The Up

Ann Arbor, Michigan proto-punks the Up came together in spring 1967 under vocalist Franklin Bach, who had already been serving as stage manager and announcer at Detroit's Grande Ballroom. Guitarist Bob Rasmussen, bassist Gary Rasmussen, and drummer Vic Peraino (later succeeded by Scott Bailey) completed the lineup. David Sinclair, brother of White Panther Party leader John Sinclair, took on management duties, forging an immediate and enduring connection between the Up and the MC5; the two bands even shared quarters at an Ann Arbor commune. The Up frequently supported the MC5 on bills and served as the opening act for the landmark September 1968 Union Ballroom performance that prompted Elektra Records president Jac Holzman to sign both the Five and the evening's second act, the Stooges. While those groups achieved national recognition, the Up stayed confined to the regional circuit and, after the MC5 severed ties with the White Panthers, assumed the role of the party's chief musical mouthpiece. In 1970 the group issued its debut single, "Just Like an Aborigine," a ferocious track whose sound and attitude anticipated the British punk records that would arrive years later. A follow-up single, "Free John Now!"—a direct appeal for the imprisoned Sinclair—appeared in 1971. The band dissolved in 1973, though Gary Rasmussen later joined Sonic's Rendezvous Band; sufficient unreleased recordings remained to yield the 1995 archival LP Killer Up!