This came out in 1999 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
There are live albums, and then there are LIVE ALBUMS.
And when it comes LIVE ALBUMS, they don’t come better than The MC5’s Kick Out The Jams. Massive, heavy, thundering and godlike, it’s a disc almost nobody’s gonna top. Not even the guys who were in the band. But damned if guitarists Wayne Kramer and the late Fred (Sonic) Smith don’t come close on these post-5 live outings.
Brother Wayne’s disc, taped last year, finds him sounding like a gutterpunk Bruce Springsteen, spitting tales of middle-aged angst and nuggets of streetcorner philosophy between piercing, avant-jazz solos. And he encores with Kick Out The Jams. Likewise, Smith keeps in touch with his roots on Sweet Nothing, recorded back in ’78. With a band featuring ex-Stooges drummer Scott (Rock Action) Asheton, Sonic blasts a set of pure powerhouse rock. It gets in your brain, drives you insane with the frenzy.
