Grand Funk Railroad

group and band

Aged unknown

Grand Funk Railroad (often shortened to Grand Funk) is an American rock band formed in 1969 in Flint, Michigan, by Mark Farner (vocals, guitar, keyboards, harmonica), Don Brewer (vocals, drums), and Mel Schacher (bass). The band achieved peak popularity and success during the 1970s with the songs such as: "We're an American Band", "I'm Your Captain (Closer to Home)", "Some Kind of Wonderful", "The Loco-Motion" and "Inside Looking Out" (cover of the Animals). Known for their crowd-pleasing arena rock style, the band toured extensively and played to packed arenas worldwide, and was well-regarded by audiences despite a relative lack of critical praise. The band's name is a play on words of the Grand Trunk Western Railroad, a line that runs through the band's hometown of Flint, Michigan.

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Commemorated on 1 plaque

Texas International Pop Festival. The Texas International Pop Festival took place near this site during Labor Day weekend, 1969. It was held two weeks after the Woodstock Music and Art Fair introduced much of mainstream America to the "hippie" culture by way of news reports of the chaos that occurred there in part due to rainy weather and lax security. The Texas Festival brought as many as 150,000 hippies, bikers and music lovers to Lewisville, which at the time had a population of approximately 9,000 citizens. The Dallas International Motor Speedway, situated along Interstate Highway 35 south of town, was chosen as the location for the event. Twenty five musical acts, representing the genres of soul, blues and rock and roll performed during the three days of the festival. Acts included Janis Joplin, Sly & The Family Stone, Grand Funk Railroad, Chicago Transit Authority, Herbie Mann and a relatively unknown United Kingdom band called Led Zeppelin. On the north side of Lewisville, a public campground situated on the shores of Lewisville Lake served the thousands of festival attendees. A small "free stage" was constructed at the campground and local bands were brought in to perform for the campers. The skinny dipping in Lake Lewisville that resulted from the lack of shower facilities and the late summer heat drew much attention. Many locals demanded that the festival be shut down because of the threat of violence and unsavory activity, but there were no acts of violence reported at the Festival. However, area citizens were introduced to a culture that had previously been foreign to them and many who attended look back on the Festival as a life changing event.

Lakeside Circle, Lewisville, TX, United States where it performed (1968)