JUNE 1972

2 or 23 Friday / MC-5

*Penthouse*, Scarborough , UK

MC5  by Dave Hopkinson - Melody Maker - 7.1.72

The Penthouse in Scarborough was packed on Friday night by those wishing to see if the M.C.5 would inspire revolution in their hearts, and generally live up to their reputation as a wild, storm-rocking, jam-kicking band. In fact they have now broken with John Sinclair and his merry men, and having shaken off these early associations and original, political aims, they're back to simply playing the music, simply being the operative word.
They trooped on stage to the sound of applause from the hipper ones among us who "knew" the band by their three albums. Guitarist Wayne Kramer looked as though he had been dragged through his speaker cabinets backwards, and judging by the battered gear and the sound problems, perhaps he had.
Nevertheless, they proceeded to drum the audience into submission, using the maximum of volume and the minimum of imagination. "Rambling Rose" with Kramer's high-pitched vocals sounded exactly the same as the version on their first L.P., though after a while the succession of over-familiar, well-worn riffs induced an atmosphere of mild irritation, if not boredom.
The Revolution, to which they had formerly pledged themselves, certainly was not going to be a musical one. It was their famous "Kick Out The Jams" that brought the dancers to their feet, but despite its enthusiastic reception one could not help feeling that this present band were living off the M.C.5 legend. Long live the Stones!