Mark Farner

Mark Farner Biography

True rock 'n roll legend, Mark Farner found fame and success at 20 years of age as the leader of one of America's biggest bands of the 1970's - the original Grand Funk Railroad.

The band recorded 17 albums with total sales of more than 25 million records. Mark Farner is the unmistakable voice, guitarist, and songwriter that powered the original Grand Funk Railroad to 12 platinum and 15 gold albums.

After only 3 guitar lessons, Mark put various bands together. In the mid 1960's, Mark and his bands played the usual dates that a teenage band would play - high school dances, VFW halls, wedding receptions and the like. Upon leaving high school, Mark turned professional, working with Terry Knight and the Pack, The Bossmen (with Dick Wagner), then just the Pack (this time with no Terry Knight, but with drummer Don Brewer).

In 1969, Mark started the original Grand Funk Railroad with teenage friends Mel Schacher and Don Brewer - one of the first American power trios was born. Mark and Grand Funk hit big just several months after forming. They were the only unsigned act on the show when they opened the first day of the Atlanta International Pop Festival in July 1969.

Mark and Grand Funk Railroad played before 180,000 people in 110-degree heat and the acclaim was instantaneous. They were invited back to close the show the next day. Following their hugely successful Atlanta appearance, the band was signed by Capitol Records and their first gold album "On Time", was recorded and released within four months.

The saga of Grand Funk Railroad is well documented. The albums included such titles as "Grand Funk Railroad", "Survival", "Live Album", "Closer To Home", "E Pluribus Funk", "Phoenix", "Good Singin,' Good Playin'", "Caught In The Act", and "All The Girls In The World Beware", among others. The hit singles included "I'm Your Captain (Closer To Home)," "Foot-Stompin' Music," "We're an American Band", "the Loco-motion", "Mean Mistreater", "Bad Time", "Some Kind Of Wonderful" and others.