“Rock and roll is the hamburger that ate the world.”
- Peter York
Having an awesome band name won't make your outfit a success, but it doesn't hurt either. Once or twice a week I'll hear something and say to myself, “That would make a great name for a band.” Most cities still publish some kind of local alternative weekly newspaper. I always like to check those out and see the names of bands that are playing in the area. Many are beyond imagination.
Past and present, there have been some brilliant names in music. Often they're so well-known and ingrained in our brains that it's easy to forget their uniqueness: Led Zeppelin, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Average White Band, The Velvet Underground, The Flaming Lips, Smashing Pumpkins, Strawberry Alarm Clock, The Sex Pistols, Psychedelic Furs, Bowling for Soup, Afghan Whigs, Drive-By Truckers, Toad the Wet Sprocket, The Violent Femmes, and on and on. My personal favorite of an established group is Widespread Panic. Genius.
And then there are the lesser knowns and niche acts. That's when it really gets interesting. Here's just a sampling. Please add some examples if you have them:
Southern Culture on the Skids, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin (I know someone in this band), Camper Van Beethoven, The String Cheese Incident, Leftover Salmon, Ned's Atomic Dustbin, We Were Promised Jetpacks, BR5-49, Tight Pants Syndrome, The Dead Milkmen, The Dead Kennedys, Kathleen-Turner Overdrive, The Bastard Sons of Johnny Cash, Kitchens of Distinction, Guided By Voices, Suburban Kids With Biblical Names, Minor Threat, The 13th Floor Elevators, Sisterhood of Convoluted Thinkers, Hoobastank, Neutral Milk Hotel, Not My Dog, Betty's Not a Vitamin, Big Ass Truck, Let's Get Out of This Terrible Sandwich Shop, Insane Clown Posse, Guadalcanal Diary, Haircut 100, Hostile Comb-Over, Truman Coyote…
I'll stop, but the list could go on almost forever, some of which wouldn't be appropriate on a PG blog.
What brings the name thing up? It's twofold. Today is the birthday of Mark Farner (1948). If you don't know the name, he was one of the founders and the singer, guitarist and principle songwriter for the three-piece band, Grand Funk Railroad. Grand Funk was ever present in the 1970s. They were part of the landscape of my youth. So much so that I I hadn't until now thought about what a fantabulous name that is…Grand Funk Railroad. Come on! That's great!
They were among several blue collar acts to come out of Michigan around the same time: Bob Seger, Ted Nugent, MC5, The Stooges, Alice Cooper and Brownsville Station were some of note.
Grand Funk formed in 1969 in the city of Flint. They were only two years into their history when, just to give you an idea of their popularity, they sold out New York's Shea Stadium on July 9, 1971, faster than the Beatles had in 1965. 55,000 fans jammed in and rocked out to the band's one hour set, the high point being their closer, I'm Your Captain (Closer to Home). The song was an emotional sendoff for a nation of war-weary kids - an anthem of lament but also one of hope.
Grand Funk went on to score a string of hits over the next few years: Foot Stompin' Music, The Locomotion, Bad Time, Some Kind of Wonderful, Walk Like a Man, and the one that's the other reason I mentioned them today. On this date in 1973, their highest charting song, We're an American Band, went to #1. No doubt, that was a pretty good birthday gift for Mark Farner.
I can't say I was ever a huge fan. I know for certain I never owned a Grand Funk album. But as I said, they were always somewhere on the radio and part of the soundtrack of the 70s decade. I kinda took them for granted. In retrospect, I have a greater regard for who they were and what they did. And, they sure had a killer name: Grand Funk Railroad.
Today is also our friend Bob's birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BOB!