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I saw GFR last week with my teenage son, they were the first band I ever saw in concert way back in the early 70's. Even though there is a definite riff between Mark and the remaining two members I must say the current line up is phenominal. When Max Carl touched his chest during this song I thought "what would Mark say"? Then I remembered how lead singer-sonwriters like Mark, John Fogerty, Steve Perry etc push the limits of their greatness too much. Don and Mel are out there - smiling, playing perfectly, having a good time and kicking a$$ for audiences young and old, they earned that right and keep GRF alive.
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Weird how songs seem to have different meanings when you listen to them through the lens of different times... I haven't heard this song in many years but I ran into it today in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic.. And it captures the isolation and anxiety of those of us high risk individuals kind of trapped in our homes indefinitely are feeling.
He is having a bit of a bumpy ride in his mind and is trying to regain control of his senses, (I'm your captain)and he is afraid of losing his mind he seeks help from God and slowly regains control (I'm getting closer to my home). I think this is at least a plausible interpretation to the meaning of this song. This realization makes him sick and he pleads to heaven for help. In 1973, Grand Funk exploded with their #1 hit "We're An American Band" and became one of the top live acts in the US.
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There are plenty of studies showing social isolation in humans can lead to panic, fear, extreme paranoia, depression, and suicide. In 2002 Closer to Home was remastered on compact disc with bonus tracks and also released in a limited-edition box set Trunk of Funk that contained the band's first four albums. The "trunk" has slots for twelve CDs to house the future release of the remaining eight albums that were released by Capitol.
Had him on the show last week and although he'd have a few, for GFR to perform at the high level they did, "we were stone cold straight," he said. I always thought the lyrics were pretty straight forward. The isolation of life at sea, especially for a captain who rarely ever leaves his ship, ends up warping the mind.
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It is considered to be the standout track on the Closer to Home album, and considered by both Farner and others to be his best work as a songwriter. With its melodic strengths and dramatic feel, it is often considered one of the best rock songs of all time. Estimated delivery dates - opens in a new window or tab include seller's handling time, origin ZIP Code, destination ZIP Code and time of acceptance and will depend on shipping service selected and receipt of cleared payment. At the time, rock bands had experimented with orchestras, and we said, 'Let's put an orchestra on this thing, we'll just play endlessly, and we'll get Tommy Baker, our friend down in Cleveland, to write the score for it, and we'll put an orchestra on it. It was a new thing for us, kind of new for the day - there hadn't been too many bands using orchestras. When we finally heard the song about two weeks later, it just blew us all away.
The seller has specified an extended handling time for this item. I think of it as a story about the captain of a haunted ship that is being taken over by those evil spirits. I picture him in his cabin, curled up with his knees against his chest, rocking back and forth and repeating over and over, "I'm getting closer to my home..."
I am so glad they didn't worry about making the song short for airtime. This song is right up there with Starship Trooper by Yes. It was later released in July 1970 on the 'Closer To Home' album, with the full orchestra version.
"We used to rehearse at a place called The Musicians Union Hall in Flint, Michigan," said Brewer. Grand Funk Railroad songwriter Mark Farner says the words to this song came to him in the middle of the night, after he prayed for musical inspiration. Usually he wrote the song, then the lyrics…but since this is one of his biggest hits, perhaps he should have been doing it the other way around all along. The lead singer/lyricist of The Beach Boys talks about coming up with the words for "Good Vibrations," "Fun, Fun, Fun," "Kokomo" and other classic songs.
I immediately wondered about GFR and wondered how the band members were and if they were all still living. May the Lord Jesus bless them and give them peace and assurance. This is a beautiful song, it's longing and beautiful sadness. Genius is the ultimate source of music knowledge, created by scholars like you who share facts and insight about the songs and artists they love. The song has been a staple of Farner concert performances in the decades since its recording, with the younger generation of concert-goers still knowing all the words.
The Village VoiceBCloser to Home is the third studio album by American rock band Grand Funk Railroad. The album was released on June 15, 1970, by Capitol Records. Recorded at Cleveland Recording Company, the album was produced by Terry Knight.
Has anyone ever tried to suss out the conversation/lyrics beneath the final string section? I just heard it on headphones for the first time and heard it underneath the music. There was a "stop it, stop it" I could make out, it the rest is a mystery.
The original version with his group Brinsley Schwarz was kind of somber, but Elvis Costello made it a classic with his 1978 uptempo take. Of the many times I had seen GFR in concert, it was just the 3 of them. I first heared this song when I was going into 7th grade & a friend of mine was killed as she crossed the street hit by a motorcycle. Every time I hear it , It always is in memory of Tracy & I wonder how her life would have been . It was my first real experience with someone passing & the song gave me comfort & reflection. I think this song has some psychedelic aspects, he is basically on some kind of hallucinogenic such as LSD maybe even and is having a bit of a bad trip, this can happen to somebody with something as benign as weed.
I’m Your Captain (Closer to Home)
It's one of those extremely rare awesome songs that tell a bitchin' story any way you slice it. When this song was released in 1970, the Vietnam War was still going on but there seemed to be no path to victory for the American soldiers fighting there. "If you're in a foxhole in Vietnam, you're pinned down by so much fire coming in, you want to be Closer To Home," Mark Farner told Songfacts. "That song 'Closer To Home' just really registered with our Vietnam brothers and sisters." I got up and I wrote it, and as I'm writing it, I'm between the state of subconscious and conscious. I've got one foot in dreamland and my pen is writing these words down.
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