the moniker of 2K, in 1997...
by the KLF started with the beginning "Kick Out the Jams," although "motherfucker
Motherfucker
Motherfucker is a vulgarism which, in its most literal sense, refers to one who participates in sexual intercourse with a mother, either someone else's mother, or his own.- Variants :...
" was censored in the UK. Interestingly, this led to an MC5 sample being heard in an attraction at a major family theme park.
Spacemen 3
Spacemen 3
Spacemen 3 were an English alternative rock band, formed in 1982 in Rugby, Warwickshire by Peter Kember and Jason Pierce. Their music was "colorfully mind-altering, but not in the sense of the acid rock of the '60s; instead, the band developed its own minimalistic psychedelia"...
covered "Starship" on their 1987 album "The Perfect Prescription," crediting it to both MC5 and Sun Ra.
The Scandinavian band Dollhouse covered "Human Being Lawnmower" on their debut album, "The Rock & Soul Circus". The album was produced by Michael Davis.
The Australian band Radio Birdman
Radio Birdman
Radio Birdman was one of the first punk bands in Australia along with The Saints. Deniz Tek and Rob Younger formed the group in Sydney, Australia in 1974...
recorded a cover of The Stooges
The Stooges
The Stooges are an American rock band from Ann Arbor, Michigan first active from 1967 to 1974, and later reformed in 2003...
' "TV Eye", into which they inserted several lyrics and the characteristic guitar solo from "Looking at You". The Radio Birdman/Stooges/MC5 super-group, New Race
New Race
New Race was a punk/proto-punk super-group based in Sydney, Australia formed in April 1981. New Race was a concept band featuring three members of Radio Birdman: Deniz Tek, Rob Younger, and Warwick Gilbert, along with their inspirational mentors: Ron Asheton of The Stooges, and Dennis "Machine Gun"...
, covered "Gotta Keep Movin'" and "Looking at You".
The Michigan band The Gories
The Gories
The Gories are an American garage rock trio that formed in Detroit in 1986. They were among the first 1980s garage punk bands to incorporate overt blues influences...
did a cover version of "I Just Don't Know," and the song "Sister Anne" may also be found on their House Rockin' LP. The Vertical Pillows, a 1980s Michigan band with strong MC5 influences, had their debut single ("Jump Back"/"R.U.N.") produced by Tyner, who also did live guest sets with the VPs of MC5 songs.
The band The Didjits
The Didjits
The Didjits were an American punk rock band formed in Sullivan, Illinois in 1983, comprised Rick Sims on guitar/vocals, Doug Evans on bass, and Rick's brother Brad Sims, on drums. Didjits were known for the aggressive guitar playing and persona of Rick Sims, who often baited the audience between...
recorded "Call Me Animal" on their 1990 LP "Hornet Pinata".
The band Corrosion of Conformity
Corrosion of Conformity
Corrosion of Conformity is an American heavy metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina formed in 1982. For almost the majority of its existence, the band has consisted of guitarist Woody Weatherman, bassist Mike Dean , drummer Reed Mullin and vocalist and rhythm...
released a version of "Future/Now" as a b-side to their "Vote With A Bullet" single.
Swedish metal band Entombed
Entombed (band)
Entombed is a Swedish death metal band which formed in 1987 under the name of Nihilist. Though Entombed began their career as an early pioneer of Scandinavian death metal which initially differed itself from its American counterpart with its distinct guitar tone, by the early 1990s their sound had...
(with Nicke Andersson
Nicke Andersson
Nicke Andersson , born 1 August 1972 is a singer, guitarist, drummer, songwriter and composer most known for his work as the singer and guitarist of the successful Grammy award winning rock band The Hellacopters as well as the former drummer for Swedish death metal band Entombed...
on drums) released a limited digipak edition of the 1997 album "DCLXVI: To Ride Shoot Straight and Speak the Truth
DCLXVI: To Ride Shoot Straight and Speak the Truth
DCLXVI: To Ride Shoot Straight and Speak the Truth is the fourth album by the Swedish metal band Entombed, released in 1997. DCLXVI is 666 in Roman numerals.The album was Metal Hammer magazine's #2 album of 1997...
" with a bonus CD titled "Family Favourites" featuring four cover songs. The first one being MC5's "Kick Out the Jams".
In 1999, on their album No.4, Stone Temple Pilots
Stone Temple Pilots
Stone Temple Pilots is an American rock band from San Diego, California that consists of Scott Weiland , brothers Robert DeLeo and Dean DeLeo , and Eric Kretz ....
wrote a song entitled "MC5" in honor of the band.
