Rob Tyner
1944—1991
Born Robert Derminer, the lead singer for the Detroit-based avant-rock band MC5 (short for Motor City Five), took the moniker Rob Tyner as a tribute to jazz pianist McCoy Tyner. Best known for the song “Kick Out the Jams,” from its 1969 self-titled live debut album, MC5 had a radical, distorted sound that combined elements of blues and soul with Tyner’s incendiary vocals.
John Sinclair—poet, White Panther Party leader, and the band’s manager—encouraged the inclusion of revolutionary politics in MC5’s song lyrics. Outside the 1968 Chicago Democratic National Convention, the group gave a free concert as part of an anti–Vietnam War rally that escalated into a violent clash with police.
Tyner died of a heart attack at the age of 46 near his home in Berkley, Michigan.
John Sinclair—poet, White Panther Party leader, and the band’s manager—encouraged the inclusion of revolutionary politics in MC5’s song lyrics. Outside the 1968 Chicago Democratic National Convention, the group gave a free concert as part of an anti–Vietnam War rally that escalated into a violent clash with police.
Tyner died of a heart attack at the age of 46 near his home in Berkley, Michigan.