| MC5 (short for Motor City 5) |
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 MC5 |
| From
Lincoln Park, Michigan, U.S.A., MC5 (short for Motor City 5) included
members Wayne Kramer, and Fred "Sonic" Smith on guitars, Michael Davis
on bass, Rob Tyner vocals, and on drums Dennis Thompson. Before their debut album, because of their energetic live performances they earned a spot on the cover of "Rolling Stone" magazine. Their three albums are now considered classics. But after only 8 years the band broke up due to personal and political reasons. Wayne Kramer and Fred Smith had been friends since their teen years. They both were members of seperate bands. Smith was with the"Vibratones" and Kramer was a member of the"Bounty Hunters". Eventually the members of both bands started leaving for collage or real jobs. The ones that stayed got together under Kramers leadership and the kept the name "Head Hunters", they were able to quit their day jobs and lived on what they made from the band.
Soon Rob Derminger arrived on the scene, he originally applied for a bass player position, but the band soon realized he was better suited as a singer. He was a little older than the rest of the band members and had more fat on his frame than most band frontmen, but he had a very commanding stage presence, and a booming baritone voice. Derminger soon changed his name to Rob Tyner (after John Coltranes's pianist McCoy Tyner) and he also changed the name of the band to MC5 which somewhat sounded like a car like GTO. Now under the management of John Sinclair (see John Sinclair page) they became heavily involved in left-wing politics, as Sinclair was a member of the White Panther Party and Fifth Estate. MC5 would enter the stage carrying unloaded guns and later in the performance an unseen sniper would gun down Tyner. All the band mates were also using a large amount of LSD and pot, which was a contributing factor in their downfall. Their performances in Detroit were very high energy sets, one writer said that fans compared the aftermath of an MC5 performance to the exhaustion experienced after a street rumble or an orgy. In 1968 MC5 toured the east coast of the U.S., they often overshadowed the more famous acts that they opened for. When opening for "Big Brother and the Holding Company" the audiences regularly demanded multiple encores of the MC5. Also it was during this tour that Rolling Stone made an association between MC5 and a radical group called "Up Against The Wall Motherfuckers".  The
live album "Kick out the Jams"was released in 1969 and caused
controversy because of the title track's lyrics with a rallying cry
"kick out the jams motherfuckers !" this album was very successful and
quickly sold over 100,000 copies, it was rare and hard to find and is
still rare even with additional pressings. (Do ya wanna buy the
original album, or do you have it and want to sell it ? Look HERE.) The single version had the
words "kick out the jams, brothers and sisters".The band also created controversy when it played before the violent outbreak at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. While many bands where to appear at this concert only MC5 initially showed up. They played for 8 hours straight. Only Neil Young actually arrived late, but he did not perform because of the chaos at the convention. Another political move that landed MC5 in trouble was when Hudson's, a Detroit department store, refused to stock "Kick Out the Jams" because of obscenity in the album. MC5 responded by taking out a full page ad in Fifth Estate which simply said "FUCK HUDSON'S" and unwisely included MC5's label logo from Elektra Records. Hudson's pulled all Elektra records from their stores, and Elektra dropped the band from their contract. MC5 then signed with Atlantic Records which ironically was now part of the same company as Elektra. Their 2nd album was not so well received as the first. The short fast ,hard edged rock was very different from their first album. Except for Tyner's vocals they were barely recognizable as the same band. Sales of the album were mediocre, and the bands tours were not as well received as earlier tours. Exhaustion from the heavy touring and the bands increasingly heavy drug use were to blame. They also had a falling out with John Sinclair over political views and were conspicuous by their absence from the 1971 "free John Sinclair" concert. In 1972 Michael Davis who had started using heroin was all but forced out of the band. And the remaining members then recorded three more songs for a film called "Gold", that would be MC5's last recording session. Eventually only Smith and Kramer remained with the band and played with local pick-up groups. MC5 reunited for a farewell show on New Years Eve in 1972, only a few dozen fans showed up and after a few songs a distraught Kramer left the stage. Fred "Sonic" Smith formed a new group called Sonic's Rendezvous Band and later married singer Patti Smith. He retired from the music to raise a family and died in 1994. Wayne Kramer was sent to prison in Kentucky for drug charges and while there was unexpectedly reunited with MC5 bassist Michael Davis also serving time for drug charges. After his parole from prison Kramer worked regular jobs for several years and kicked drugs. In the early 90's he returned to music and has released several well received albums. REUNION - 2003 saw the return of the surviving members ,Kramer, Davis, and drummer Dennis Thompson performing in London with Fred "Sonic" Smiths place being taken by Nick Royale. And vocals being filled by David Vanian of "The Damed", Lemmy of "Motorhead", and Ian Astbury of the "Cult". In 2004 the band went on world tour with the name "DKT/MC5"and many special guest joined them on tour. Since 2005 "Handsome Dick Manitoba has been lead singer. In 2007 bassist Michael Davis left the group to join "The Lords of Altamont" |
| MC5
Links MC5.org ♫ MC5 Gateway ♫ Our World ♫ DKT ♫ Rolling Stone |
|
 The MC5's
1969 live album Kick Out
the Jams was a new measure of the relationship between
music and cultural and political change. As the "house band" and
central organizing force for the White Panther Party, which advocated
an end to capitalism and supported the Black Panther Party's
initiatives and aims, the MC5 formalized the threat, promise, and
parity of music within larger societal spheres. Using the band's career
as a case study in evaluating the relationship between rock music and
social change, this book examines how the inherent rebelliousness of
rock afforded both media producers and consumers a safe space in which
to question social mores and ideas. Buy
It ! |
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