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Don Brewer (born September 3, 1948 in Flint, Michigan) is the drummer and co-lead singer for American rock band Grand Funk Railroad.

Early life[link]

Brewer was born in Flint, Michigan on September 3, 1948 and is a graduate of Swartz Creek High School.

Early career[link]

Brewer joined his first band, called The Red Devils, at the age of 12. After leaving "The Red Devils", Brewer joined another band named the "Jazzmasters" for whom he played drums and sang vocals. In 1964, Brewer joined former DJ Terry Knight as well as bassist Herm Jackson, guitarist Curt Johnson, and keyboardist Bobby Caldwell and formed the band Terry Knight and the Pack. In 1967, Brewer met new guitarist Mark Farner after Johnson left the band.

Grand Funk Railroad[link]

Brewer in 1970.

In 1968 Brewer left Terry Knight and the Pack along with bandmate Mark Farner and recruited Mel Schacher, the bassist for the hit band ? and the Mysterians, and formed Grand Funk Railroad. They hired Terry Knight as their manager. In 1973, Grand Funk released the album "We're An American Band," featuring the hit song "We're An American Band".^[1] This track, written and sung by Brewer, was the band's first #1 single. Still popular, the song has since been recorded by other artists. In addition to playing drums for Grand Funk, Brewer also provided lead vocals for a number of songs. This is evidenced by the first and third verses of the song "Some Kind Of Wonderful".^[2] Brewer was the baritone lead singer for the group, in contrast to the tenor vocals of Mark Farner.

In 1977, following the initial breakup of Grand Funk, Brewer and former Grand Funk bandmates Mel Schacher and Craig Frost formed a new band named "Flint". Flint released one self-titled album before disbanding. In 1981, Brewer and Farner resurrected Grand Funk for an album that cracked the Billboard albums chart. Two years later, they split again and Brewer joined Bob Seger's Silver Bullet Band. He also continued in other musical endeavors, including producing for the band The Godz. In 1996 Brewer, Schacher, and Farner reunited as Grand Funk, and were eventually named one of Pollstar's top-grossing acts of 1998. Farner decided to leave the band at the end of 1998 to resume his solo career. In 2000, Brewer and Schacher added vocalist Max Carl, former KISS guitarist Bruce Kulick and keyboardist Tim Cashion to the line-up.

Other drumming[link]

Brewer played the bongo on Frank Zappa's song 'Let me take you to the beach' from the album Studio Tan, released in 1978 ^[3] Brewer was featured in Classic Rock Drum Solos,^[4] performing a solo from when he and Grand Funk Railroad filled up Shea Stadium.^[5] In 2000, Don performed as a guest clinician at Modern Drummer Magazine's annual Drum Festival event, where he was honored as one of the most influential drummers in the history of rock. In 2006 Brewer rejoined the Silver Bullet Band for their 2006-07 tour, it was his first appearance with the band since he played for them on their 1983 tour.^[6] He is also playing with them on Seger's 2011 tour.

Personal life[link]

Brewer resides in Jupiter, Florida with his wife Sunny Quinn, who is a 23-year radio veteran from South Florida. They met while Brewer was on tour with Bob Seger as the drummer for the Silver Bullet Band. At the time, Sunny was married to the bass player for Michael Bolton who was touring with them.^[7]

References[link]

