Sonic's Rendezvous Band (or SRB) was an American

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

band from

Ann Arbor, Michigan Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County, Michigan, Washtenaw County. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851. It is the principal city of the Ann Arbor ...

, United States, forming in 1974, featuring veterans of the 1960s

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

scene.

Background

Sonic's Rendezvous Band came from the ashes of four

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

rock bands: *

Fred "Sonic" Smith Frederick Dewey Smith (September 14, 1948 – November 4, 1994), known professionally as Fred "Sonic" Smith, was an American guitarist, best known as a member of the influential and political Detroit rock band MC5. At age 31, he married and rais ...

, formerly of the

MC5 MC5, also commonly called The MC5, is an American rock band formed in Lincoln Park, Michigan, in 1963. The original line-up consisted of Rob Tyner (vocals) Wayne Kramer (guitar), Fred "Sonic" Smith (guitar), Michael Davis (bass), and Dennis ...

– guitar, vocals * Scott Morgan, formerly of

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, a

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

-influenced Detroit band of the 1960s – guitar, vocals * Gary Rasmussen, formerly of

The Up The Up (often styled as The UP) was an American rock band formed in Detroit, Michigan in early 1967. Along with fellow proto-punk bands the MC5 and The Stooges, The Up served as a "house band" for the Grande Ballroom in Detroit. Career The origina ...

– bass *

Scott Asheton Scott Randolph Asheton (August 16, 1949 – March 15, 2014) was an American musician, best known as the drummer for the rock band the Stooges. Asheton was born in Washington, D.C. and moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan with his family at the age of ...

, formerly of

The Stooges The Stooges, originally billed as the Psychedelic Stooges, also known as Iggy and the Stooges, was an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967 by singer Iggy Pop, guitarist Ron Asheton, drummer Scott Asheton, and bassist Dave ...

– drums They remained virtually unknown, but their one and only single retained high interest among fans of

Detroit rock Detroit, Michigan, is a major center in the United States for the creation and performance of music, and is best known for three developments: Motown, early punk rock (or proto-punk), and techno. The Metro Detroit area has a rich musical hist ...

. The band had had only enough money to mix one song, "City Slang", so it was pressed on both sides of the single. One side was labeled mono and one side stereo although both sides were identical. A lo-fi bootleg LP composed of various radio appearances called ''Strikes Like Lightning'' was traded in the 1980s. Minus Scott Morgan they toured as backing band for

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of ...

in spring 1978.

Renewed interest

Interest in the band was kindled in the late 1990s when Alive / Total Energy Records released a studio recording of the then-unheard song "Electrophonic Tonic", the song that was to have been the B-side of "City Slang". In 1999, Mack Aborn Rhythm Arts released ''Sweet Nothing'', a compact disc compilation of rare live and recorded SRB tunes. A second compilation called ''City Slang'' was released in 2000. This in turn sparked a renewed interest in Scott Morgan, who was critically acclaimed in the 1980s with bands like Scots Pirates and the Scott Morgan Band who were largely successful only in the Midwest. SRB disciples, Sweden's

Hellacopters The Hellacopters are a Swedish garage rock band that was formed in 1994 by Nicke Andersson (vocals and guitar), Andreas Tyrone "Dregen" Svensson (guitar), Kenny Håkansson (bass) and Robert Eriksson (drums). Andersson (sometimes known as Nick R ...

recorded five Scott Morgan/ SRB compositions ("City Slang", "16 With a Bullet", "Downright Blue", "Heaven", "Slow Down ake A Look) which further popularized the group. Scott Morgan went on to record with the Hellacopter's Nicke Royale, releasing two

Hydromatics The Hydromatics is an American garage rock supergroup formed by Nick Royale, Scott Morgan and Tony Slug as side project to their main bands. History The Hydromatics was formed Nick Royale from The Hellacopters and Tony Slug from Amsterdam punk ...

albums as well as two soul albums by The Solution.

Recent activity

The band has enjoyed renewed interest, along with mainstream critical acclaim in the music press, with the September 2006, release of a six-disc box set, ''Sonic's Rendezvous Band,'' by UK label Easy Action. The record was reviewed by ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'', October 19, 2006, by

David Fricke David Fricke is an American music journalist who serves as the senior editor at ''Rolling Stone'' magazine, where he writes predominantly about rock music. One of the best known names in rock journalism, his career has spanned over 40 years. I ...

, as one of "Fricke's Picks," saying of the band's 1978 single (included in the set), "City Slang" "5:15 of assault guitars, railroad drumming and Smith's determined-rebel call - has all you need to know why SRB were masters of their domain." That domain, as Fricke put it was "the Detroit Church of High Energy Rock," where Sonic's "holy rank" secured "forever." Said Fricke: "I just want as much of the best of this band as I can get, in good faith and quality. Right now, this is what I have. And I am playing it. Loud." Among other notable cuts in the set, Fricke, says, "a highlight is the sixteen-minute "American Boy," on which Smith plays a long, heated-raga solo on saxophone, evoking the MC5's earlier forays into the music of

Sun Ra Le Sony'r Ra (born Herman Poole Blount, May 22, 1914 – May 30, 1993), better known as Sun Ra, was an American jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, and poet known for his experimental music, "cosmic" philosophy, prolific out ...

and

Pharoah Sanders Pharoah Sanders (born Ferrell Lee Sanders; October 13, 1940 – September 24, 2022) was an American jazz saxophonist. Known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multiphonic techniques on the saxophone, as well as his use of "sheets of sound", San ...

." Fricke repeatedly cited Scott Morgan's influence, describing the two concert discs from 1975 and 1976 as having that "manic-white-Motown streak that Morgan in particular brought to SRB." Fricke mentioned that record "comes with its own controversy" over whether it was approved by all involved, but Easy Action asserts on its website that the release was approved by the surviving band members, and by Fred Smith's children and wife,

Patti Smith Patricia Lee Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, poet, painter and author who became an influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album '' Horses''. Called the "punk poe ...

Discography

*''Sweet Nothing'' (1999)Les inrockuptibles - Issues 175-178 - Page 50 1998 Sweet nothing (Mac Abom Rhythmic Arts, en import) En novembre 1994. une attaque cardiaque emportait Fred "Sonic" ... Le mythe de l'Arlésienne survivra donc au Sonic's Rendezvous Band et ce n'est pas ce Sweet nothing qui l'affadira. *''City Slang'' (2000) *''

Sonic's Rendezvous Band (Box Set) ''Sonic's Rendezvous Band'' is a 2006 release box set by Sonic's Rendezvous Band under the UK label Easy Action. The remaining band members contributed to the box as well as Fred "Sonic" Smith's estate. The Box includes three previously unreleased ...

'' (2006) *''Masonic Temple, Detroit 1978'' (2007)

References

External links

Official band websiteRollingStone magazine: The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sonic's Rendezvous Band Punk rock groups from Michigan Alive Naturalsound Records artists Protopunk groups Musicians from Ann Arbor, Michigan