Don Brewer and Grand Funk Railroad: Still On Track, 50-plus Years On - By Bill Kopp
Grand Funk Railroad is the rarest of rock bands. A power trio coming on the scene during the hard rock era, the Michigan-based group successfully transitioned into a hit-making singles band. And when their long run of studio albums came to a close – and then their original lead singer departed for a solo career – Grand Funk Railroad kept things going, making the change into a purely live act.
More than 54 years after releasing their debut, the core rhythm section of the band – bassist Mel Schacher and drummer Don Brewer – keeps GFR on the road, playing to enthusiastic, fist-pumping audiences across the land. Grand Funk Railroad comes to the Grand Sierra on September 1, and Don Brewer spoke with ROCK ON about the group's start, its album era, and what sustains him after decades on the road.
ROCK ON: Are you a self-taught musician?
I’m pretty much self taught; I did take some lessons. I joined the junior high school band and learned how to play drums there; that's what got me going that way. But most of it was just listening to records. My dad had been a drummer back during the Depression; he used to go out and play for beer. He would show me what the drummers were doing, and then I’d sit down behind the kit and start playing.
Is it true that you started your first band in 1960 when you were only 12?
Yes. My first band was The Red Devils. The second was call Jazzmasters, and it wasn't because we played jazz! We were named after the Fender Jazzmaster guitar.
By 1964 you had joined Terry and the Pack. You experienced some success when that group scored a Top 40 hit in 1966 with “I (Who Have Nothing).” What was the most important lesson that you learned during that time?
Don’t trust anybody!
You left that band and formed Grand Funk Railroad in 1968 with Mark Farner and Mel Schacher. When you guys got together, did you feel a kinship with other Michigan hard rockers like The Stooges, MC5 and The Frost?
We were kind of outsiders. We were from Flint; growing up, we knew of these bands from places like Ann Arbor and Detroit, but they had their own kind of clique going on. Whenever anybody brought us up, we were “that band from Flint.” So we were kind of on the outside of all that. We did cross paths with some of those guys playing at some of the same teen places in Jackson and Lansing.
What kind of a music scene was there in Flint in those days?
There was none! There were battles of the bands, but there wasn't really a music scene happening in Flint. So we were sort of one of a kind.
Did the band have other artists that you looked to for inspiration?
Yeah. When we put Grand Funk together, we were kind of going down the road of Jimi Hendrix and Cream and Blue Cheer: all the power trios. That was what we were after: filling up a lot of space with three guys. And it was a lot of fun!
The band had one of its first big breaks at the Atlanta Pop Festival in July 1969, a full month before Woodstock. What do you think it was about that time and place that made it your early breakthrough?
I have no idea! That was so awesome. We rented a van and borrowed a trailer, and we got all our equipment and went down to the first Atlanta Pop Festival. Nobody had ever heard of Grand Funk Railroad. It was just a favor of a friend of ours that got us on as an opening act on the opening day of the festival. He said, “If you can get here, we'll put you on.” We walked on stage, and it must’ve been 100 degrees and humid.
By the third song, the audience was going crazy. They loved this new band, and they had no idea who we were. By the end of that set, they invited us back the next day: “We'll put you on third tomorrow.” So we came back the next day, and again the audience went crazy. Word of mouth was getting around.
And then they put us on again the third day! I have no idea what struck that audience about this band, but it just gelled. It just happened, you know? Maybe it was all the pot.
There was a time when album packaging was a significant thing. You did E Pluribus Funk with a round sleeve, and Shinin' On had 3-D art and glasses to view it. Was the band involved in that side of things?
The idea for the 3-D glasses came from a publicist, Lynn Goldsmith, who was dating our then-manager Andy Caviliere. It was a big competition. We would always use the art department at the record company, and everybody was always looking for a way to outdo somebody else.
Mark Farner was the primary songwriter in the early years, but by We're an American Band you started taking a bigger role. Was it easy and seamless to start contributing songs?
I was very encouraged. At that time, the band was very much a band, and it was just, “Yeah, go at it!” Especially when we had a hit record right out of the bag. Everybody was all on board, and everybody was totally together: “Bring all your ideas to the table.”
The current configuration of the band has been together for 24 years now. What's the secret to keeping a lineup together for so long?
I think we lucked out. Mark left the band in 1998. Mel and I wanted to continue; we said, “If we can find the right people, let's put it together and go back out on the road.” I started wracking my brain, and I knew this guy from Peavey, the amplifier and musical instrument company. He said, “You know, you've got to meet this guy, Max Carl.” I listened to some of his solo stuff, and I listened to his voice and thought, “He would be a great singer to replace Mark.” We got together with Max; Mel and I jammed with him for about a week and said, “Okay, this works.”
And then I went into my library of guitarists I knew. I knew Bruce Kulick from Kiss. I knew him from back when I was playing with Bob Seger and Michael Bolton. We flew him out, put that together.
Then we needed a keyboard player: “How are you going to make things sound like the records?” I called the people I knew at Bob Seger's organization, and they recommended Tim Cashion, because Tim had played with Bob.
And that was it! To this day, we still like each other. We don't argue, we don't fight. You know, we just lucked out.
After playing this music for more than a half century now, what keeps it fresh and interesting for you?
The audience. I never get tired of walking out in front of an audience and seeing them get on their feet. And now you see generations: people bring their kids and their grandkids, and they've introduced them to our music, so those people know the songs. You see everybody singing and having a good time with a big smile on their faces. I never get tired of it. I love nit.
Grand Funk Railroad IN ROCK MAGAZINE