http://www.travellersintime.com/UniversalWheels/grandfunk.html

v t e Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band Bob Seger Craig Frost Chris Campbell Alto Reed Drew Abbott Charlie Allen Martin Dave Teegarden Rick Mannassa Robyn Robbins Dawayne Bailey The Bob Seger System albums Ramblin' Gamblin' Man Noah Mongrel Bob Seger solo albums Brand New Morning Smokin' O.P.'s Back in '72 Seven Beautiful Loser Face the Promise Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band albums Night Moves Stranger in Town Against the Wind The Distance Like a Rock The Fire Inside It's a Mystery Live albums Live Bullet Nine Tonight Compilations The Bob Seger Collection Greatest Hits Greatest Hits 2 Early Seger Vol. 1 Ultimate Hits: Rock and Roll Never Forgets Singles "East Side Story" "Heavy Music" "2 + 2 = ?" "Ramblin' Gamblin' Man" "Lucifer" "Turn the Page" "Get Out of Denver" "Katmandu" "Nutbush City Limits" "Night Moves" "Mainstreet" "Hollywood Nights" "We've Got Tonite" "Old Time Rock and Roll" "Fire Lake" "Against the Wind" "You'll Accomp'ny Me" "Tryin' To Live My Life Without You" "Shame on the Moon" "Roll Me Away" "Fortunate Son" "Like a Rock" "Shakedown" "Landing in London" (with 3 Doors Down) "Wait for Me" "Downtown Train" Related articles Discography Gibson/Miller Band Book:Bob Seger

Mark Farner
Mark Farner performing at the Fall Fest in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, 2009.
Background information
Born	(1948-09-29) September 29, 1948 (age 63) Flint, Michigan, United States
Genres	Rock, hard rock, CCM
Occupations	Musician, songwriter
Instruments	Guitar, vocals, keyboards, harmonica, bass guitar
Years active	1965–present
Labels	Capitol, MCA, Atlantic, Warner, Lismark
Associated acts	Grand Funk Railroad, Terry Knight and the Pack, N'rG, Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band
Website	www.markfarner.com

Mark Fredrick Farner (born September 29, 1948 in Flint, Michigan) is an American singer, guitarist and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lead guitarist for Grand Funk Railroad, and later as a contemporary Christian musician.

Early life and career[link]

Farner began his career in music by playing in Terry Knight and The Pack (1965–1966), The Bossmen (1966), The Pack (aka The Fabulous Pack) (1967–1968), before forming Grand Funk Railroad with Don Brewer (drums) and Mel Schacher (bass guitar) in 1969.^{[citation needed]} Craig Frost (keyboards) joined the band in 1973. Farner has Cherokee ancestry from his maternal side.^[1]

With Grand Funk[link]

Farner was the guitarist and lead singer for Grand Funk Railroad as well as the songwriter for most of their material. His best known composition is the 1970 epic "I'm Your Captain (Closer to Home)".^[2]

Grand Funk's We're An American Band reached No. 1 on the Hot 100 on Mark's 25th birthday on September 29, 1973.^{[citation needed]}

Post-Grand Funk[link]

After Grand Funk initially disbanded in 1976, Farner released his first self titled solo album in 1977, and his second, No Frills, in 1978 (both Atlantic Records).^{[citation needed]} In 1981, Farner and Don Brewer launched a new Grand Funk line-up and recorded two albums, Grand Funk Lives and What's Funk?.^{[citation needed]} Farner went solo again with 1988's Just Another Injustice on Frontline Records.^{[citation needed]} His third Frontline release was 1991's Some Kind of Wonderful, which featured a revamped version of the Grand Funk classic of the same name. Farner enjoyed success with the John Beland composition "Isn't it Amazing", which earned him a Dove Award nomination and reached No. 2 on the Contemporary Christian music charts.^{[citation needed]}

In the 1990s, Farner formed Lismark Communications with former Freedom Reader editor Steve Lisuk. Soon after, Farner began reissuing his solo albums on his own record label, LisMark Records.^{[citation needed]}

Farner toured with Ringo Starr's Allstars from 1994 to 1995, which also featured Randy Bachman, John Entwistle, Felix Cavaliere, Billy Preston, and Starr's son, Zak Starkey.^{[citation needed]}

In the late 1990s, Farner reunited with Grand Funk, but left after three years to resume his solo career. He currently tours with his band, N′rG, which plays a mixture of Grand Funk songs and Farner's solo offerings.^{[citation needed]}

Other interests[link]

Farner was honored with the Lakota Sioux Elders Honor Mark in 1999. During the concert in Hankinson, North Dakota, a special presentation was held honoring Mark's Native ancestry and his contributions. Members of the Lakota Nation presented him with a hand-made ceremonial quilt.^[3] He has also been honored with the Cherokee Medal of Honor by the Cherokee Honor Society.^[4]

An authorized biography of Farner, entitled From Grand Funk to Grace, was published in 2001.^[5]

In popular culture[link]

Mark Farner was mentioned in episode 9 of season 8 of the HBO comedy series Curb Your Enthusiasm in September 2011.

