Critical Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic | |
| Rolling Stone | (unfavorable) |
| PopMatters | (very favorable) |
| Treble | (favorable) |
Upon its release, critic Lester Bangs writing for Rolling Stone called it a "ridiculous, overbearing, pretentious album". Modern opinion of the album holds it in very high regard, noting its influence on rock music to come. Allmusic called it "one of the most powerfully energetic live albums ever made" in their retrospective review. PopMatters reviewer Adam Williams wrote, "For my money, Kick out the Jams is one of the greatest records ever pressed. It is a magnificent time portal into the past, a fleeting glimpse of a band that actually had the balls to walk it like they talked it" and that "no live recording has captured the primal elements of rock more than the MC5's inaugural effort."
Read more about this topic: Kick Out The Jams
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