MC5: Dope, Guns, and F***ing in the Streets

DISGRACELAND

Jake Brennan

Society & Culture, Music, True Crime

4.6 • 13.1K Ratings

🗓️ 16 January 2026

⏱️ 36 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

MC5 embodied revolution in a way most bands only pay lip service to. The Detroit cops sent riot squads and even a tank to break up their shows, and even raided their house. They were the only band to play at the infamous protest outside the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Their radical manager, John Sinclair, wrote manifestos allying with the Black Panthers and declaring rock ‘n’ roll THE vehicle for revolution. But by the 1970s, all that idealism curdled into the classic story of broken record deals, drugs, crime, and jail, with redemption only possible through personal, not political, revolution. To view the full list of contributors, see the show notes at ⁠www.disgracelandpod.com⁠. This episode was originally published on April 11, 2023. To listen to Disgraceland ad free and get access to weekly bonus content and more, become a Disgraceland All Access member at ⁠disgracelandpod.com/membership⁠. Sign up for our newsletter and get the inside dirt on events, merch and other awesomeness - ⁠GET THE NEWSLETTER⁠ Follow Jake and DISGRACELAND: ⁠Instagram⁠ ⁠YouTube⁠ ⁠X⁠ (formerly Twitter) ⁠Facebook Fan Group⁠ ⁠TikTok To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Double Elvis.
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0:33.0	Selected 2026 arrivals in Disney Resorts, conditions and exclusions apply.
0:37.9	Disgrace Land is a production of Double Elvis.
0:44.3	The stories about the MC5 are insane.
0:53.2	Their music soundtrack, the violence of multiple 1960s riots. They were the only
0:59.3	band to perform at the infamous protest outside the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Their
1:06.0	home was raided by cops. Government officials clocked their subversive career moves and a U.S. Army
1:11.8	tank was once deployed to intimidate the group and bring them into custody. Their manager,
1:17.5	John Sinclair, aligned the band with the Black Panthers and openly subscribed to a revolutionary
1:23.4	ethos of rock and roll, dope, and fucking in the streets.
1:35.1	The MC5's politics scared the shit out of mainstream white America, as did their music.
1:36.5	Great music.
1:41.9	Unlike that music I played for you at the top of the show, that wasn't great music.
1:46.6	That was a preset loop from my Melotron called Crock Rock MK1. I played you that loop because I can't afford the rights to Hey Jude by the Beatles.
1:54.4	And why would I play you that specific slice of take a sad song and make it better cheese
2:00.4	could I afford it? Because that was the number
	...

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