Shinin' On [Remaster]

Performer: Grand Funk Railroad
Engineer: Todd Rundgren
Producer: Todd Rundgren
Distributor: EMI Music Distribution

Notes: Grand Funk Railroad: Mark Farner (vocals, guitar, harmonica, organ); Craig Frost (vocals, piano, Clavinet, mellotron, organ, Moog synthesizer); Don Brewer (vocals, drums, percussion); Mel Schacher (bass);. Additional personnel: Todd Rundgren (guitar). Originally released on Capitol (11278). Includes liner notes by Steve Roeser. All tracks have been digitally remastered. Grand Funk Railroad: Mark Farner (vocals, guitar, harmonica, organ); Craig Frost (vocals, piano, Clavinet, mellotron, organ, Moog synthesizer); Don Brewer (vocals, drums, percussion); Mel Schacher (bass);. Additional personnel: Todd Rundgren (guitar). Originally released on Capitol (11278). After racking up their biggest success to date with We're an American Band, Grand Funk Railroad decided to keep a good thing going by retaining Todd Rundgren as their producer and continuing to push their sound in a pop/rock direction. The end result has its moments but is not as strong as We're an American Band. Although the songs are tight and benefit from a strong performance by the group, the material simply isn't as inspired this time out: songs like "Please Me" and "Getting Over You" are energetic but lack the infectious hooks and clever arrangement touches that would make them stick in the listener's memory. Shinin' On's best songs are the ones that became its single releases: the title track infuses its hard-driving, spacy rock groove with some surprisingly ethereal vocal harmonies and the cover of "The Loco Motion" turns this dance classic on its ear with a stomping beat and a screeching guitar lead from Mark Farner. Other tracks make up for their lack of hooks by experimenting with the group's sound in interesting ways: "Mr. Pretty Boy" is a creepy slow blues that features an atmospheric Mellotron backing and "To Get Back In" is a full-fledged soul song built on thick combination of organ and horns. In the end, Shinin' On is too unfocused and uneven to win over non-fans but Grand Funk Railroad fans will find plenty to enjoy on this album. ~ Donald A. Guarisco

Homer Simpson may have captured the essence of Grand Funk Railroad in the SIMPSONS episode where he rhapsodizes about "Mark Farner's wild, shirtless lyrics, the bong-rattling bass of Mel Schacher," and yes, "the competent drum work of Don Brewer." Emerging from the industrial town of Flint, MI, Grand Funk were a workman-like "people's band." They turned the Cream power-trio format into a stadium filling, larger-than-life experience that made them one of the most popular live acts of the early '70s. Their early albums were filled with amped-up blues-rock, but towards the end of their initial tether, they scored hits with covers of soul tunes such as "Some Kind of Wonderful" and "The Locomotion." IRS troubles contributed to their breakup in the late-'70s, but Grand Funk reunited with a vengeance in the '90s.

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