70's Michigan supergroup Sonic's Rendezvous Band released only one single, but this six disc set of bootlegs and basement recordings establishes them as one of the great shoulda-made-it-big bands. Featuring members from The MC5, The Stooges, The Rationals, and The Up, they are the unwritten chapter in Detroit/Ann Arbor Rock. Continuing to preach the Bible of balls-to-the-wall high-energy rock of the late 60's Southwest Michigan scene, they tried to rewrite their destiny by refusing to play anything from their previous bands and only do originals or covers. As this box set documents, they had some great songs that went unheard for three decades.
Most of the songs are at the same amp'ed up energy level, which can wear on you, but some subtleties keep things interesting. The band's personality veers between Scott Morgan's blueswailing delivery and Fred "Sonic" Smith's sloppy Jagger/junkie rock vocals. There's some rip-roaring guitar solos, and you can tell that they were an amazing live act. A few songs venture into the noise/freakout territory that The MC5 dabbled in, though they keep their feet firmly in rock territory. Their covers make this explicit -- a few obscure R&B oldies and a couple Stones songs. Smith edged Morgan out after a few years, left him behind for a stint as Iggy Pop's backing band (I wish there was a recording of that!), and eventually settled down with Patti Smith to raise a family and seemingly gave up the elusive dream; as loud as they played, the world never listened.
One of their songs contains the lyric "You're gonna succeed if you really try" -- it's unfortunate that this band petered out in a backwater of rock history but, thankfully, this box set serves as their testimonial. Unlike The MC5/Stooges, they're not cited as a proto-punk touchstone, but they could still have influence today if given more exposure. If so, they may succeed after all.
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