The Norwegian Band Motorpsycho
Motorpsycho
Motorpsycho is a band from Trondheim, Norway. Their music can generally be defined as psychedelic rock, but they also mix in elements from metal, jazz, rock, pop and many other musical styles. The members of the band are Bent Sæther , Hans Magnus "Snah" Ryan and Kenneth Kapstad...
covered "Black To Comm" on their live album "Roadwork Vol.1" released in 1999.
Swedish rock band The Hellacopters
The Hellacopters
The Hellacopters were a Swedish garage rock band that was formed in 1994 by Nicke Andersson , Dregen , Kenny Håkansson and Robert Eriksson . Andersson had been the drummer for death metal band Entombed and Dregen was taking a break from his full-time band Backyard Babies...
has performed Kick out the Jams live on several occasions, released a cover version of "American Ruse" on the split-EP "Respect The Rock USA" (together with Gluecifer) in 1999 and guitarist Robert Dahlqvist
Robert Dahlqvist
Robert Dahlqvist is a guitarist and vocalist most known for his work with the Swedish rockband The Hellacopters. He's also the lead singer and guitarist in Thunder Express, a band originally started as a sideproject to his work with The Hellacopters...
named his sideproject Thunder Express
Thunder Express
Thunder Express was started as a sideproject by Robert Dahlqvist from the Swedish rock band The Hellacopters on guitars and vocals together with Robert Pehrsson from the metal band Death Breath on guitars, former Diamond Dogs drummer Jesper Karlsson along with bassist Jens Lagergren of Hello...
after the MC5 song as a tribute.
The band Young Heart Attack
Young Heart Attack
Young Heart Attack are a high energy rock band from Austin, Texas which formed in 2001. Chris "Frenchie" Smith and bassist Steven T. Hall had previously been in the Sixteen Deluxe and Joey Shuffield in Fastball.-Lineup:...
covered "Over and Over" as a 2003 single and on their 2004 album Mouthful of Love.
In December 2003, Michael Davis entered a studio in Eagle Rock, Los Angeles, to produce Swedish rock band Dollhouse's debut-album "The Rock and Soul Circus" (Released 2004 on Dim Mak Records). Michael Davis himself appears on backing vocals on the MC5 cover song "The Human Being Lawnmower".
Covers of 'Starship' and 'I Want You Right Now' appear on the 2005 Turbonegro
Turbonegro
Turbonegro is a Norwegian punk rock band that was initially active from 1989 to 1998, and later reformed in 2002. Their style combines glam rock, punk rock and hard rock into a style the band describes as "deathpunk"....
compilation album, Small Feces
Small Feces
Small Feces is a 2-part compilation album by the Norwegian band Turbonegro released in 2005 on Bitzcore Records. It features 42 songs and documents the first steps from the beginning in 1989 until the Ass Cobra times ca. 1997. It contains a lot of unreleased/unheard material, 7"s, compilation...
.
"Kick Out The Jams" is included in the 2008 video game Guitar Hero World Tour
Guitar Hero World Tour
Guitar Hero World Tour is a music video game developed by Neversoft and published by RedOctane and Activision. It is the fourth main entry in the Guitar Hero series...
. The guitar tracks were re-recorded but the original vocal track from Rob Tyner remains.
The Melvins
The Melvins
The Melvins are an American band that formed in 1983. They usually perform as a trio, but in recent years have performed as a four piece with two drummers. Since 1984, singer and guitarist Buzz Osborne and drummer Dale Crover have been the band's constant members...
covered "Rocket Reducer #62" which was released on the 1994 promo single of "Lizzy". The song can also be found on the bootleg compilation "Leech" from 1996. Additionally, the MC5's own recording of "High School" appeared in the Ramones
Ramones
The Ramones were an American rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first punk rock group...
film Rock 'n' Roll High School
Rock 'n' Roll High School
Rock 'n' Roll High School is a 1979 musical comedy film produced by Roger Corman, directed by Allan Arkush, and featuring the Ramones.The film starred P. J. Soles, Vince Van Patten, and Clint Howard...
.
The character Rachel Green
Rachel Green
Rachel Karen Green is a fictional character on the popular U.S. television sitcom Friends, portrayed by Jennifer Aniston. Aniston received an Emmy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a Golden Globe for her performances.-Background:...
of the TV show Friends
Friends
Friends is an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994 to May 6, 2004. The series revolves around a group of friends in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
wore an MC5 t-shirt in Series 9, Episode 18 - "The One with the Lottery."
The band The Indelicates
The Indelicates
The Indelicates are a Sussex-based English indie rock band. Formed in 2005 by Julia Clark-Lowes and Simon Clayton , the band currently consists of Julia and Simon, Alastair Clayton, Ed van Beinum, Lily Rae and Laurence Owen. They have released three albums - American Demo , released on Weekender...
mention MC5 in their song "We Hate The Kids
We Hate The Kids
"We Hate The Kids" was the first single by the British band The Indelicates. It was released at the end of July 2006 and was the first Sad Gnome Records release, as a 7" Vinyl , only available through the labels official website . The single was also released as a Digital Download and was available...
