Page 31 - the NOISE March 2015

grand Funk Railroad, circa 1973 john RieBeR/galleRY hip aRChiVes
American Band,” sounded so goddamn good they could hardly believe it was them. The song was loose but tight, and Rundgren’s production kicked ass. It was the best thing the group had ever done. They hoped Capi- tol would feel the same.
One of the most important steps in record manufacturing is the creation of a master disc from which the LPs or singles will even- tually be stamped. A band could meticulous- ly craft an album in the studio but a shoddy master would make it sound like crap. Mas- tering is a very precise art and the men who do it well are highly regarded in the industry.
A compressed stereo mix is first made from the multi-track tape. A blank lacquered disc is placed on a spinning lathe and a sap- phire tipped cutter engraves the music via a circular groove. The disc is sprayed with sil- ver and plated with nickel. Once dried, the master is peeled away. The master is used to create the mother, which is used to create stampers which perform the actual record pressing.
Rundgren was pleased to find that Criteria had its own lathe. He had never mastered a record before and gave it a shot since no one was around to stop him. He got lucky and his first try yielded a great sounding disc which he dutifully sent to Capitol. The whole process of recording, mixing and mas- tering “we’re An American Band” took about 48 hours.
Once the pressure was off, the rest of the sessions continued at a more relaxed pace. The musicians would wake up, take a dip in the ocean, and head over to the studio. More often than not, Todd would already be there, tweaking this and that. They began to wonder if their producer ever slept.
About two weeks later, as the LP’s final mixes were being started, Capitol decided that “we’re An American Band” was too hot to keep under wraps any longer. The song was issued to radio stations and was soon blaring out of every car, nightclub and high school in the Us.
Todd Rundgren and the members of Grand Funk Railroad were astonished. They were still at work on the album and the single was already tearing up the airwaves and building a tremendous amount of pre- release hype. never before (or since) had any
BY tonY Ballz
of them seen the wheels of the music indus- try turn so rapidly.
“we’re An American Band” and its accom- panying LP were unleashed in July 1973. The initial pressings of each were on gold vinyl, a novelty at the time. The album shot to #2 while the single hit #1 on Mark Farner’s 25th birthday. The resulting tour was their most successful to date. every critic who had writ- ten off Grand Funk as has-beens was forced to swallow his words.
Capitol Records were so ecstatic they sent the band back into the studio with Rundgren to produce a follow-up. The combination paid off a second time. Shinin’ On (released in March 1974) hit #5, while its first single
“The Loco-Motion,” again made it to #1. Grand Funk rode the wave of superstar-
dom until it crashed in 1977. Farner and Brewer briefly reactivated the group for two albums in the early 1980s. Farner became a Christian and started writing religious mate- rial. Brewer toured with Michigan homeboy Bob seger.
The original trio of Mark Farner, Don Brew- er and Mel schacher reformed in 1996 and hit the road for three very successful years. They played several benefit shows for Bosnia with an orchestra. Mark Farner amicably quit in late 1998 and returned to Christian music. Brewer and schacher replaced him and have kept Grand Funk Railroad moving to this day.
Todd Rundgren continued along his unique path. He released over forty albums, both solo and with Utopia. He has had no major label affiliations since 1991. He still tours. He produced records by Patti smith, XTC, Psychedelic Furs, Cheap Trick, The Tubes, Hall & Oates, Meat Loaf, and many others. He was a pioneer in the fields of music video and home computer software. He has lec- tured and taught music courses at DePauw and Indiana Universities.
Despite a career that stretches back to 1968, Rundgren has never been nominated for a Grammy or inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, possibly due to his outsider
status in the industry.
| tony Ballz likes his funk grand.
music@thenoise.us
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