By Jim Knutsson / PHOTO: Jonatan Nothlev
04.02.2024 / 10.39 / Reading time: 2 min
MC5 was formed in 1963 in Detroit, Michigan and the band name was an abbreviation for Motor City Five. The group released their first record Kick Out The Jams in 1969, where the title track became a hit. The band’s manager John Sinclair drew a lot of attention to the group due to its political agenda and was later replaced after being caught on drug charges. The group split in 1972 due to internal conflicts, where drug problems are said to have been a contributing factor.
MC5 were considered to have a strong influence on the punk movement in the United States, and their music is described as a loud and energetic mix of hard rock, blues and garage rock. MC5 released a total of three records between 1969 and 1972.
I 2012 ga bassist Michael Davis wife, Angela Davis, the news that her husband died of liver failure. This then meant that only drummers Dennis «Machine Gun» Thompson and guitarist Wayne Kramer was alive again from the most classic line-up of the rock band, which otherwise consisted of a guitarist Fred «Sonic» Smiththe singer Rob Tyner and the aforementioned bassist Michael Davis. But now Wayne has also fallen asleep, aged 75, following pancreatic cancer. Friday 2 On February 1, he died in a Los Angeles hospital, according to his friend and colleague Jason Heath.
“Wayne Kramer was the best man I ever knew. He carried a unique blend of deep wisdom and strong compassion, beautiful empathy and unwavering conviction. His band the MC5 practically invented punk rock music”write Rage Against The Machine-guitarist Tom Morello on Instagram. A band that also interpreted Kick Out The Jams on the album Renegades which was published in 2000.
Last year, the magazine Rolling Stone named the world‘s 250 best guitarists of all time, and Wayne Kramer then ended up in an honorable 225th place together with his colleague Fred “Sonic” Smith. Part of the reason was that they both managed to combine Chuck Berry and early Motown influences with an emerging interest in free jazz.
Wayne Kramer will be remembered as an American punk icon.