Oregon Music News

Bassist Michael Davis, a member of the rock-driven and politically fueld MC5, now lives in Eugene, Ore.

Out of the halcyon days of the 1960s, as a nation was reeling from an unpopular war, protests in the streets, and a maelström of social, civil and racial strife that threatened to tear apart our collective tie-dyed fabric, a jaw-droppingly powerful band arose in Detroit, the Motor City. Known as the MC5, this quintet of proto-punk garage rockers would serve as an architect for rock and roll, forging a gritty, often freeform style of raw rock.

Drawing on their early influences of R&B, blues, Motown, James Brown, Chuck Berry, and even Sun Ra, singer Rob Tyner, guitarists Wayne Kramer and Fred Smith, drummer Dennis Thompson and bassist Michael Davis rose to prominence in their 1964-1972 run as one of America’s seminal bands. Though they only produced three albums, and never achieved the massive success of other bands of the era, the MC5 influenced a host of bands, including everyone from Iggy and the Stooges and the Ramones to The Damned, with their strident blues-rock, psychedelia and ardent political stance.

Tyner and Smith both died in the early ‘90s, but a version of the MC5 soldiered on briefly in several memorable reunion appearances. Bassist Michael Davis, having survived not only the ‘60s and ‘70s but addiction and incarceration, has found a certain serenity at age 66, relocating his family from Southern California to our little emerald gem, Eugene, two years ago. Now embarking on his own revolution with a new community and a music-education foundation he runs, here’s what this seminal rocker sees when he looks back – and ahead.

Looking back over the last 40 years, what’s the one big overriding thing that sticks out about your days in the MC5?

The energy of times of the late ‘60s was something that probably won’t ever be duplicated because at that point in time everything was changing from the post-war era into what we might call modern society and technology. When I first started playing in the MC5, a lot of things were still in black and white, not everything was in color, especially the things from Europe, what we called foreign film back then. It had a certain character back then, a lot of the photos of British bands were in black and white. It carried that rainy day mood, it wasn’t all bright and lollipops. It was somber and bluesy. It was such enormous fun to break away from being a straight kid, and dress in Carnaby fashions, skinny pants, pointy boots, little skinny ties and white shirts.

It was an era that was unique, and really a lot of fun. It had this particular soul to it, Motown was happening, everybody was very dapper, before the psychedelic thing took over. The spirit of the times is what stands out.

The MC5 in their heyday

Did you have any idea that you were playing in a band that would become one of the seminal rock bands of the day?

Actually, I did. I believed in us, and believed what we were doing was so unique. For me the important thing was to be original, because I came from an art background. Copying someone else’s stuff wouldn’t get the attention that I wanted. Originality was the key to any kind of long-term recognition. I wanted us to be totally original. I thought what we were doing was totally unprecedented, at least not in rock and roll. There was plenty of jazz music, Sun Ra, where people improvised and played free. When we started doing it with electric instruments I just felt the energy levels that we achieved were so profound. I could see it in the audience reactions to it. Audiences absolutely hated it or went crazy. I thought that it would have a long-term effect. But you know it wasn’t successful in the business part of it. It wasn’t that marketable. It wasn’t like the Beatles. But I actually did have a kind of a suspicion that it would be long-term. Having said that, I am really surprised it did turn out that way.

Were you calling yourselves a punk band? Was that term even viable then?

No, there wasn’t any such thing. Punk didn’t come along until the late ‘70s, and we broke up in ’72. We certainly wouldn’t call ourselves punks, because at that time a punk was somebody who got beat up, or refused to fight. It was not a flattering term. We were not punks. We were rebels. Punk is a form of rebels. How it got to called punk, I don’t really know, except I think that’s a fashion thing.

Did you feel like you somehow missed out on some of the success that other bands were enjoying?

Absolutely. You mean our peers, like Bob Seeger, and Nugent and all those guys? Yeah, for sure. Alice Cooper is a good example, too, of people who were able to take it to business success, and actually sold records. Everybody in the band had regrets about that. I’m sure it was a colossal disappoint for guys like Fred [Smith] and Rob [Tyner}, the two guys who are not with us anymore. But for sure. We wanted to make it, and be there on the big stage. And we were for a minute, but the rug got pulled out.

