The Grand Funk ‘We’re An American Band’ Backstory
by Best Classic Bands Staff
It was a time of change for the power trio from Flint, Mich., of Mark Farner (guitar), Don Brewer (drums) and Mel Schacher (bass). After the just-formed band had played the 1969 Atlanta International Pop Festival, winning an enthusiastic crowd response and a subsequent deal with Capitol Records, Grand Funk Railroad quickly rose to gold album sales status on their first two releases and then platinum with 1970’s Closer To Home, and become a popular act on the rock concert circuit.
In 1972, they fired their manager and producer Terry Knight, former singer for Terry Knight and the Pack (in which Farner and Brewer had played), a popular garage band on the Midwest circuit. As GFR’s manager, he touted himself as their Svengali, engaged in brash promotions – a $100,000 block-long billboard in Times Square touting Closer To Home and booking the band as the first rock act to follow The Beatles into Shea Stadium for a headlining concert, which sold out in 72 hours – and was thought by the band to be taking an undue share of their revenue. The move snared the group in legal struggles for the next few years.
This ad for the We’re an American Band album appeared in Record World in 1973
They had engaged Todd Rundgren as their producer, shortened the band name to Grand Funk, and added keyboard player Craig Frost. For their next album, Brewer had written a song that came out of a tour the group played with Humble Pie. Music writer Dave Marsh wrote in his book, The Heart of Rock and Soul, that one night after a show over drinks, the bands were debating the merits of British vs. U.S. bands. Brewer stood up, recited a list of American rock idols like Jerry Lee Lewis, Fats Domino, Little Richard, and Elvis Presley, and then asserted, “We’re an American band!” Sensing a song in what he said, Marsh recounts, Brewer wrote it the next morning.
Brewer, born September 3, 1948, refutes that story. He told Best Classic Bands, “[That] is a longtime ‘myth’ that is completely WRONG. The song was NOT written as a result of GFR and Humble Pie debating the merits of American vs. British bands. That NEVER HAPPENED! I wrote the song while on tour in 1972 based on my observations and the thought in my head ‘we’re comin’ to your town will help you party it down.’ The rest of the song I put together from things going on on the road. Up all night playing poker with Freddy King and his band. Four young Chickitas in Omaha. Sweet Sweet Connie in Little Rock. And the tag ‘We’re An American Band’ just because it sounded great when I sang it to myself.”
Its lyrics recounted tales from the band’s road travels, name-checking blues legend Freddie King, Omaha and Little Rock, as well as the city’s notorious groupie “sweet, sweet Connie” – Connie Hamzy.
Related: “Sweet, sweet Connie” died in 2021
Grand Funk tracked the song with Rundgren during sessions at Miami’s famed Criteria Sound Studios in June ’73 for an album of the same name, which arrived on July 15. The single, released on July 2, hit #1 on September 29, which was also Farner’s 25th birthday. By year’s end, “We’re An American Band” was the best-selling single in the world and an all-time classic rock hit.
It was also one of the earliest American rock songs to have a promo film clip, the precursor to a music video.
The band’s recordings are available here.
Related: Our two-part interview with Mark Farner; Part 1 (The band’s legacy) and Part 2 (The highs and lows)
Related: Biggest radio hits of 1973
10 Comments so far
Jump into a conversationAhead of their time
So which version is to be believed??
I think the annals of rock history has not been so kind to Grand Funk, they kicked butt on stage, and their songs resonated with people of all stripes. This band got a lot of guys through Viet Nam, unrest in the streets, and all because of one critique in Rolling Stone magazine, they somehow found themselves battling the claim that they had no talent. Well the record buying public didn’t buy into that Rolling Stone claim, and rewarded them with their loyalty, and their dollars by buying their records. The fans always have the last say, and they said it loud and clear at the time by bypassing what that twit in Rolling Stone said. Someone needs to do a documentary about this band and what they went through, and I am talking about a more in depth doc than the one that was done by VH1’s Behind the Music series.
absolutely, critics did the same to Zeppelin and Sabbath
It kills me that Grand Funk isn’t in the Rock Hall of Fame. They deserve to be there and until they are, the RHF is illegitimate.
Unbelievable! This band is the epitome of Rock n Roll. They should have been inducted years ago. What a travesty!
You are absolutely correct. Like Humble Pie, Grand Funk never disappointed in concert & played to their fan base first, then the record labels.
Hmmm – Consistently Sold-Out concerts in their heyday, platinum albums, rock anthems (i.e. “I’m Your Captain/Closer To Home”) to this day, many cuts played regularly on F.M. Classic Rock stations – True injustice on several levels.
To hell with the Rock and Roll HOF, Rolling Stone magazine, and Jann Wenner (Notice an interrelated theme here?).
To this day, everytime I hear that cowbell and kick/snare/tom-tom intro and lyric “On the Road for Forty Days”, a smile stretches across my face.
Although it will likely not happen, as with The Eagles, it would be nice to bury the hatchet, even if for only one well-promoted tour, and have founding member and the true soul of GFR, Mark Farner, back on tour, if nothing else but for the loyal fans, before it is too late.
Well written comment my friend I completely agree with you and would be great for them to do one last nostalgia tour because the clock is certainly ticking, faster and faster it seems. But I don’t think it’s ever gonna happen so we’ll just have to live with the great memories. Unfortunately I never got to see them.
Vastly overlooked in Rock History. Their catalog should be re issued on vinyl.