1969 - February: MC5 ”Kick Out the Jams”

When you're looking at revolution-focused rock of the late 60's, you have to put MC5 near the top of the pantheon. Their debut album, Kick Out the Jams, was also a live album, and captures the rage and the energy that would inspire the garage band and punk movement in the years to come. MC5 stands for "the Motor City Five," and was frontman Rob Tyner, lead guitarist Wayne Kramer, rhythm guitarist Fred "Sonic" Smith, bassist Michael Davis, and Dennis Thompson on drums. This is a raw "punch in the gut" album, underground, very rebellious. MC5 was politically active, and was one of the bands playing for the protesters at the 1968 Democratic Convention. The band would be broken up by 1972, but not before creating a legacy that would inspire bands for decades to come. Get ready for some loud, angry rock and roll!   Rocket Reducer #62 (Rama Lama Fa Fa Fa) The song is the last track on the first side of the album, and with lyrics like "you can lay it down on me, momma any old time. We can shimmy so good, We'll both be stoned o-mind," it is pretty easy to see the sex and drugs in this rock and roll. Come Together This track has a sound similar to The Who, and was a call to arms for the anti-capitalist left. Between the drug references and the explicit lyrics, MC5 would find their albums banned from many of the record stores at the time. Ramblin Rose This is a cover song originally recorded in 1962 by Jerry Lee Lewis, and by Ted Tyler in 1965. It was originally a country rock song, but Tyner puts a falsetto twist on it. This is the first track on the album. Kick Out the Jams The title track of the album would be the signature song of MC5, and would be covered by numerous people through the years. You're not going to find ballads from this group, and this song is a call to get rid of the easy listening stuff and get loud!     ENTERTAINMENT TRACK: “Tra La La” by The Banana Splits The Banana Splits was a Saturday morning TV show in the late 60's. It featured costumed characters and a variety of short kids shows in serialized format.   STAFF PICKS: “If I Can Dream” by Elvis Presley Bruce picks The King this week. This song was recorded in June 1968, two months after Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated, and contains direct quotations from MLK. It was first released as the finale to Presley's 1968 comeback special, and was on the charts in February 1969. “For Once In My Life” by Stevie Wonder Brian's staff pick was originally written in 1966, and recorded by a number of people including Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett. Earlier versions of this song were done as a ballad before Stevie Wonder picked up the tempo. “Son of a Preacher Man” by Dusty Springfiled Rob's features the Memphis sound of this British native. It was originally intended to be sung by Aretha Franklin but Dusty Springfield does it justice. This was her last top 10 hit, but Springfield was also on a hit from 1987 - “What Have I Done to Deserve This” by the Pet Shop Boys. “Anything You Choose” by Spanky and Our Gang Wayne's staff pick is a deeper cut from Elaine “Spanky” McFarlane and her band. McFarlane got her nickname from the similarity of her last name to George McFarland, who played Spanky in "The Little Rascals" serial in the 30's. This song has an Elvis feel and a great horn section.   INSTRUMENTAL TRACK: "Hang 'Em High" by Booker T and The MG's We finish up with this instrumental covering the theme from Clint Eastwood's western film of the same name. This keyboard-heavy rendition entered the charts this month. Thanks for listening to “What the Riff?!?” NOTE: To adjust the loudness of the music or voices, you may adjust the balance on your device. VOICES are stronger in the LEFT channel, and MUSIC is stronger on the RIGHT channel. Please follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/whattheriffpodcast/, and message or email us with what you'd like to hear, what you think of the show, and any rock-worthy memes we can share. Of course we'd love for you to rate the show in your podcast platform! **NOTE: What the Riff?!? does not own the rights to any of these songs and we neither sell, nor profit from them. We share them so you can learn about them and purchase them for your own collections.