Discography[link]

• Mark Farner, 1977
• Monumental Funk, 1977 (with Don Brewer)
• No Frills, 1978
• Just Another Injustice, 1988
• Wake Up, 1989
• Some Kind of Wonderful, 1991
• Closer to Home, 1992
• Heirlooms, 2000
• Red White and Blue Forever, 2002
• Live!! N'rG, 2003
• For the People, 2006

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• 2008 Mark Farner interview

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2010)

Terry Knight (April 9, 1943 - November 1, 2004), born Richard Terrance Knapp, was an American rock and roll music producer, promoter, singer, songwriter and radio personality, who enjoyed some success in radio, modest success as a singer, but phenomenal success as the original manager-producer for Grand Funk Railroad and the producer for Bloodrock.

Early career[link]

Knight was born on April 9, 1943 in Lapeer, Michigan. Knight's career began as a Detroit DJ in 1963 when he replaced Dave Shafer as "Jack the Bellboy" on WJBK, coming to Detroit from Flint, Michigan's legendary Top 40 rocker WTAC. The following year, he moved across the river to CKLW in Windsor, Ontario. Arguably the first American DJ to air the Rolling Stones, he hosted a legendary late night show from high-powered CKLW, bringing the British Invasion to the Northern states. He was awarded the honorary title of "The Sixth Stone" for his early support of the Stones. By the end of 1964, however, Knight had left CKLW and the radio business, intending to pursue his own career in music.

Around 1965, Knight fashioned his own songwriting and performing career in Flint, Michigan, by becoming the front man for Terry Knight and the Pack. With this band, Knight recorded a handful of regional hits for local Lucky Eleven Records, part of the Cameo-Parkway Records group, including his self-penned generation gap anthem "A Change On The Way," as well as scoring two national hits, a tasteful cover of the Yardbirds' "(Mister, You're A) Better Man Than I" and his ultra-lounge reading of Ben E. King's "I (Who Have Nothing)" (which came close to making the national top 40, peaking at #46). The band also left behind two long-playing garage classics before breaking up in 1967. (Brownsville Station honored Knight and the Pack with a cover of the Knight-penned "Love, Love, Love, Love, Love" on their '73 album Yeah!)

Producer and solo career[link]

In 1967 Knight moved to New York, and attempted a solo career as a singer and staff producer with the Cameo-Parkway label, with limited success. He produced and wrote a handful of tracks by other artists, including garage band Question Mark & the Mysterians and the easy-listening International Pop Orchestra. He also scored music for the 20th Century Fox noir classic The Incident. Knight traveled to London in 1968, hoping to become a recording artist and or producer for The Beatles' newly formed Apple Records. Knight met Paul McCartney and was present at Beatles recording sessions for the White Album including a session where Ringo Starr temporarily quit the group. Knight was surprised to find the group members arguing with each other. Knight soon left London after he was unable to negotiate a contract with acceptable terms.^[1]

"Saint Paul"[link]

In early 1969 Knight secured a producer's contract with Capitol Records which also allowed him to release his own songs as a solo artist. He wrote and recorded a single, "Saint Paul" which contributed to the "Paul is dead" hoax that erupted later in the year. The cryptic lyrics of the song are generally thought to allude to Knight's failed relationship with McCartney and his apparent belief that The Beatles would soon break up. The lyrics do not refer to death but were interpreted by some fans as containing clues. The ending repeats the phrase "hey Paul" in an arrangement that sounds very similar to The Beatles' song Hey Jude. There are also 2 different stereo mixes of the song in circulation. The longer 5 minute version also contains a high pitched voice singing lines from other Beatles songs, including, "Hello, Goodbye", "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" and "She Loves You." Initial copies of the single listed Terry Knight's company, Storybook Music, as the publisher of "Saint Paul." After Capitol received a cease and desist letter from The Beatles' music publisher Maclen Music (the U.S. division of Northern Songs) the record was pulled from distribution.

