Detroit Rock City (29 page)

Sonic's Rendezvous Band, Fred Smith, Gary Rasmussen, Scott Asheton, Scott Morgan, in 1977 at Morgan's Ann Arbor house. Morgan: “One single in six years of playing together. We weren't making any money, our touring was sporadic.” (Robert Matheu)

Ron Asheton and Niagara on the floor of Bookie's, 1977. Niagara: “I love his solos because they're like a story, they start out and they have a middle and an end.” (Robert Matheu)

Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band at the Pontiac Silverdome. Drew Abbott, guitar; Chris Campbell, bass; Bob Seger, piano; Robyn Robbins, organ; Charlie Martin, drums. Drew Abbott: “We were guaranteed a bunch of money, over $100 grand. A lot of money back then, pocket change today.” (Tom Weschler)

Don Was, leading the Traitors, Bookie's, 1978. Was: “The punk stuff out of Bookie's was mostly influenced by New York.” (Robert Matheu)

The Romantics at Bookie's, 1979. Mike Skill: “We're playing all these clubs everywhere and there's an energy right in front of the crowd. The crowd's right there and you're playing off the crowd, real close.” (Robert Matheu)

Cobo Arena, from the stage outward. Robert Matheu: “Until '77/'78 there was no such thing as a photo pass. Detroit crowds were notorious for rushing the stage within the first three or four songs, so it was about position and hoping to get a good spot while you remained salve to the crowd.” (Robert Matheu)

Bookie's, a former burlesque/gay bar turned into the city's punk rock joint in 1978. Scott Campbell: “They had these different managers running Bookie's. They would play Donna Summer while we were trying to set up for the night. I would get there early with my PA and they would bitch at us.” (Courtesy of Scott Campbell)

Mark Norton, singer for the Ramrods, at Concord Castle, an apartment building off downtown Detroit. Gary Reichel, Cinecyde: “I just sat there and shouted and went ‘Oh my God. This stuff is great!' And it was like brothers-in-arms. I couldn't believe it. There was someone else who's doing it.” (Katy Hait)

Gary Reichel, vocalist for Cinecyde, at the Kramer Theater. The band led off the Detroit wave of late seventies New Wave bands with a DIY single, “Gutless Radio.” Mark Norton, Ramrods: “You can't talk about seventies punk in Detroit without talking about Cinecyde.” (©2013 S. Kay Young Photography, LLC)

Iggy singing “Empty Heart” with Sonic's Rendezvous Band, November 1979, at the New Miami in Detroit after Iggy's
New Values
tour show at the Masonic Auditorium. (Robert Matheu)

Nikki Corvette, leader of Nikki and the Corvettes. Nikki: “I went every place when I was a kid, they all thought, ‘There's this crazy sixteen-year-old girl who's at all of these shows.'” (Robert Matheu)

Crowd, Negative Approach at the Freezer, 1982. Corey Rusk: “The Freezer was like a sort of hippy, poetry slam, sort of place.” (Davo Scheich)