".
The American garage punk band Mono Men
Mono Men
The Mono Men were an American garage punk band, based in Bellingham, Washington. Their sound contained elements of grunge , but the Mono Men filtered these through a mimicry of 1960s Washington proto-punk, garage rock bands such as The Sonics.-History:The Mono Men rose up from the ashes of another...
covered "Kick Out The Jams" on their 1996 album 10 Cool Ones.
American rock band The Fluid
The Fluid
The Fluid was an American rock band from Denver, formed in 1984 who disbanded in 1993, but reconvened in 2008.-History:The Fluid were originally called Madhouse. After early 1980s Denver punk band Frantix broke, up bassist Matt Bischoff, drummer Garrett Shavlik and guitarist James Clower began...
recorded Kick Out The Jams for their 1992 EP Spot the Loon. The band also played this song live regularly, frequently as a final encore.
Discography
Albums- Kick Out the JamsKick Out the JamsKick Out the Jams is the first album by Detroit protopunkers MC5, released in 1969. It was recorded live at Detroit's Grande Ballroom over two nights, Devil's Night and Halloween, 1968. In 2003, the album was ranked number 294 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time...
(1969) - Back in the USA (1970)
- High Time (1971)
Compilations
- Babes in Arms (1983)
- Black to Comm (1994)
- Power Trip (1994)
- Looking At You (1995)
- The American Ruse (1995)
- Ice Pick Slim (1997)
- 66 Breakout (1999)
- The Big Bang!: Best of the MC5 (2000)
- Thunder Express (1999) (Recorded in 1972)
Live
- Teen Age LustTeen Age Lust (album)Teen Age Lust is a live album by rock band MC5. It was recorded live at the Saginaw Civic Center in Saginaw, Michigan, in January 1970. It was released in 1996 on Total Energy Records after digital remastering.-Track listing:...
(recorded 1970, released 1996) - Phun City, UK (recorded 1970, released 1996)
- Live At The Sturgis Armoury (recorded 1968, released 1998)
- Are You Ready To Testify?: The Live Bootleg Anthology (2005)
- Live At The Grande Ballroom 68 (2006)
Box sets
- Purity Accuracy (2004)
Singles
- "I Can Only Give You Everything" (1966)
- "One of the Guys" (1967)
- "Looking at You" (1968)
- "Kick Out the Jams" (1969)
- "Ramblin' Rose" (1969)
- "Tonight" (1969)
- "Shakin' Street" (1970)
- "Over and Over"/"Sister Anne" (1971) (Never officially released, only test pressings exist)
Filmography
- MC5: Kick Out the Jams 1999
- MC5: A True TestimonialMC5: A True TestimonialMC5: A True Testimonial, also written as MC5 * A True Testimonial, is a 2002 feature-length documentary film about the MC5, a Detroit-based rock band of the 1960s and early 1970s. The film was produced by Laurel Legler and directed by David C...
2002
See also
- 1960s counterculture
- Fifth Estate
- Music and politicsMusic and politicsThe connection between music and politics, particularly political expression in music, has been seen in many cultures. Although music influences political movements and rituals, it is not clear how or even if, general audiences relate music on a political level...
- Music of Detroit
- New LeftNew LeftThe New Left was a term used mainly in the United Kingdom and United States in reference to activists, educators, agitators and others in the 1960s and 1970s who sought to implement a broad range of reforms, in contrast to earlier leftist or Marxist movements that had taken a more vanguardist...
- John SinclairJohn Sinclair (poet)John Sinclair is a Detroit poet, one-time manager of the band MC5, and leader of the White Panther Party — a militantly anti-racist countercultural group of white socialists seeking to assist the Black Panthers in the Civil Rights movement — from November 1968 to July 1969...
- Up Against the Wall MotherfuckersUp Against the Wall MotherfuckersUp Against the Wall Motherfuckers was an anarchist affinity group based in New York City...
- White Panther PartyWhite Panther PartyThe White Panthers were a far-left, anti-racist, White American political collective founded in 1968 by Lawrence Plamondon, Leni Sinclair, and John Sinclair. It was started in response to an interview where Huey P. Newton, co-founder of the Black Panther Party, was asked what white people could do...
External links
- The official website of John Sinclair
- MC5 GATEWAY - Detailed site on the MC5
- MC5 Lyrics "provided by MC5 members"
- All-MC5 webguide
- http://www.machinegunthompson.com/
- Band timeline
- Machinegun Thompson interview by Jarrod Dicker
- MC5 2005, a Head Heritage article by Dorian Cope
- John Sinclair interview by Jarrod Dicker