Sonic's Rendezvous Band

In the Midwest during the 1970s, you would be hard-pressed to find a rock group with a more impressive pedigree than Sonic's Rendezvous Band, which brought together members of four key bands from the fabled Detroit/Ann Arbor rock scene of the late '60s -- Fred "Sonic" Smith of the MC5, Scott Morgan of the Rationals, Scott Asheton of the Stooges, and Gary Rasmussen of the Up. Among fans of high-energy Michigan rock, Sonic's Rendezvous Band would -- with the passage of time -- become nearly as legendary as their forebears, but it would be years before listeners outside of the Midwest had much of a chance to hear their music; fate seemed to conspire against them while they were together, and one of the most talented and powerful acts of its day ended up releasing only a one-song single during its six-year lifespan. The Sonic's Rendezvous Band story began after the MC5 broke up following a disastrous final show on New Year's Eve 1972. It wasn't long before Fred "Sonic" Smith began blocking out plans for a new band; Smith initially attempted to reunite with the MC5 rhythm section of Michael Davis and Dennis Thompson for a project called Ascension, but the new act didn't last more than two or three shows before stalling out. Meanwhile, singer and guitarist Scott Morgan was also eager to start making music again following the collapse of the Rationals, and through MC5 guitarist Wayne Kramer he was introduced to Smith. Smith and Morgan struck up a friendship, and after Smith contributed lead guitar to Morgan's first solo single, they decided to form a group. They teamed up with Davis on bass and ex-Rationals Bill Figg and Terry Trabandt on drums and guitar; after a single gig, this lineup splintered following Davis' arrest on drug charges, as Trabandt moved over to bass while...