Editing MC5 (section)

===1968–1969: ''Kick Out the Jams''===
In early 1968, the band's second single was released by Trans-Love Energies on A-Square records (though without the knowledge of that label's owner Jeep Holland).  Housed in a striking picture sleeve, it comprised two original songs: "Borderline" and "Looking at You". The first pressing sold out in a few weeks, and by year's end it had gone through more pressings totaling several thousand copies.  A third single that coupled "I Can Only Give You Everything" with the original "I Just Don't Know" appeared at about the same time on the AMG label, as well.

That summer MC5 toured the [[East Coast of the United States]], which generated an enormous response, with the group often overshadowing the more famous acts they opened up for: McLeese writes that when opening for [[Big Brother and the Holding Company]], audiences regularly demanded multiple encores of MC5, and at a memorable series of concerts, [[Cream (band)|Cream]]—one of the leading hard rock groups of the era—"left the stage vanquished".{{sfn|McLeese|2005|p=65}} This same east coast tour led to MC5's association with the radical group [[Up Against the Wall Motherfucker]].{{sfn|Carson|2009|p=184}}

MC5 became the leading band in a burgeoning hard rock scene, serving as mentors to fellow South-Eastern Michigan bands [[The Stooges]] and [[The Up]], and major record labels expressed an interest in the group. As related in the notes for reissued editions of [[The Stooges (album)|the Stooges' debut album]], Danny Fields of [[Elektra Records]] came to Detroit to see MC5. At Kramer's recommendation, he went to see The Stooges. Fields was so impressed that he ended up offering contracts to both bands in September 1968. They were the first hard rock groups signed to Elektra Records.

According to Kramer, MC5 of this period was politically influenced by the [[Marxism]] of the [[Black Panther Party]] and [[Fred Hampton]], and poets of the [[Beat Generation]] such as [[Allen Ginsberg]] and [[Ed Sanders]], or [[Modernist poetry|Modernist]] poets like [[Charles Olson]].<ref>{{cite news |author=Wayne Kramer |url=http://www.laweekly.com/1998-11-12/music/rocket-reducer/ |title=Rocket Reducer - Page 1 - Music - Los Angeles |newspaper=LA Weekly |date=November 4, 1998 |access-date=December 18, 2012 |archive-date=December 11, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131211224416/http://www.laweekly.com/1998-11-12/music/rocket-reducer/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>  Black Panther Party founder [[Huey P. Newton]] prompted [[John Sinclair (poet)|John Sinclair]] to found the [[White Panthers]], a militant leftist organization of white people working to assist the Black Panthers.  Shortly after, Sinclair was arrested for possession of [[Cannabis (drug)|marijuana]].

Under the "guidance" of John Sinclair (who dubbed his enterprise "Trans-Love Energies" and refused to be categorized as a traditional manager), MC5 were soon involved in left-wing politics: Sinclair was active with the [[White Panther Party]] and ''[[Fifth Estate (periodical)|Fifth Estate]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2014/mar/03/john-sinclair-rock-revolutionary-mc5-interview|title=John Sinclair: 'We wanted to kick ass – and raise consciousness'|website=The Guardian|author=O'Hagan, Sean|date=March 3, 2014|access-date=March 3, 2014}}</ref><ref>[[Julie Burchill]], Tony Parsons, ''"The Boy Looked at Johnny": The Obituary of Rock and Roll'', p.19-20, [[Pluto Press]], London. 1978</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/arts/article/13019737/yippie-yi-yay|title=Yippie Yi Yay|website=Washington City Paper|author=Tracey, Patrick|date=March 31, 2000}}</ref>  In their early career, MC5 had a politically provocative stage show: They appeared onstage toting unloaded rifles, and at the climax of a performance, an unseen "sniper" would shoot Tyner. The band members were also all using the drugs [[Lysergic acid diethylamide|LSD]] and marijuana.

[[File:August 25, 1968, Hippies in Lincoln Park, Chicago.webm|thumb|right|300px|thumbtime=0:42|[[Hippie|Hippies]] at a live music festival in [[Lincoln Park]], [[Chicago]]. MC5 can be seen playing - Sunday, August 25, 1968]]

