Award-winning journalist Mandy Matney has been investigating the Murdaugh family since that fateful night in 2019. It is autobiographical, but I don't want to get into any details," Brewer said, laughing.For nearly 100 years, one family traded influence and held power in the South Carolina lowcountry until a fatal boat crash involving an allegedly intoxicated heir-apparent shed sunlight on a true crime saga like no other. "We played cards with Freddie King, and there was a Little Rock Connie. He said several parts of "We're an American Band" are at least semiautobiographical. "Of course I got a great introduction."Īlready thinking of an idea about an American band "Comin' to your town to help you party it down," Brewer didn't have to ponder too much lyrically. "I was just part of the Silver Bullet Band," he said. "We used R&B as a base and cranked it up to the max," said Brewer, who served as a backing musician on several of Seger's tours. While Jimi Hendrix and Cream mixed rock with the blues, Grand Funk mixed rock with R&B. "That mixture of the country-Southern thing and the black element in Detroit (formed a melting pot of diverse musical styles)." "A lot of people came from the South in the 1920s and '30s to work in the car factories," Brewer said. Yielding Bob Seger, the White Stripes, Ted Nugent, Iggy Pop, the MC5 and a host of Motown groups, the Detroit area has long been a fertile musical ground. "We've been through a lot together," Brewer said. Brewer and Farner were into a power trio rock-funk type of thing, and Schacher was all for it. Going back to the late 1960s, Brewer freely admits he and Farner stole Schacher from Question Mark and the Mysterians. Lead guitarist Bruce Kulick is best known for his 12 years with KISS (when they weren't wearing their makeup). "He wanted to go, and what can you say? 'No, you can't'?" Brewer said.įarner sang many of Grank Funk's finest songs, including "Closer to Home (I'm Your Captain)" and "Bad Time." Replacing Farner's vocals on those songs is Max Carl, whom Brewer labels the best blue-eyed soul singer on the planet. Grand Funk lost one-third of its original power trio when founding member and lead guitarist Mark Farner left to pursue a solo career in 1998. "We loved what he did on 'Hello, It's Me,'" said Brewer, who regarded Rundren as a studio wizard. Well aware that FM radio's album-oriented and underground rock format was rapidly shifting to FH hit radio, Grand Funk enlisted pop artist/producer Todd Rundgren to shape its more radio-friendly pop sound. "We're an American Band" and "The Loco-Motion" surged to No. Grand Funk's hit machine cranked out nine Top 40 singles from 1970 to 1975, including four that cracked the Top 10. They're a group from blue-collar Flint, Mich., that just happened to make it big. They're not from the neon lights of New York or Los Angeles. He thinks the band's enduring legacy is a testament to its truly being a no-frills American band, a band that might have grown up playing in the garage down the street. "When I start singing 'Some Kind of Wonderful,' the crowd is singing louder than I am," Brewer said. Their special guests are the local band The Pits.īrewer said he's been asked many times if he ever gets sick of singing Grand Funk's mega-hits. Saturday at the Discovery Lodge in Burdette Park. Tickets: $40 presented by Reitz High School class of '75 as a scholarship fundraiser (888) 734-8975 or Brewer and bassist Mel Schacher are original members of Grand Funk, which will play at 8 p.m."I've been fortunate, but that is exactly what is going through your mind." "I've only screwed up the drum intro a couple of times," Brewer said with a self-deprecating sense of humor. When Don Brewer begins his drum intro before singing Grand Funk Railroad's signature song, "We're an American Band," he doesn't anticipate the crowd going wild.
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