Wayne Kramer, guitarist of the legendary Detroit proto-punk band MC5, has died at 75. The band and Wayne’s personal Instagram accounts confirmed the sad news. No cause of death has been reported. We’ll update if and when we learn more.
MC5’s influence spans far and wide–they’ve been covered by Henry Rollins & Bad Brains, The White Stripes, Pearl Jam, Dave Grohl & Prophets of Rage, Primal Scream, Jeff Buckley, and countless others, and really any band that has anything to do with punk or alternative rock owes a huge debt to Wayne and the MC5.
Rest in peace, Wayne.
—
Top photo of Wayne Kramer playing with Pere Ubu at LPR in 2023 by P Squared. More here.