A deal was apparently worked out between Knight and Maclen Music. About a month later in May 1969 "Saint Paul" was re-issued with a publishing credit by Maclen.^[2] The second pressing of the record also contains a note on the label which states that "Hey Jude" is used by permission. The shorter 4 minute mix of the song does not contain the additional sung Beatles song excerpts. The re-assignment of publishing rights made Knights' song the only non Lennon–McCartney tune owned by Maclen. "Saint Paul" reached the top 40 in a few cities in the upper Midwest region but failed to make the national Billboard Hot 100 chart. The fact that "Saint Paul" was re-published by Maclen was incorrectly seen by some Beatle fans as evidence of a conspiracy involving Knight and The Beatles and the "Paul is dead" rumors.

"Saint Paul" was later re-recorded in 1969 by New Zealand singer Shane in a sound-alike version and became one of the best-selling singles of the 1960s in his native country. In the early 1990s author Andru Reeve repeatedly tried to interview Knight while writing a book about the "Paul is dead" hoax. However Reeve was unable to get Knight to talk about the song.

Grand Funk Railroad[link]

Still working as a producer with Capitol, Knight renewed his connection with two former Pack members, guitarist Mark Farner and drummer Don Brewer. Knight encouraged the two to add a new bass player and become a "power trio" along the lines of Cream. The group quickly added former Mysterians bassist Mel Schacher and changed their name to "Grand Funk Railroad." While becoming their manager-producer, Knight helped steer the trio to international fame, beginning with his getting them onto the bill---for free---at the 1969 Atlanta Pop Festival. This live performance convinced Capitol to sign the trio. For the next two years, Grand Funk Railroad became the most popular rock attraction in the United States despite mixed critical reviews that Knight cannily exploited as part of their appeal; he also discovered and produced the Fort Worth, Texas group Bloodrock, who hit the Top 40 in early 1971 with the unlikely death anthem "D.O.A. (Dead On Arrival)."

Between Grand Funk and Bloodrock, Knight racked up an unprecedented eight gold albums while simultaneously waging a war of words with Rolling Stone over the magazine's frequent pannings of the two acts. But by early 1972, both Grand Funk and Bloodrock had severed their professional relations with Knight. In Grand Funk's case, it involved court actions that kept the band tied up for almost two full years; they'd demanded full royalty accounting and accused Knight of double-dipping as manager-producer while the trio hadn't been getting all the monies they'd earned. For his part, Knight would claim the band had had only three months left on their contract with him when they first took him to court and could have been free with half the legal aggravation; the trio ultimately won their separation from Knight but at heavy cost, before adding keyboard player Craig Frost and continuing a successful recording and touring career through 1976.

Life After Grand Funk[link]

Knight was also dropped from Capitol soon after the Grand Funk court actions were resolved and began his own label, Brown Bag Records, releasing albums and singles by Mom's Apple Pie,^[3] John Hambrick, Wild Cherry and Faith. None of them found commercial success and, in late 1973, Knight retired permanently from show business. He associated with super model Twiggy and raced cars with film star Paul Newman in the mid-1970s before becoming addicted to cocaine, which consumed him. By the 1980s' he had straightened himself out, settling in Yuma AZ with his wife and daughter Danielle. He melded into the community working in advertising sales for a weekly newspaper.

Death[link]

On November 1, 2004 Terry Knight was murdered at the age of 61. Knight was stabbed multiple times in a fight with his daughter's boyfriend — against whom Knight was trying to protect — in their shared apartment in Temple, Texas. On November 26, 2005, his killer, Donald A. Fair, was sentenced to life in prison. Knight was cremated and buried in a family plot in Lapeer, Michigan. He is survived by his daughter Danielle. Four years after his death, Terry Knight and The Pack were voted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends online Hall of Fame.^[4]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Terry Knight - R.I.P. by David K. Tedds for Creem Online.
• Terry Knight's Killer Convicted.
• Terry Knight at Find a Grave