Matt Gimmick
“Detroit Renaissance ’79”
scum stats: 500 copies on black vinyl
Pretty smooth that HoZac released this under-the-radar Detroit punk-n-roll title from 40 years ago.
The gist of the story: two of the songs here (“Ya Don’t Want My Name” and “Rag”) were written and performed by the Stooges in their brief Williamson/Asheton dual guitar line up that lasted from late 1970 through mid 1971.
Somehow the guys from Matt Gimmick had access to live recordings of these songs (supposedly from a Birmingham Palladium in 1970) and then approximately 8 years later recorded their own versions.
Fully understanding that a translation is still markedly removed from the piece it reinterprets, as a certified Stooge-o-phile I cannot ignore that these are the closest approximations we may have to “proper” versions of these songs. I enjoy them wholeheartedly.
And yes, I know that the 1971 “You Don’t Want My Name, You Want My Action” box set on Easy Action contains some extremely ROUGH live recordings/interpretations of both these songs. But listening to those recordings is akin to being forced to look at the Mona Lisa through three layers of gauze…you can SENSE greatness was in the room, but it’s damn near impossibly to actually observe said greatness.
Anyway, a solid entry in the esteemed canon of Detroit guitar. Worth the pick up.
Hard to choose a favorite between the two. Thanks for sharing both versions!
pretty fuckin solid covers. definitely captures the spirit. thanks for sharing
pretty funny ki
To provide some context for those not familiar with Detroit landmarks, my previous post was in reference to the Renaissance Center, the regrettably iconic cluster of buildings on the Matt Gimmick picture sleeve. See Wikipedia for dozens of fascinating factoids about the RenCen.
Late 1985 or early 1986: after seeing a brand new band called 10,000 Maniacs play a sparsely-attended show at Traxx, my buddy, Muggsy, and I had some late refreshments downtown and decided to explore the Renaissance Center. We were not to be intimidated by its glazed, pristine, corporate spires or it’s cavernous lobby and upscale clientele. Following God-knows-what motivations we ended up at the top of one of the towers, ONE DOOR AWAY from frigid freedom and the kind of breathtaking rooftop view that Society insisted was not meant for broke, young bastards like us. Louder than the winds that roared beyond the thin steel barrier, red-on-silver decals warned that ALARMS would sound if we dared push the bar latch. Sadly, mundanely, discretion was the better part of valor and this top-story story ends with ignoble disappointment. The road less taken.
Love all 4 here!