Wayne Kramer (musician)

Wayne Kramer live with MC5 in the Factory Hamburg 2018

Wayne Kramer (born April 30, 1948 in Detroit , Michigan ) is an American guitarist , singer and composer .

Kramer rose to fame in the late 1960s as a co-founder of the Detroit rock group MC5 (Motor City 5). At the time, this band was known both for their energetic live performances and for their extreme left political attitudes. MC5 broke up pretty soon, as many of the band members had to struggle with personal, but also drug problems. That led to some bad years for Kramer, struggling through a long period of drug addiction until he finally managed to get back into the music business in the 1990s.

The time with the MC5

MC5 performed very often at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit. At the time they were managed by John Sinclair . Sinclair was a far-left writer and co-founder of the White Panther Party . In 1970 Sinclair was replaced as manager by Jon Landau. After MC5 broke up, Kramer slipped deeper into the drug scene and committed some crimes to fund his addiction.

In 1975 Kramer was arrested while trying to sell cocaine to undercover agents. Kramer was convicted and incarcerated in Lexington State Prison in Kentucky for two years . There he met Red Rodney , a jazz trumpeter who was on tour with the Charlie Parker Quintet. Both played together in the prison chapel at Holy Mass on Sunday.

According to the MC5

After his release from prison, Kramer moved to New York City . There he founded the band Gang War with Johnny Thunders , which only existed for a short time. For most of the 1980s, Kramer was a carpenter trying to cope with his drug addiction.

In 1991 the still living members of MC5 united in a memorial concert in memory of the late singer Robin Tyner; he died of a heart attack . This concert was the trigger for a reunification tour that lasted for several years and even brought the band to Europe. Some of the shows were performed and recorded with the infamous singer GG Allin .

It was time for Kramer to embark on a solo career, which began in 1994. He made several records, including The Hard Stuff , which were produced in 1995 by Don Was . This was deeply connected to the Detroit rock scene from the 1960s. Most of the songs on the album were recorded with the band Claw Hammer , members of the bands The Melvins and The Vandals also played parts on the album.

At times Kramer played as a bass player for Mudhoney . He is currently on tour with Marianne Faithfull and is a member of their band.

Solo albums

• Death Tongue (1991) Progressive
• The Hard Stuff (1995) Epitaph Records
• Dangerous Madness (1996) Epitaph Records
• Dodge Main (1996) Alive
• Gang War (1996) Sonic
• Citizen Wayne (1997) Epitaph Records
• LLMF (Live Like a Mutherfucker) (1998) Epitaph Records
• The Return of Citizen Wayne (2002) Muscle Tone
• Adult World (2002) Muscle Tone
• More Dangerous Madness (2004) Diesel engine
• Mad for the Racket (2004) diesel engine

Web links

• The Official Website of Wayne Kramer (English)
• Wayne Kramer in Rolling Stone (English)