Death

How different would the history of rock music be if Clive Davis hadn't balked when Detroit's Hackney brothers refused to change the name of their Hendrix-by-way-of-MC5 power trio to something more radio-friendly than Death? For starters, Bad Brains probably wouldn't be everyone's go-to example of a kick-ass, all-black punk band (and H.R. and company would have a touchstone for its explorations in dub textures in Death's "Let The World Turn.") Drag City's issue of the band's aborted 1975 studio sessions, …For The Whole World To See, has been widely praised—sadly, eldest Hackney David didn't live to see that acknowledgment, but his brothers carry Death's shoulda-been legacy with this extremely rare live appearance.

Updated 10/30/2009