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“We’re An American Band”
Grand Funk Railroad rocked the house in the Seventies
Around the mid-Sixties, rock ’n’ roll had matured enough to break into somewhat blurred sub-genres, defined primarily by a particular style. Out of the blues, garage and psychedelic rock variations emerged something called “hard rock.”
The earliest rockers who could potentially be classified as playing hard rock came out of the British Invasion, such as Cream, The Kinks and The Who. They were typically characterized by a “heavy” sound highlighting sometimes frenetic guitar-playing accompanied by driving bass lines and prominent drums.
Later in the Sixties, and particularly in the Seventies, hard rock came into its own with a slew of bands who drove the sub-genre to new heights. Often these bands were better known for live performances than for albums. Rarely did they produce best-selling singles.
One of the most successful bands — an American band — was Grand Funk Railroad. Not only did they fill stadiums, they had numerous top-selling albums, and even #1 singles — quite an accomplishment for a trio from Flint, Michigan.
Two members of a band called The Pack, Don Brewer (drums, vocals) and Mark Farner (guitar, keyboards, harmonica, vocals) got together with Mel Scacher (bass), from a different band, and formed…
