Mark Farner's Guild

so I'm driving through Lansing today on the way to Detriot, and I hear someone interviewing Mark Farner (Grand Funk Railroad for all you non-geezers), and Mark played some nice acoustic stuff right there in the studio, including "Closer to Home". Mark lives north of here in Petoskey, he's working on a new album. They said, "now we'll take some calls" and they gave the number. I called on my cellphone (yeah, I know,I yell at people for doing that too when they're driving) and believe it or not, it actually rings and the radio announcer says I'm next in line to talk with Mark! Then Mark Farner comes on and says "gkjhjkhbkbefiklg" because my stupid damn #@!!$%**!! cell phone decides to be out of range at that very moment!

Anyway, I think they can still hear me so I ask "Hi Mark, this is Marc, do you play any Guilds, and what acoustic are you playing in the studio today?" then my cell dropped the call. (I curse Alltel with some real choice verbiage):evil:

I quick turned the radio back up because there's always a slight delay, just in time to hear the DJ ask Mark "Did you catch that question?" to which he replied "Yeah, I did - I don't know how you guessed it Marc but its a Guild I'm playing here in the studio, its a DV-52. Made in America!" he says.

8)

It's so good to have independent confirmation of our collective good taste and wisdom.

You're right Dred, a bunch of these guys won't know who Mark Farner is. I think I was in the 9th grade when they made "Closer to Home". That one might be my favorite GFR song.

Damned cell phones! DV52 ha? Cool!

West

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah! Listening to a local classic rock station yesterday, and all day they played music from 1975. It was great, Skynard, Bachman Turner Overdrive, Atlanta Rhythm Section (sp?), Led Zepplin, Doobie Brothers, Marshall Tucker Band, Allman Brothers. Just don't make music like that anymore.

West

How cool was that! Nice goin', Drednut!

We'll hafta try to contact him & send him an invite to the forum. 8) Too bad you don't have Cingular Marc, or I'm sure you would've invited him.

West and Mr. P: Its the same song you are both referring to

It was a bad time to be in love witll Alltel.

drednut said:

West and Mr. P: Its the same song you are both referring to

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Can't imagine why I might have short term memory loss!!! :wink:

Grand Funk Railroad

Even though I am a confirmed acoustic player and rarely listen to anything electric - I have to say that there was a slice of my childhood orchestrated by GFR. Man, I loved that first album - I'm Your Captain/Closer to Home, Mean Mistreater, Heartbreaker.... Wow! And I am certain that even though I didn't follow them as close later on - I did dig Locomotion, American Band and so on. Very cool that Farner plays a Guild...very cool indeed.

The GFR album that was HUGE at the time (at least in my memory) was the one shaped like a silver dollar and led off with "Footstompin' Music." I think it was titled E PLURIBUS FUNK.

No one ever remembers that one until you remind them about it, but I think that album was the peak of the Grank Funk buzz in the early '70's. At least where I grew up. And one of the great LP covers, IMO.

Farner wrote some great tunes. He's definitely Guild-worthy.

"I'm gonna add a little guitar,
I want you to get in the mood.
We're gonna play some footstompin music
Everybody get up and move, yeah."

Yeah, "Footstompin' Music" was always one of my favorites

This is killing me, I can't remember the name of the tune and I don't have the album anymore, but Mark & GFR did a kickbutt 12 bar blues song where Mark goes nuts on the guitar licks... can anyone help me out here?

Haha! Mark Farner just played at our company's holiday party (along with Sister Sledge!). He was pretty good, although the crowd (~>1000 folks) didn't really seem to pay him much attention. Don't think he played any acoustics though...

please tell me Mark got the top billing at that gig :lol:

Man Egor, who do you work for? Must have a large black contingent there..............Sister Sledge, don't they do "We Are Family"? Nothing wrong with that though, that song has always made me bob my head.

West

The last two posts kind of show the unfortunately low market demand for the forgotten American troubadours. A guy like Farner playing parties and being ignored, unable to command the attention of the audience.

Not that Farner was a god to me, or anything like that. But when GFR was at the top of its game, they packed stadiums to see him play.

Here in Columbus, for two decades I've watched many highly accomplished musicians playing bar gigs. It doesn't matter if the player is very exceptional or totally mediocre. Nobody is paying much attention. Sometimes they won't even turn off the TV while the player performs.

No offense intended at all, egordon99, as I think it's quite cool that your company offered this party.

Apologies for this tangent, but it does seem to me that 30 years ago, the audience really listened. People don't have the same attention span anymore.

If I was I guy like Farner, that would tear me up.

Thankfully, I'm not talented enough to be distraught.

I think maybe if mark Farner had published music for the last 30 years, he'd still pack stadiums. Think about the old timers that still pack the house. The Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, James Taylor....they have all either re-made old albums with something new added, or as in James Taylor's case, periodically publish all new material.

I don't think it's indicative of Farner's stature as a talent, but the fact that relatively few remember him.

West

With the money he's made and the royalties he gets, I'm sure it doesn't bother him that much. He's enjoying living on the lake in Northern Michigan 8) and playing his DV-52.

I wish I could've recorded that interview, he played some really nice live acoustic chops on that Guild. Guess I'll have to wait for the new album he was talking about...

Not sure what the "black contingent" comment was about, but it's a REALLY large company (~150,000 employees worldwide) and about 3000 at our location.

Yep, Sister Sledge did "We are Family", it was only one of the Sledge sisters at the party, I honestly forgot which one.

They also had a Taco Station, Turkey Station, and a Pasta Station.

And a bar

West R Lee said:

Man Egor, who do you work for? Must have a large black contingent there..............Sister Sledge, don't they do "We Are Family"? Nothing wrong with that though, that song has always made me bob my head.

West

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