Kick Out The Jams ’s Motor City 5 were a force of nature. An explosive collision of high-energy rock’n’roll, psychedelically inclined free jazz, radical left-wing politics, soul-driven R&B showband steps, acid-expanded consciousness and revolution-sparking raw power. Having ripped through the Detroit live scene like wildfire, the band released a pair of independent singles across a two-year period ( b/w b/w ) through Trans Love Energies on AMG and A-Square respectively.
Repeat pressings and a burgeoning reputation for live shows that combined the spiritual with the seditious soon attracted , who signed the band in ’68. One irresistible facet of the MC5’s live show was that they ramped up the energy with choreographed, showband stage moves that were intrinsically Detroit, and very Motown: “We loved Motown [Four Tops pictured],” says guitarist . “I come from an era before the British invasion, and in that era the cool bands did dance steps, and the cooler your steps, the cooler your band.
Spins, leaps and getting up and dancing on your amplifiers, very much like Motown artists, but with electric guitars. The first time I saw I thought: ‘They ain’t even doing any steps, and they’re so old.’” But the 5’s essential magic wasn’t best served within the cold confinement of a recording studio, as Kramer explains: “Playing live was what we did best.
Most bands did three albums and then a live album, so we thought we’d be revolutionary and break out wit.