Concert review: Grand Funk Railroad at Frontier City
This review has been corrected from the original version.
To my immense surprise and pleasure, Grand Funk Railroad proved tonight that the “American Band” can still rock even without original singer/guitarist Mark Farner.
The band who pounded eardrums and racked up hit during the ’70s filled up Frontier City’s Starlight Amphitheatre in the latest of the theme park’s free-with-paid-admission summer concerts.
Grand Funk is one of my favorite classic rock bands, so I was interested in – and more than a little apprehensive about - hearing the group perform without Farner. Along with The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Steppenwolf and more, my dad played a lot of Grand Funk when I was growing up. So, the rockers have remained a personal favorite for me, even though they’ve never been critical darlings.
Since 2000, Grand Funk has performed with the lineup of original members drummer/vocalist Don Brewer (writer and singer of the band’s biggest hit, “We’re An American Band”) and bassist Mel Schacher. They are joined by three “all-star” members: singer Max Carl of .38 Special fame, lead guitarist Bruce Kulick, formerly of KISS, and keyboardist Tim Cashion, who has played with Bob Seger and Robert Palmer.
The band startd ethe show by defying expectations. While it was mostly a greatest hits concert, the group opened with “Bottle Rocket,” a newer song I’d never heard before. But it sounded like vintage Grand Funk – loud, driving, pure American rock ‘n’ roll fun.
A string of classic Grand Funk hits followed, including great renditions of ”Rock & Roll Soul” and “Some Kind of Wonderful” that got the crowd singing along. I was wholeheartedly dancing around with my 2 1/2-year-old during “The Loco-Motion” and my personal fave, ”Walk Like a Man (You Can Call Me Your Man).”
Brewer created a one-man spectacle as he took over the stage for a lengthy powerhouse drum solo. After his impressively thunderous onslaught, all five members took up percussion instruments to perform another newer song, the bluesy “Lightnin’ and Thunder.”
In obligatory fashion, the Grand Funk hit parade was interrupted to let the newer members show their stuff. Carl was given the spotlight to croon his sappy .38 Special Ballad “Second Chance,” and Kulick played a solid electric guitar version of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” though no one would mistake it for Jimi Hendrix’s iconic performance of our National Anthem.
The band closed the concert, which seemed to pass all too quickly, with the lovely “Closer to Home/I’m Your Captain.”
But of course, the show wasn’t quite over. The band wasn’t off the stage for a full minute when they returned – with Brewer in a patriotically striped top hat - to rock through their signature hit, “We’re an American Band.”
Overall, I was pleased and surprised at how well Grand Funk’s music held up with the change in lineup. Brewer has maintained his great voice and showed incredible percussion prowess, and Schacher showed his stuff on a couple of bass solos. Carl possesses a strong, not too polished rock star voice that is close to Farner’s without sounding like an imitation, while Kulick and Cashion are both seasoned pros who play their parts well. Plus, everyone seemed to really have a great time performing together and share a nice, easy chemistry.
It is worth noting that it takes two “all-stars” to replace Farner, plus one to replace Craig Frost, who played keyboard from about 1972-77 with the band and went on to Bob Seger’s Silver Bullet Band after Grand Funk broke up.
Naturally, I would rather have heard the original three-man lineup – or the four-man grouping with Frost – and I’m sure the band would sound even better were Farner in the mix.
But since that isn’t possible, I was pleased to hear that Grand Funk is still “coming to your town to help you party down” and sounding great while doing it.
-BAM
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Comments
Edwin –
You’re correct, of course. I’m not sure how I overlooked Frost in my Grand Funk history, except maybe I was just tired and sun-fried after spending all day at an amusement park, then attending a concert at the park and finally writing the review. At any rate, I apologize for the error. I have corrected the review and thank you for kindly pointing out my mistake.
-BAM
In the middle 70s Craig Frost, a keyboardist, was in the group. So it “only” took two people to do Farner’s job. Frost went on to play in Bob Seger’s band.