The Day I Bought The MC5's "Kick Out the Jams" in Ann Arbor, 1969

I remember when the MC5 became the most talked-about band in Michigan...and it was mainly due to their album, Kick Out the Jams.

It was in 1969 when the album was released, featuring the line that gave the album its attitude: “Kick out the jams, m*****f*****s!”

Just about every kid wanted to get that album and hide it from their parents. The song itself wasn't getting any airplay, so the big shots at Elektra Records figured they had to make some extra bucks from it somehow.

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So what did they do? They released a single, replacing the “MF” line to “Kick out the jams, brothers and sisters” which ruined the whole attitude of the album. Amazing what changing one little word can do. So when the revamped album came out, record buyers had to be sure to get the unedited one. But how? The original had an indented “X” on the back. Even so, sometimes the album was hard to find.

I went to Ann Arbor to pick up my own copy and went into the record store on the corner of State and Liberty. I asked the clerk, “Do you have the MC5 album? You know, the original version?”
After pretending to look around, he said, "no, but we have the other one.”
“You mean the 'brothers and sisters' one?”
“Yes.”
"I don't want that one.”
“It's just as good as the other one.”
“No, it's not. The whole snarly attitude is gone. I'll just go down to the other record store and see if they have it.”
“Hold on – I'll call down there first and see if they have it.” Then he pretended to call the store. Talks for a minute. Hangs up. “Nope, they don't have it.”
“Okay then, never mind” and I walked out.....and down to the other record store. When I asked for the record, they DID have it and I went home happy. The other record store guy just blatantly lied in order to get a sale. Didn't work.

The MC5 consisted of Rob Tyner, lead vocalist (died 1991), guitarist Fred 'Sonic' Smith (died 1994), bassist Michael Davis (died 2012), guitarist Wayne Kramer (died 2024), and drummer Dennis Thompson (died 2024).

The MC5 were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in the 'musical excellence' category. The ceremony took place in the latter half of 2024, after all the band members had passed away. Even with their tough revolutionary political stance, I'll bet if had they lived, they would have been humbled.

Well, maybe not.