Definitive in execution it was heresy to remake it. Little Eva's original was one of the very first singles I ever bought. Which is why on the next album, Todd went for a cover. What are the odds Grand Funk could write another hit song? Yes, "We're An American Band" was simple and dumb and that's what was so great about it! Furthermore, this was back before tech titans ruled the world, before we could watch our favorites on YouTube, the height of success was the rock and roll lifestyle, getting high, getting laid, and you went to the show to be close to the action, and try to score yourself.īut where do you go from here? Lightning rarely strikes twice. Make no mistakes, leave no fat, just make people want to hear it again and again and again. Wanna be remembered, forever? Capture magic in three minutes. But it was the cowbell, the drumming, the riff and Don Brewer's vocal exhortations. And this was the first time most white listeners had ever heard of Freddie King. And we loved hearing it! Come on, Sweet Connie became a legend, she single-handedly put Little Rock on the map, way before Bill Clinton. Hell, I don't know if anybody ever bought the single, never mind the album, "We're An American Band" was a radio track. And Todd delivered a killer track that sounded so right emanating from the car speaker. And sure, some make mistakes, the Beach Boys even went disco, but Grand Funk executed a masterstroke, they gave in to Rundgren and had the biggest hit of their career, "We're An American Band." And we LIKED IT! Yes, we were sick of hating the Detroit band, they'd been around long enough to have a sense of humor about themselves. Todd didn't labor over it, he just wanted to get it right, and get paid.Īnd no matter how big a star you once were, the smart ones realize when the whole enterprise is going in the wrong direction something's got to give. And that became his new career, producing albums. Still almost no one knew his work with his first band Nazz, but some had noticed he engineered the Band and was a wunderkind like McCartney, able to both play and record and produce everything. And then they hooked up with Todd Rundgren. Yes, as the seventies wore on, Grand Funk receded into irrelevance. Every album worse, especially the double live one. Come on, admit it, you like "I'm Your Captain (Closer To Home)." Especially when it slows down and gets moody.īut Grand Funk (they dropped "Railroad") still sucked. Spending no money.īut then, when the band had finally reached critical mass, they delivered something.listenable. That's what Capitol Records was famous for back then. Only to be followed up by something worse, the second album, "Grand Funk," with the cheesiest red cover of all time. Supposedly they stole the show at the Atlanta Pop Festival, in the wake of Woodstock, and this message was blasted into the hinterlands where no one ever heard any good music, and their initial album succeeded. Overpromoted by their manager/producer, former artist Terry Knight, they could not possibly live up to the hype. ^ "Some Kind of Wonderful (song by Toploader) How many ways did we hate Grand Funk Railroad?.^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada".^ a b "(She's) Some Kind of Wonderful (song by The Fantastic Johnny C).
^ Top Records of 1975, Billboard, Section II, December 27, 1975.^ a b "Some Kind of Wonderful (song by Grand Funk Railroad).CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) ( link) ^ a b All the Girls in the World Beware!!! (Vinyl sleeve).Hollywood, California, United States: Capitol Records. ^ "Some Kind of Wonderful (song by Soul Brothers Six).^ "Some Kind of Wonderful - Grand Funk Railroad | Song Info".The Fantastic Johnny C covered the song in 1968, reaching number 87 on the Billboard Hot 100.Their version of the song appeared in the video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas on the fictitious radio station K-DST. It also ranked number 6 on Billboard's Hot 100 year-end chart for 1975 as shown on the December 27, 1975, print edition of Billboard, which contained the Hot 1 This is the official list still shown on Billboard magazine website. In 1974, Grand Funk recorded the song for the group's album All the Girls in the World Beware!!! Reaching number three on the Billboard Hot 100 on February 22, 1975. Grand Funk Railroad version "Some Kind of Wonderful"įrom the album All the Girls in the World Beware!!!