I know you’ve been asked a thousand times - why a live album [1968’s Kick Out the Jams] right out of the gate?

That was our strength. What we did live, we wanted to capture that feeling. When we played, you couldn’t put that on a record, you couldn’t go in the studio and duplicate that kind of an experience. We used to improvise a lot of our stuff, a lot of our songs were just so open-ended, they were basically just a riff. We’d get started and take it somewhere. We’d take it different places every evening. We had a lot of confidence that the audience would be fascinated by what was happening. We had some tricks in store for them. We could take them on an experience that could just never get anywhere else. Coincidentally, it was the cheapest way to make a record. We had a record label who wasn’t into spending a whole lot of money. We did the thing on our home court. We felt the best way to translate the energy of the band was to get that feeling live. That’s what turns out to be what MC5 is known for, the energy and the interaction with the crowd.

When that band started, you were essentially a cover band. What were some of the band’s influences?

Basically the MC5 was an R&B band that crossed over into pop. We played a lot of blues and R&B, some Motown, James Brown and Chuck Berry. We were a lot like the Rolling stones, that way, basically an R&B band that patterned its stuff after black music and crossed over into pop. Our influences were very soulful from the beginning. We were always concerned about beat and having drive in the music. We listened to all them old cats, Muscle Shoals players, Motown, Stax/Volt people, any blues people. My favorite blues guy was John Lee Hooker, because he was from Detroit, but I really liked his guitar playing. Fred was big on Howlin’ Wolf, Wayne was big on James Brown, Rob was big on B.B. King. It went all the way around like that. So we were R&B based, playing rock and roll. I should also mention that we liked a lot of the surf instrumental stuff, Dick Dale, and of course the Ventures, all of those zillions of bands that came up and played surf instrumentals, they were bad ass. They had ‘that sound.’ It’s hard to describe, it had that drive, that feeling, it’s clean, but it’s got energy.

Bassist Michael Davis at an MC5 reunion gig

At that same time, the band had this burgeoning political awareness. Was everybody in the band ardently and radically political?

That’s what the MC5 is known for is the political aspect. As much as I have second thoughts about how wise it was to be that way, that’s how we are known and that’s how the band came across. It just happened to be the spirit of the times, and our manager being very political and vocal, we picked up on it. Things were happening back then that were ridiculous as far as society’s attitudes toward smoking pot for one thing, for sex, censorship. It was apparent to us that society was lame, and needed some enlightenment, so we picked up the torch for a lot of issues. The first one was probably legalizing marijuana, but the whole thing, government repression, and things like that. We were inspired to talk about it. It was part of our credo. It is what we’re known for. I don’t think it was wrong. But we kind of suffered the slings and arrows of the era. It was kind of a martyr trip.

Do you still make royalty money from the records?

Yeah.

That’s why I asked. I didn’t want to hear that you’d been one of the casualties.

No. We didn’t sign it all away. Just half.

What got you through some of the darker moments of your life, the addictions and jail time?

It’s miraculous. Just by the skin of my teeth. Still being alive, in relatively good health, it’s kind of amazing. It definitely took its toll. I don’t fool with substances or anything anymore. I don’t smoke, none of it. It’s pretty amazing. There have been some dark moments for sure. I was pretty fortunate I wound up with a family, a group of people who need me and who I need me. We function as a little solar unit. Life is good. We arrived in the state of Oregon, and I’ve been doing some research on the history of the Oregon Trail, the people who came out here, and the general origin of the land. It was quite formidable, the amount of bravery it took for the people who came. It’s a really wonderful place. The people here have a lot of the values I’ve been looking for, a community that is aware of ecology and resources, avoiding that whole mass marketing thing that’s everywhere. We really like it here.

So what brought you to Oregon? How did you find Eugene?

On Craigslist! We were in Pasadena. There are just so many people down there, it’s so crowded, so oppressive to compete for space. You’re in line for everything you want to do. We looked around for some place that was more natural, for a more natural setting, more primitive. My wife looked around for rentals, homes for sale. We found a place in Eugene, bought two plane tickets, and flew up here to look at it. When we landed I thought I was in Ireland, it was so green and pretty around here. We found a place, and that’s it! We went back to Pasadena, sold off a bunch of stuff, had a big yard sale, got our shit together to move to Eugene. That was two years ago. I’m still looking for a musical connection.

