Dennis Thompson, MC5 Drummer and Last Classic Member, Dead at 75

Dennis
Thompson,
the
drummer
and
last
remaining
member
of

MC5,
has
died
at
the
age
of
75.

According
to
the


Detroit
Free
Press,
Thompson
passed
away
at
MediLodge
of
Taylor,
a
care
facility
outside
of
Detroit.
The
rocker
had
been
rehabilitating
there
following
a
heart
attack
suffered
in
April.

In
a
2018
post

on
his
website,
Thompson
recalled
catching
“the
bug
for
playing
music”
when
he
was
just
13
years
old.
“My
parents
were
disappointed
that
I
chose
the
band
over
school
but
they
supported
my
decision,”
the
rocker
wrote.
“Who
would
know
what
fate
had
in
store
for
me.
If
my
parents
ever
thought
I
would
wind
up
on
a
high
performance
search
and
destroy
team
as
the
MC5,
I
think
my
drums
might
have
magically
disappeared
one
night.”

READ
MORE:

How
MC5
Started
a
Revolution
With ‘Kick
Out
the
Jams’

Thompson
became
a
member
of
MC5
in
1965,
joining
the
classic
lineup
which
included
singer
Rob
Tyner,
guitarists
Wayne
Kramer
and
Fred “Sonic”
Smith
and
bassist
Michael
Davis.
Thompson
was
the
last
surviving
member
of
the
group
–
Tyner
and
Smith
died
in
the ’90s,
Davis
passed
in
2012,
and
Kramer
and
the
band’s
longtime
manager
John
Sinclair
died
earlier
this
year.

Thompson’s
Style
Was
Imperative
to
MC5

Given
the
nickname
“Machine
Gun”
because
of
his
aggressive
style
of
playing,
Thompson
was
pivotal
to
MC5’s
sound.
The
influential
proto-punk
group
released
a
pair
of
studio
albums
in
the
‘70s,
both
of
which
Thompson
played
on.
He
also
contributed
to
their
groundbreaking
1969
LP

Kick
Out
the
Jams,
as
well
as
many
further
live
releases.
Thompson
also
reportedly
played
on
two
tracks
for
MC5’s
yet-to-be-released
final
album,


Heavy
Lifting.

In
April,
MC5
was
announced
as

inductees
for
the
2024

Rock
&
Roll
Hall
of
Fame
class.
Thompson,
who
was
recovering
in
the
hospital
at
the
time,
was
reportedly
delighted
by
the
honor
and
declared “It’s
about
fucking
time!”
when
the
announcement
was
made.

“Dennis
was
thrilled
with
it,
so
excited
and
happy,”
Becky
Tyner,
widow
of
MC5
vocalist
Rob
Tyner,

recalled.
“He
just
wanted
to
get
home
to
his
cat,
Annie,
and
was
optimistic
about
recovering.”