Grand Funk Railroad consists of Bruce Kulick (lead guitar), Don Brewer (drums, lead vocals), Max Carl (lead vocals), Mel Schacher (bass), Tim Cashion (keyboards).
Grand Funk Railroad is an American power trio band. Not usually well-received by critics, the original Grand Funk Railroad lineup were highly popular during the 1970s, having sold over 25 million records and selling out arenas world-wide. They were often cited as "the loudest rock and roll band in the world." Grand Funk Railroad currently uses the nickname "The American Band", from their hit song " We're An American Band".
The band was formed in 1969 by Mark Farner ( vocals, guitar) and Don Brewer ( drums), from Terry Knight & the Pack, and Mel Schacher ( bass) from ? & the Mysterians in the working class, auto industry town of Flint, Michigan. Terry Knight soon became their manager and named the band after the Grand Trunk Western Railroad, a well-known rail line in Michigan. First achieving recognition at the 1969 Atlanta Pop Festival, the band was signed by Capitol Records. Patterned after Cream, but developing their own populist style, in 1970 they had sold more albums than any other American band and had become a major concert attraction. In that same year they had a hit single "Closer To Home," a song that was closer in style to the old Terry Knight & The Pack than it was to GFR. A year later, they went on to break The Beatles' record at Shea Stadium, selling out in just 71 hours. That record still stands today.
Even with critical pans and lack of radio airplay, the group's first eight albums, released in three years, were successful. Knight launched an intense advertising campaign to promote Closer To Home, a multi-platinum, smash hit album that was slammed by virtually all music critics, reportedly paying $100,000 for a huge billboard in New York City's Time Square. In 1972, Grand Funk Railroad fired Knight, who sued for breach of contract, resulting in a protracted legal battle.