Some Kind Of Wonderful – Grand Funk | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning
Chart Performance: Pop (#3); 1975
Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne
Grand Funk Railroad received their name from manager Terry Knight, after Canada’s Grand Trunk Railroad. The quartet from Flint, Michigan built its following through a non-stop touring schedule.
Despite relentless pans from the rock writers, the concert grind fueled album sales – 11 gold and platinum selling LP’s in just over five years – while their first ten singles performed poorly by comparison, in part due to resistance from Top 40 radio to grant GRR airplay.
We’re An American Band (1973) produced by Todd Rundgren, featured a more commercial sound, and Grand Funk (their newly-shortened name) bumped Marvin Gaye’s Let’s Get It On out of the #1 slot.
The Loco-Motion continued the run of hits, as did Some Kind Of Wonderful – an obscure R&B tune written by John Ellison and recorded by his group, Soul Brothers Six, in 1967.
This content and all Song Meaning articles were created and written by Top 40 Contributing Editor Ed Osborne. © 2024 Ed Osborne. All Rights Reserved. In addition to these song meaning articles, Ed has written our “Year in Music 1960s-1990s” articles.
Produced by:
- Joe Rock
Lyrics Written by:
- John Ellison
Ed Osborne
Hi. I got my first record at age two and never looked back, spending a decades-long career in radio and the music business. Even after years of reading about and listening to all types of music, I am still fascinated by it. Apart from that, I’m endlessly intrigued by art, nature, and the inner lives of people (and dogs).