Historic Detroit ROCK & ROLL! Drummer Dennis “Machine Gun” Thompson dishes on the MC5’s passion, perils and teaching your children well. Includes LIVE MC5 performance of Born Under A Bad Sign. Rob Tyner says, 'It's kind of our theme song.....'
The MC5 are an example of 5 men coming together to create high powered music that moved a generation of music lovers. I’ve known Dennis since I was 15 years old and witnessed the magic these musicians made with the MC5. Their musical legacy is worth preserving, as can be heard in the new release of “Born Under a Bad Sign” that I recorded LIVE at the Village Pub. When I met the MC5 at the Crows Nest East, they had no following and were not at the Grande Ballroom yet. Recording them at the Detroit Unitarian Church was great fun for Jim Sudomier and me. In the end perhaps a dozen LIVE MC5 performances were captured on reel to reel, thanks to my geek Dad who bought a Sony tape recorder in 1966. Because I was manager for the 3rd Power and setting up their gigs, I was able to record some of the best musicians of the time. UEF’s music series, “Priceless Rock Soup,” was named by the late Steven Donaghey. After he helped me record with a second tape recorder during a MC5 Grande Ballroom concert in 1968, he sent me the 7.5 inch tape reel in 2011 to digitize. On the tape reel box he wrote “Priceless Rock Soup.” Steve was in one of my first bands in Royal Oak, MI where we grew up. I was surprised to discover that Steven D. was the bass player on Barry Manilow’s "I write the songs" and many more hits. So this is to honor Steve and all the musicians who have cooked up this historic rock and roll I hope you enjoy the ride.
ROCK ON music lovers! And stay tuned. More Tasty Rock Soup is coming out of the kitchen soon!
Note: In 2017 The Detroit Historical Society & Museum accepted a 1968 MC5 LIVE, Grande Ballroom Concert audio recording into their repository for preservation.
Kick Out the Jams, Tutti Frutti and Born Under A Bad Sign are all LIVE on stage MC5 recordings. I shot the Grande photographs 1967-1968.
Best + Rock On.
-Licari
Production & Documentary Credits:
Washtenaw Community College Digital Arts Department, video staff, content contributors, students and professors.
Grande graphic animation: P. Rachford
Cameras: M. Zacharias, M. Wilken