Celebrates the 50th Anniversary of "Kick Out the Jams"

Fifty years ago, a band from Detroit made rock & roll history with five little words, "Kick out the jams motherfuckers". That band was the MC5 and those words were said in the title track of their debut album Kick Out the Jams. The album and the band would spark controversy among both the record labels and retailers, but they would spark a fire in teens and music fans. The album was recorded at the legendary Grande Ballroom in Detroit, on October 30th and 31st of 1968. Now, 50 years later, the band will celebrate this monumental anniversary in Detroit.

Sadly, not all of the members of MC5 remain with us. However, founding member Wayne Kramer has gathered an all star lineup to join him for this anniversary celebration. He will be joined Kim Thayil (Soundgarden), Brendan Canty (Fugazi), Doug Pinnick (King's X), and Marcus Durant (Zen Guerrilla). Kramer and his crew have been playing shows across the country in honor of this anniversary, but the real celebration is happening right here in Detroit.

This Friday, October 26th, MC50 will hit the stage at St. Andrew's Hall. Joining them for the evening are The Detroit Cobras. Tickets for this show start at $40 and can be purchased in advance here. Then, on Saturday night, MC50 and The Detroit Cobras will hit the stage at The Fillmore in Detroit. Tickets for this show start at $24.75 and can be purchased here. At both of these shows, the MC50 will be playing Kick Out the Jams in full, along with other classics.

After these two shows are over, there is one more opportunity to see MC50 play this album in full, and it's probably the coolest opportunity of them all. They will be re-recording the album live to acetate at Third Man Records Cass Corridor on Devil's Night, Tuesday, October 30th. The lineup for this evening is just as epic, with Billy Gould of Faith No More taking over for Pinnick, and special advisors Don Was and Matt Cameron of Soundgarden and Pearl Jam. Unfortunately tickets to see this performance are sold out, but we suggest you follow the event page here in case some become available. After things wrap up at Third Man, the party moves to Corktown for the official after party at UFO Factory. Admission to the after party is free and things will kick off at 10 p.m. For more info on that, click here.

Thanks to our friends at Live Nation Detroit, we are getting one lucky reader into the first Detroit show for free! If you would like to win a pair of tickets to see MC50 at St. Andrew's Hall on Friday night, send your name to hipindetroit@gmail.com with #MC50 in the subject line. We will draw one lucky winner on Friday morning and they will get into St. Andrew's that night with a friend for free.

This is going to be an epic week of rock & roll history here in Detroit! So make sure you make it out to one of these shows and "kick out the jams motherfuckers"!

~C