Grand Funk Railroad/Tokyo, Japan 1971

Grand Funk Railroad’s “Arashi Korakuen” performance, which took place on July 17, 1971, exactly 40 years ago, is recorded for the first time in a high-quality audience recording. At the beginning, there are 2 songs and about 12 minutes of performances of the opening act “Marshmakaan” (this is also the first appearance, of course). In addition, about 68 minutes of GFR’s main live performance is recorded, starting with Goro Itoi’s announcement. At the end, Inside Looking Out, where Mark’s passionate harp performance continues, is cut out at about 13 minutes and 40 seconds, but other than that it is almost completely recorded. This is the first time that the entire story of this legendary performance has been made into an audio disc.The first half of the live performance was available on a different master that appeared in 2008 (with lower sound quality than the main disc), but the last part was released from Mark Says Alright. The first 34 minutes are the parts that appear for the first time in history, and enthusiasts will be deeply moved and moved by the full story of 1971 Korakuen when they hear it for the first time. The highlight of this take is that it includes the two songs from the opening act, “Mashmakaan.” The musical tones are recorded beautifully, and you can clearly hear the idle chatter of the audience around you, and the weather gradually changes. The conversation evokes the deterioration of the situation, and the way the passage of time feels realistic is a wonderful record. As the opening act “Mashmakaan” performed a moody performance at Gladwin, the audience roared at the 5th minute when the “GFR” logo sign placed in front of the stage was blown away by a strong wind. Isn’t that where you left it? (It’s written that way on the original cassette.) You can hear it in the song, “It’s a sight to see when it rains!” “Aren’t you all going to get naked already!?” “I’m going to take off my clothes and get naked.” !”, “Oh, it’s raining!!”, and “Don’t die from electrocution!” are valuable records of what happened that day. Following Goro Itoi’s explanation of the situation, manager Terry Knight appeared. When he greeted them in Japanese, “Everyone, Konbanwa,” the audience, which had been in a noisy mood up until then, said “Konbanwa!” and it was fun. The mood gets really lively. Terry’s declarations of “Grand Funk Railroad is here now!” (loud cheers) “Because of rain, the stage is very wet!” and “We are sorry for the delay…Grand Funk Railroad will play for you tonight!” The explanation, filled with excitement, caused a roar of cheers from the audience, who had been worried that the event would be canceled due to the rain. After Mr. Goro Itoi’s explanation, the opening theme “Thus Zarathustra” played with dignity, and the members appeared on stage. A strong tuning sound echoes. (Trk3 and 4 (approximately 4 minutes 40 seconds) before the start of this live are supplemented from another master different from the main story. A noiseless take different from the difficult to listen version with many noises that exists among traders ) Goro Itoi reappeared and announced, “Thank you for waiting! Thank you! Let me introduce you! Ladies & Gentlemen, Here is Grand Funk Railroad!”, followed by Are You. It starts dramatically with Ready? A tremendous roar exploded from the PA, which was probably uncharted territory for the large audience that filled the venue. At this moment, you can see that the venue is filled with excitement, enthusiasm, and tension, as if something incredible is unfolding before our eyes. This tape eloquently tells us about the emergency situation in the history of Japanese Western music: “The legend was real.” The sound image you can hear here is a pure and aggressive sound that far surpasses Cream at its peak and is reminiscent of Motörhead at its peak 10 years later. The power is like a runaway train, and the sound is like lightning. Even after 40 years, the loud volume and power that exceeded the audience’s imagination still overwhelms listeners. There was a rumor that “a tape was played instead of the actual performance,” but perhaps the impressions of some audience members who were taken aback by the indescribable and incomprehensible power may have taken on a life of their own. Decades later, it proves that the description at the time that “Zeppelin was also amazing” was not an exaggeration. The frightening and intense performance sometimes exceeds the recording level, and at the 2 minute mark of In Need, a unique sound image pops out, with only the throbbing harp. I do not recommend this to listeners who have only listened to the official version, but if you are used to listening to live versions, you should be able to easily understand the freshness and charm of this sound from the first note. I swear to you, this is a very good recording. It’s a direct sound that’s on the verge of cracking, but the whole thing isn’t clunky, and in addition, the tape’s generation is low, so the overall listening experience is wonderful. The entire album is worth listening to, and it is an extremely excellent live album that has first-class value both as a record and as entertainment. Live at Korakuen Stadium, Tokyo, Japan 17th July 1971 TRULY AMAZING/PERFECT SOUND(from Original Masters) Mashmakhan 1. Children Of The Sun 2. Gladwin Grand Funk Railroad 3. Introduction 1(by Goro Itoi & Terry Knight) 4. Also Sprach Zarathustra 5. Introduction 2(by Goro Itoi) 6. Are You Ready 7. Paranoid 8. In Need 9. Heartbreaker 10. Mark Says Alright 11. T.N.U.C. 12. Inside Looking Out Mark Farner – Guitar, Vocal　Don Brewer – Drums, Vocal Mel Schacher – Bass