DETROIT – Detroit rock band MC5 has secured its fifth nomination into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
The band is among the 16 nominees hoping to further solidify their place in rock history including Whitney Houston, Pat Benatar, Notorious BIG and Dave Matthews Band. MC5 was also nominated in 2003, 2017, 2018 and 2019.
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MC5, short for Motor City 5, fueled the burgeoning hard rock scene in 1960s Detroit, riding the counterculture wave rippling through the nation at the time. The band, alongside the fellow up-and-coming metro Detroit rock band The Stooges, was among the first rock bands to be signed to Elektra Records.
The band was steadily gaining national attention, with a Rolling Stone cover in January 1969 — a month before the release of its debut album.
MC5 earned a place in Detroit history with its debut album, Kick Out the Jams, and sparked local controversy when retail giant Hudson's refused to stock the band's album due to profanity on the title track. The band responded with a full-page advertisement in Fifth Estate, stating: "Stick Alive with the MC5, and F*ck Hudson's!"
The advertisement prompted Hudson's to drop all Elektra Records from its shelves. MC5 was then dropped from the label and signed with Atlantic Records.
The band subsequently worked released two albums which were a financial loss for the record label and lost and replaced members along the way, eventually left with just the two founding members standing, Wayne Kramer and Fred "Sonic" Smith.
The group dissolved in the early 1970s, following an unsuccessful farewell show at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit in 1972. The band has since played multiple reunion shows.
Kramer ended an international 50th anniversary tour on Saturday with a final show in Cardiff, Wales.
The 35th annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will take place May 2, 2020, at the Public Auditorium in Cleveland.