Have you had a chance to check out the music scenes in Eugene or Portland?

No, not really. I was playing with a guy up in Salem, his name is Eric Lovre. He was in the Dharma Bums. I jammed with him for a while, but we don’t live that close to each other. Making it for rehearsals was getting to be a chore, so we let it go. It was a lot of fun. I know there are things are happening here. I feel like Portland is a town that’s poised on the brink of being an avant-garde place, whereas L.A. has already happened. The Pacific Northwest is still a pioneer place.

You’ve got a foundation, yes? The Music is Revolution foundation?

I do. I had the idea to create a non-profit to raise money to give to public schools to enhance music programs. To me, having a musical experience as a child is something that can have an incredibly positive impact on a person’s life. Music is a spiritual language, understood by everyone. It’s an open, equal opportunity employer. People who participate in music have a concept of what it’s like to interact with other instruments and people. Isn’t that what community is? Isn’t that what we’re supposed to be about as people? It’s just kind of a reaction to all the violence that I’ve witnessed and kind of been in the middle of in Detroit and Los Angeles, and in general in the world. If music could be a little closer to children’s lives, that they could participate in music, it would be helpful. So I started the foundation. I have a MySpace page for that for that. People are welcome to assist me in that goal. We give $500 mini-grants to school who are doing a project of music, that’s not part of their regular curriculum. It’s getting harder to raise money these days.

So you’re still actively playing? There’s a version of the MC5 that’s out there?

No, we got back together in ’03. It’s really kind of a long story, but I’ll avoid the whole thing. It started off with Levi’s creating a line of clothing based on the MC5. Street wear, kind of high-end Levi’s, jackets and shirts and jeans. We made a pact with them that they could do it. They brought us to London to play at the 100 Club, a famous punk place. The three of us still surviving from the MC5 hired some guest people Lemmy [Kilmister] from Motorhead, Ian Astbury from the Cult, Dave Vanion from the Damned to fill in Rob’s position as singer, and we got Nicke Anderson from the Hellacopters to play guitar. We had a big event, a one-off really. After we did that and made a DVD called “Sonic Revolution,” we got flooded with request to do a tour of the U.S. and Canada. We went on a month-long bus tour of U.S. After that was finished we wound up going to Australia and Japan, and when that was finished we then went off to Europe. The whole thing lasted for three or four years. So that is over with. There isn’t any more of that. We couldn’t really duplicate the MC5. This was more of a tribute.

Here’s video from December 2009, Michael on stage with OJM in London:

Philosophically, if rock and roll at least mirrors society, if not provokes it, from your perspective now, do you think it’s time again for rock bands to be as political and inciteful as the MC5?

For a new stab at that? I don’t know. There’s a lot of really exciting, groundbreaking things going on in pop music today. There’s a lot of things that impress me. As far as another band coming along with the same kind of thing, I don’t know if circumstances are that convenient for an MC5 type of band. We were in a more raw era of music appreciation. But you know what? When there’s a a strong beat, there’s really no time limit on that, no particular era …a strong beat always wins people. People always looking to get that feeling. Anybody can do what the MC5 did, they just have to step up and do it.

When you do perform, do you still have that same mindset and energy as those seminal MC5 days?

I do, I really do. For me it’s a transient feeling. It transforms you from walking around being a normal person, to like being a superhero, you get this feeling, this energy that takes you. I kind of lose my mind. When I’m onstage and I’m playing and I hear that kick drum just pushing you, something happens. It’s part of the magic of rock and roll, you are just transported to a serene place. It makes everybody happy. I do feel that way, yeah. When I play, the sound, I’m looking for that perfect pitch, perfect balance. When I hear it and when I feel it, there’s not much that can beat it.

You mentioned some exciting stuff happening on the music scene that impresses you. What kinds?

My kids are into hip hop, and beats, which is kind of different from where I came from. That’s happening. All those bands that play at Coachella, and the festivals all have something unique they do that inspires people. I think that’s what it’s all about.

So what’s coming up for you? What kind of projects are you working on?

Like I said before, I’m open, I’m looking for connections with people to play. I’m open for offers! It’s good to be here. If anybody wants to start something, they can find me on Facebook, they can find me on MySpace, Music is Revolution, so get in touch. Let’s get together. I’m available.