The band performed as part of the [[1968 Democratic National Convention protest activity|protests]] against the [[Vietnam War]] at the [[1968 Democratic National Convention]] in Chicago that were broken up by a [[police riot]]. The group's appearance at the convention is also notable for their lengthy performance. What was also notable was the fact that they were also the only musical band to perform during the 1968 DNC protests.<ref name=legacy /><ref>{{cite news|url=https://chicagoreader.com/blogs/how-the-1968-dnc-protests-in-chicago-killed-protest-folk-singer-phil-ochs/|title=How the 1968 DNC protests in Chicago 'killed' protest folk singer Phil Ochs|first=Ryan|last=Smith|publisher=Chicago Reader|date=August 25, 2018|accessdate=February 3, 2024}}</ref> In an interview featured in the documentary ''Get Up, Stand Up'', Kramer reported that while many musicians were scheduled to perform at a day-long concert, only the MC5 initially appeared. The MC5 played for over eight hours straight. Of the other scheduled performers, Kramer stated in ''Get Up, Stand Up'' that only [[Neil Young]] actually arrived, though due to the chaos at the convention, Young didn't perform.  Dennis Thompson alleged years later that [[Country Joe McDonald]] (of [[Country Joe and the Fish]]) was also present at the scene.{{sfn|Thompson|2000}} However, aside from members of MC5, the only other singer who was acknowledged to have performed at the convention protests was [[Protest song|protest]] folk singer [[Phil Ochs]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://chicagoreader.com/blogs/how-the-1968-dnc-protests-in-chicago-killed-protest-folk-singer-phil-ochs/|title=How the 1968 DNC protests in Chicago 'killed' protest folk singer Phil Ochs|first=Ryan|last=Smith|publisher=Chicago Reader|date=August 25, 2018|accessdate=April 5, 2024}}</ref><ref>Michael Schumacher, ''There But for Fortune: The Life of Phil Ochs'', pp. 200–201.</ref> According to the [[Bethel Woods Center for the Arts]], [[Bruce Barthol]] was the only member of Country Joe and the Fish who was willing to perform, with other members of the band fearing a potential riot.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bethelwoodscenter.org/news/detail/country-joe-the-fish-50-years-of-peace-love|title=Country Joe & The Fish: 50 Years of Peace & Love|publisher=Bethel Woods Center for the Arts|date=2018|accessdate=April 5, 2024}}</ref>

MC5 had a promising beginning that earned them a January 1969 cover appearance on ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' and a story written by [[Eric Ehrmann]] before their debut live album was released. The band earned national attention with their first album, ''[[Kick Out the Jams]]'', recorded live on October 30 and 31, 1968, at Detroit's [[Grande Ballroom]]. Elektra executive [[Jac Holzman]] and producer [[Bruce Botnick]] recognized that MC5 were at their best when playing for a receptive audience. Containing such songs as the proto-punk classics "[[Kick Out the Jams (song)|Kick Out the Jams]]" and "Rocket Reducer No. 62 (Rama Lama Fa Fa Fa)", the spaced-out "Starship" (co-credited to [[Sun Ra]] because the lyrics were partly cribbed from one of Ra's poems), and an extended cover of [[John Lee Hooker]]'s "Motor City Is Burning" wherein Tyner praises the role of the [[Black Panther Party for Self Defense|Black Panthers]] during the [[12th Street riot|Detroit riots of 1967]].  Critic Mark Deming writes that ''Kick out the Jams'' "is one of the most powerfully energetic live albums ever made ... this is an album that refuses to be played quietly."<ref>{{cite web|last=Deming |first=Mark |url={{AllMusic|class=album |id=r12622 |pure_url=yes}} |title=Kick Out the Jams - MC5 |website=AllMusic |access-date=July 6, 2011}}</ref>

The album caused some controversy due to Sinclair's inflammatory [[liner notes]] and the title track's rallying cry of "Kick out the jams, [[motherfuckers]]!" According to Kramer, the band recorded this as "Kick out the jams, brothers and sisters!" for the single released for radio play; Tyner claimed this was done without group consensus.{{sfn|Thompson|2000}} The edited version also appeared in some LP copies, which also withdrew Sinclair's excitable comments. The album was released in January 1969; reviews were mixed, but the album was relatively successful, quickly selling over 100,000 copies and peaking at #30 on the ''Billboard'' album chart in May 1969 during a 23-week stay.

When [[Hudson's]], a Detroit-based [[department store]] chain, refused to stock ''Kick Out the Jams'' due to the obscenity, MC5 responded with a full page advertisement in the local underground magazine ''Fifth Estate'' saying "Stick Alive with the MC5, and Fuck Hudson's!", prominently including the logo of MC5's label, Elektra Records, in the ad. Hudson's pulled all Elektra records from their stores, and in the ensuing controversy, Jac Holzman, the head of Elektra, dropped the band from their contract. MC5 then signed with [[Atlantic Records]].<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=G4mP7u6mPdkC&pg=PA67|page=67|title=101 Albums that Changed Popular Music|author=Chris Smith|publisher=Oxford University Press|date= 2009|isbn=9780195373714}}</ref>