Wayne Kramer – The Hard Stuff (Da Capo, 2018)

Growing up across the river from Detroit in Windsor, Ontario, it was hard not to be exposed to the wealth of music emerging from the Motor City. The sounds of Motown and beyond were ever-present on the radio airwaves.

The advent of so-called “underground” and “progressive” FM radio beginning in 1968 with WABX gave previously unheard sounds from AM radio a whole new venue for rock music. So, bands like the MC5 and Stooges would suddenly have an outlet for their sounds on the airwaves.

In this book, the MC5 founder and guitarist details the ups and downs of the band and music scene of the time from an insiders point of view.

Like most music bios, his begins with his childhood in and around the Detroit area. It follows his interest in music and particularly his attraction to the guitar which ultimately lead to the formation of one of the most highly regarded rock bands of the era.

The band encapsulated the raw energy behind the revolutionary talk and actions of the late ’60s. They dove in head-first and eventually came to the attention of Elektra Records who would release their debut album.

Kick Out the Jams was a raucous live recording which presented the group in their element at Detroit’s Grande Ballroom.  It was a warts-and-all presentation which Kramer was really not pleased. What could have been a hot national release was soon to have some major problems. Copies of the unedited album were rushed to promotional outlets and the major industry broadsheets which were incredibly influential at the time reacted negatively. They sited the obscene introduction of the title track (“Kick out the jams, motherfuckers!”)  and the inflammatory revolutionary rhetoric of the liner note as a reason to suppress its mass distribution.
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So, no sooner had they started as a new hot commodity, their plans were dashed. It eventually lead to the band being dumped by the label.

This was only the start of their ongoing challenges as Kramer details the world that surrounded the band during those times. The White Panther movement. the incredible Detroit riots in the summer of 1967, the harassment from the police, the drug busts etc…

Kramer continues to spin the tale through the challenges of creating music, dealing with drug addiction and eventually to his own incarceration. It is often a harrowing read which eventually ends in redemption.

In recent times, Wayne Kramer has been back on the road celebrating his former band by currently using the banner MC50.

Over the years, the legacy of the MC5 has only been on the upswing. So, it seems quite appropriate that one of its founders tells its tale some fifty years from its beginnings. If you are a fan, this will help to shed some light on the full story behind the band.