Sad News today:
Brother Wayne Kramer, a member of the rock band MC5, passed away today at age 75.
Kramer also co-created the US arm of Billy Bragg’s Jail Guitar Doors initiative, providing musical instruments for prison inmates.
It was MC5's first record, "Kick Out the Jams" that grabbed me.
My friend Germo loaned it to me somewhere around 1979, and I don't know if I had ever heard such a ferocious recording. The twin guitars of Wayne Kramer and Fred "Sonic" Smith were wild.
The Record was recorded live, released in 1969, and it simply rocked.
MC5
Rob Tyner – vocals
Wayne Kramer – guitar, vocals
Fred "Sonic" Smith – guitar, vocals
Michael Davis – bass
Dennis Thompson – drums
Each song on this album has remained a favorite of mine since that first listen.
Side one
1. "Ramblin' Rose" 4:15
2. "Kick Out the Jams" 2:52
3. "Come Together" 4:29
4. "Rocket Reducer No. 62 (Rama Lama Fa Fa Fa)" 5:41
Side two
5. "Borderline" 2:45
6. "Motor City Is Burning" 6:04
7. "I Want You Right Now" 5:31
8. "Starship" 8:15
Rocket Reducer #62 (Rama Lama Fa Fa Fa
You know I got to keep it up 'cause I'm a natural man
I'm a born hell raiser and I don't give a damn
I'm the man for you, baby
Yes, I am for you, baby
Say I'm the man for you, baby
Yes, I am for you, baby
I'm the man for you
The second album, "Back in the USA", didn't exactly grab me the same way as the debut.
Side A
1. "Tutti Frutti" 1:30
2. "Tonight" 2:29
3. "Teenage Lust" 2:36
4. "Let Me Try" 4:16
5. "Looking at You" 3:03
Side B
1. "High School" 2:42
2. "Call Me Animal" 2:06
3. "The American Ruse" 2:31
4. "Shakin' Street" 2:21
5. "The Human Being Lawnmower" 2:24
6. "Back in the U.S.A." 2:26
Over the years, I realized the record is a great one, just much different than the first one.
This was a studio album, and it did lack the wildness of the live debut. I also wasn't incredibly wowed by the two cover songs that bookended the record. But, what was in-between is a great listen.
By the time the third record, "High Time" was released in 1971, it appeared over, the band was no more. Meanwhile, I fed on these three records daily from 1979 - 1983.
High Time is a perfect record. Songs are fantastically memorable, playing is inspired, things stood out and made an impression on me. I have always loved the lead-track, Sister Anne, especially the ending and fade out with a Salvation Army type outro.
The record just rocks. From start to finish, it is perfection. The vocals, guitars, drums and bass are playing as one unit, bringing each epic tune to its peak. The songs are all well written, with none that are filler or half-effort to fill a side. Wonderful album.
Side A
1. "Sister Anne" 7:23
2. "Baby Won't Ya" 5:32
3. "Miss X" 5:08
4. "Gotta Keep Movin'" 3:24
Side B
1. "Future/Now" 6:21
2. "Poison" 3:24
3. "Over and Over" 5:13
4. "Skunk (Sonicly Speaking)" 5:31
From The Guardian website:
At the time of his death, Kramer was preparing to release a long-awaited third studio album from the band (MC5). Explaining why he was returning, Kramer said: “I think it was time to reignite that spirit of 1968, the spirit of my generation, when we were all young people. I think we’re at a very dangerous time in our history. And I think if we don’t all organise, come together, and step up, we could lose it all. Democracy could go away. The forces that we’re up against are not joking. This is not playtime. This is serious.”
A release was being planned for spring 2024.
Obituary from Discogs:
After the MC5, Kramer spent the latter half of the ‘70s in prison for what he described as his career in “illegitimate capitalism.” Upon release, he embarked on a solo career, teamed up with Johnny Thunders, and created custom woodwork and homes on the side.
In the ‘90s, Kramer signed with Epitaph and released four solo records.
In the ‘00s, Kramer, Billy Bragg, and Margaret Saadi Kramer founded Jail Guitar Doors. This non-profit, named after the b-side of the Clash’s 1978 single, donates musical instruments to people in prison and supports other prison-reform initiatives.
“The only way I can militantly oppose [..] nihilism is through taking ethical action in my life,” Kramer said of his charitable work to Flood Magazine in 2018. “Go do something that moves in the direction of human happiness and away from the direction of human suffering.”
I still listen to those three MC5 records regularly. I will dive into Wayne Kramer's solo work going forward. We lost a good one on earth today. RIP Brother Wayne Kramer.
And, from the home-front.....
End of day run in Wilcox Park, Bloomfield, CT.
Managed to run along a trail segment I haven't ever been on, so that was pretty neat. I also connected more-or-less as I had hoped, for a total of 4.3-miles, so that was great.
