The MC5, live on German TV in 1972.
I've seen a song or two from this before, but I think this is the first time I've seen the complete performance.
Apart from (of course) "wow," three things need to be said at this juncture.
1. This is the band as they were falling apart, what with heroin, no record deal, and a guy filling in for original bassist Michael Davis, who had apparently gone back to Detroit somewhat disillusioned. Which is to say that the clip is great, but not as transplendent as the 5 probably were on other occasions.
2. It's fucking criminal that the astounding 2002 MC5 documentary A True Testimonial, which has a shitload of performance footage even better than this, still isn't on DVD due to legal wrangling between the filmmakers and (if memory serves) guitarist Wayne Kramer.
3. Dave Marsh, who may be an obnoxious little death dwarf who has yet to cop to the fact that he made fun, big time, of Bruce Springsteen's second album in the pages of CREEM, once famously said that if The Rolling Stones at their peak and The MC5 at their peak had been playing at clubs across the street from each other on the same night, he would have opted to see the 5.
And he might not have been wrong about that.
13 comments:
July 1970
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYeHLyYif5I
I remember the two of us having a conversation about the documentary. I even remember one of us lending the other a copy of it. Am I wrong?
Today's word verification:
rchecka 10 bloco 14
WTF?
Good to see Fred Sonic Smith rocking hard!
Trey
Sal -- yes, you did indeed lend it to me.
And like a fool, I didn't bother to have it duped.
I assume I gave it back to you, right?
Sal --
The copy you had was a pre-release screener you got, legitimately, from RCA. What happened, if memory serves, is that the legal squabbling started almost immediately thereafter, and the official video release was then scrubbed. So a few lucky critics and retailers got copies, but those were the only ones ever made.
Ah okay. I don't have it. Do you?
I saw it somehow. Maybe it was on YouTube.
I remember, back in the day, very late 70's or 80. Wayne Kramer had one of his solo bands. We were sharing a rehearsal space I believe or on the same bill at Max's or CBGBs. I made him use my Fender vibrolux amp for the gig and he blew out one of the speakers. He was playing with the volume on 11 the whole time, the crazy bastard.
You can buy a twofer DVD here for $12+:
http://www.ioffer.com/i/2-dvds-mc5-a-true-testimonial-dvd-kick-out-the-jams-105556369
Wow, indeed. A little hard to watch in comparison to the amazing Wayne State footage on YouTube - seeing Kramer and Sonic stand around like mannequins says that things were indeed "falling apart". Still, based on the historical evidence I think I would make the same choice as Marsh.
I never got these guys (or the New York Dolls). Although I love Marshall Crenshaw's live version of "Tonight" on My Truck is My Home.
Agree with Dave Marsh, but if the Who in their prime were playing at the club on the corner, I know where I'd be...
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