The Big Bang: The Best of the MC5

1	I Can Only Give You Everything 2:59
2	Looking at You 2:48
3	I Just Don't Know 2:40
4	Ramblin' Rose 4:25
5	Kick Out the Jams Uncensored Version 2:46
6	Come Together 4:34
7	Rocket Reducer No. 62 (Rama Lama Fa Fa Fa) 5:43
8	Tonight 2:33
9	Teenage Lust 2:33
10	High School 2:40
11	Call Me Animal 2:04
12	The American Ruse 2:29
13	Shakin' Street 2:19
14	The Human Being LAwnmower 2:22
15	Back in the U.S.A. 2:26
16	Sister Anne 7:22
17	Baby Won't Ya 5:32
18	Miss X 5:09
19	Over and Over 5:13
20	Skunk (Sonicly Speaking) 5:31
21	Thunder Express 4:22

Barnes & Noble

Forget any other combo's claim to the name; in their short lifespan, the MC5 were truly the world's most dangerous band. Their radical politics -- which advocated breaking drug laws and taking up guns in the streets -- was taken from the White Panther Party in the band's native Detroit, while its screaming, intense sound laid the groundwork for the heavy metal and punk yet to come. This 21-song compilation culls material from each of the 5's distinct periods. From their embryonic stage comes the rumbling, decontrolled squall of "Looking at You"; the hyper-politicized late-'60s era is represented by the uncensored "Kick Out the Jams" (one of the first songs to get an album banned from the stores); and the back-to-basics latter days get painted in the stark proto-punk relief of "Shakin' Street" and "Call Me Animal." Through it all, the dual-guitar attack of Wayne Kramer and the late Fred "Sonic" Smith keeps both energy and danger levels maxed out -- particularly on "The Human Being Lawnmower" and "Ramblin' Rose." The revolution might not have been televised, but its soundtrack came through loud and clear in the work of the MC5. David Sprague

All Music Guide

A best-of for a group that only made three albums might be considered an inessential addition to their discography, particularly as all three of those albums remain available on CD. However, if you only want one MC5 album, this compilation makes more sense than if might appear at first. It draws judiciously from each of the three records; adds three somewhat rare tracks from pre-Kick Out the Jams singles; and finishes with a live 1972 cut, "Thunder Express," recorded for French TV and previously available on a Skydog CD. In somewhat of a surprise, it leans most heavily on Back in the U.S.A. (with eight tracks), and not so much on the album that most would view as their most significant effort, Kick Out the Jams (only four tracks). That decision works out better than you might think. The three tracks from 1967-1968 singles are fairly similar to the Kick Out the Jams vibe anyway, and if you don't own Kick Out the Jams already, you may well be ready for something a little cleaner-sounding and less assaultive by the time seven songs have gone by. It's unfortunate, nonetheless, that the two remaining pre-Kick Out the Jams tracks from non-LP 45s, "One of the Guys" and a different version of Kick Out the Jams' "Borderline," were not included. Kick Out the Jams itself would get most people's nod as the first and most essential MC5 purchase, but this is a close second, its value enhanced by detailed historical liner notes. Richie Unterberger