32 Years Ago Today/Tonight

Columbia, SC January 31st, 1975 Gary Eaton 843-871-1560

Thirty two years ago high school buddy David Wooten and I rode a Greyhound bus to Columbia, SC to see Grand Funk. We arrived at the Carolina Coliseum just as Eric Burden was finishing his set. We had no idea how we were getting home but in the 15-20 minutes before GFR hit the stage, David had made arrangements with some people behind us (I think they were in the Navy) to ride home with them. I had two cameras with me, my Canon TL-b and David's Minolta SRT-101. A few songs into the show, I walked down to the floor and shot some photos. Back then we used film, Ektachrome 400 to be specific. It was a great concert, highlights being "I'm Your Captain", "The Railroad" and "We're an American Band". Click on the link above for some more photos.

Shea Funk Railroad

Even in 1971, Mel and Don made Mark sit in the back seat.

Loge 13: Shea Funk Railroad

Favorite Songs - I'm Your Captain

One Peculiar Christian ><> ><> ><> ><>: Favorite Songs - #3 of my "Top 5" . . .

Grand Funk Railroad - Inside Looking Out 1969

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Those were good days

To preface a review of Black Mountain’s In The Future with another storm based set up would be redundant, even though the conditions of this evening would deem it mighty appropriate. No matter, all weather analogies shall end with mentioning of the album’s opening track, “Stormy High”, a galloping banger that echos back to Grand Funk Railroad’s “Sin’s A Good Man’s Brother”. It offers up that intoxicating urge to keep your feet firmly planted while nodding your head up and down in unison with every other long hair in the room.

How many copies...................

Just how many copies of an album do you need? When it comes to Grand Funk Railroad's album "Closer To Home", six??? I bought the original album in 1970, the cassette shortly thereafter. Then, I had to get the 8-Track. I just love how they chopped "Nothing is the Same" in half to fit on channels 1 & 2. When CDs were invented, I bought the CD, then I had to get the "official" release in 1995. I then bought the remastered version in 2002, complete with bonus tracks. I may have another copy laying around somewhere......plus I think I keep a copy in my camera bag next to the wide angle lens....

Doug Pullen gets "Closer To Home"

That's Doug in the middle, Mark Farner on the left and Mark's longtime friend Mark Bowsher on the right.

I met Doug back in 1996 when GFR played their 10 city mini-tour. We've kept in touch over the years and I talked with him back in November when he told me he was leaving the Flint Journal to go back home. He always kept me up to date about Mark and the other two guys, and sent me an e-mail high 5 when he read my review of Don and Mel's show last November. I will miss reading his stuff, he and I felt very much the same way about the Flint 2 version of Grand Funk. Back in 2001, he was verbally abused by the fans of Don & Mel's new band because he gave a not so glorious review of their show in Detroit. One of the Cyberfunkers even wanted to "hunt him down". He pissed off our favorite drummer at least once or twice. Doug's voice sounds nothing like the way he looked. I pictured someone similar to Jackson Browne but was surprised to find out he looked more like Randy Bachman with a goatee. I never realized until November 2007 that we've experienced the same loss of family members. Both my parents are gone, my younger brother died in 2006 and Tito (our dog) passed in December of 2006 after 17 years. I got divorced in 2003. But, neither of us shared those stories with each other. We just traded little tidbits about Mark and GFR. Doug sent me a newspaper spread the Flint Journal did back in 1996 when the Funk were just starting to tour again. I called him when Mark wanted to use one of my photos, and he was one of the first people I called after I got the phone call from Mark in July of 2006. We could have been best friends I think, if we lived closer to each other, but I was content to just have someone to call when I wanted to chat about GFR. I'll miss him at the Journal but I'm sure we'll talk soon. Best of luck Doug, you deserve it.

G