Thundering out of Michigan in 1969, Grand Funk Railroad quickly became one of the most popular bands in the world.
In just three years, vocalist/guitarist Mark Farner, bassist Mel Schacher, and vocalist/drummer Don Brewer released five studio albums, became a major concert attraction, and scored Top 40 hits with “I’m Your Captain (Closer to Home),” “Footstompin’ Music,” and “Rock ’N Roll Soul.”
However, change was coming. Manager Terry Knight had produced every GFR album through 1971’s E Pluribus Funk before the band took the reins for Phoenix, which featured guest keyboardist Craig Frost. Farner wasn’t a fan of the self-production approach, so he left it up to Brewer, Schacher, and Frost.
“Too many chefs spoil a stew,” he recently told VG. “I was saying this and they were saying that, so I told them, ‘You guys go ahead and mix it. I would rather have peace of mind and not be fighting.’ I don’t like to argue, I don’t like to bicker. I figured, ‘Hopefully my guitar will be heard.’”
In the run-up to 1973’s We’re An American Band, they made Frost an official member, hired Todd Rundgren to serve as producer, and shortened their name to Grand Funk. Coinciding with the reinvention, they even floated the idea of poaching Peter Frampton from tour openers Humble Pie before he signed with A&M as a solo act. The alterations kicked the band to an even higher level, as the album reached #2 on Billboard on its way to selling more than a million copies; the title track became their first to top the Hot 100 singles chart.
Farner recalls that the changes and the band’s musical approach weren’t part of any strategy.
“There was never, ever any consideration or planning,” he said. “It was just the evolutionary change of getting older and maturing. Those are the songs that come out of you at that time in your life.
“I was actually against adding anyone,” he noted in regard to personnel. “I liked the three-piece lineup, but I was outvoted, and Craig was my friend. He still is.”
The importance of the producer’s role – leading the sessions and forcing the band to focus – was a major reason they brought Rundgren in for American Band; they also considered Rick Derringer and Frank Zappa.
“When it was down to Rundgren and Zappa, we threw their names in a hat,” Farner said, adding that Zappa got his turn on 1976’s Good Singin’ Good Playin’.
American Band was recorded with all four in the room, playing together.
“We played live, just like any other time we cut an album,” remembered Farner. “We had it rehearsed because we didn’t want to spend a lot of time and money in a studio. We were very frugal.”
He credits Rundgren’s production for giving the album Grand Funk’s true sound.
“When we played live, we had a sound. It was undeniable – people loved it, came to see it and bathe in it – and he got that on the record. Terry never did that; all the studio albums he did were just that – studio albums. But with Rundgren, the tonalities and the way he used compression gave it more life. And I am a tone maniac – I have to have my tone. He appreciated that.”
The title track was created with a push from management, who wanted the band to do an autobiographical song. Written and sung by Brewer with (uncredited) assistance from Farner, it became a #1 smash and the band’s anthem.
“Brewer came in with the lyrics. I wrote the chord changes and I told him we needed cowbell on it. He said, ‘I don’t have a cowbell.’ I said, ‘But it’s screaming for one. Think of all the hit records that have cowbell, and if we start this with a drum riff and cowbell, man, it would be killer.’ He said, ‘I’ll pick one up.’ I said, ‘Pick up six of them and we’ll find one that matches best, tone-wise, to the chord that starts the song.’ So, he did. We picked one, and it was a very memorable sound that matched the key of D very well.
“Then I taught Don the drum lick on the intro, because I could hear it in my head; I conveyed it to him and he said, ‘Man, I can’t do that.’ I said, ‘Do you know who you are? You’re Don Brewer!’ He practiced, and within three days he had it.”
We’re an American Band” was the first song cut on the first day, was mixed and mastered the second day, and quickly released. The single was shooting up the charts while the rest of the album was still being recorded. Its other hit, “Walk Like a Man,” a hard-charging, R&B-influenced rocker, brought an odd lawsuit.
“I had worked on the music before the guys got to rehearsal; Brewer wrote the lyrics, and the Four Seasons sued us because they had a song titled ‘Walk Like A Man.’ So here I am in depositions with their attorneys, who asked me, ‘Why did you say this?’ And I said, ‘I didn’t. I wrote the music. The music doesn’t come close to the Four Seasons. You’ll have to ask the drummer.’ Finally, they looked at each other and threw up their hands.”
Before the sessions, Farner had retired the well-known Musicraft Messenger he modified to prevent feedback by stuffing it with foam and covering the sound holes with tape. In its place, he played a custom-made Gibson L5-S.
“I got to pick the wood from their racks in a temperature-controlled, humidity-controlled warehouse,” he said. “That L5-S sang its tunes!”
This article originally appeared in VG’s February 2025 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.
