I Love This Song: “Some Kind of Wonderful”

[Magic]

This is a song that takes me way back in time. I was 15 and my favorite place to go with my friends was roller skating. This song got played a lot in the roller rink. The beat and pace of the song was excellent for flying around the rink and showing off how well you can dance on your skates.

This song was my introduction to Funk and R & B. It will always be THE SONG I think of when I remember the fun times of my youth. To this very day I still have my 45 rpm. I have considered framing it and hanging it on the wall.….

I didn’t buy the full album until my late teens. This purchase was not about whether I liked Grand Funk Railroad, which I did, but it was about collecting things I like. This is when I began buying full albums and started collecting Funk, R & B, and disco. Yep, disco!

Once I started messing around in music forums, which was around 2004, I started learning about music. I was curious who started what, and where the current day sounds came from as well as researching songs of my past. I learned this song came from a R&B group of the 60’s. A very unknown but influential group, Soul Brothers Six. I tracked down and bought that 45rpm, too.

I have kept this article bookmarked for quite some time. It’s a review of “Some Kind of Wonderful” and a rather poor review of Grand Funk Railroad……but this song got a good review!

Rhinofy-Some Kind Of Wonderful

How many ways did we hate Grand Funk Railroad? Overpromoted by their manager/producer, former artist Terry Knight, they could not possibly live up to the hype. And they didn’t. Supposedly the…

lefsetz.com

in reply to the above review, the song writer, W. J. Ellison, wrote a letter to the reviewer. Ellison tells the full story behind “Some Kind of Wonderful”

The story behind “Some Kind of Wonderful” – Alan Paul

alanpaul.net

I am grateful to Ellison & Grand Funk Railroad for giving me so much fun in my youth…


Do you like this song? Tell me your thoughts & opinions..

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[Nai Noswad]

Funny( in a good way) you picked this song... I frequented a 'talc joint' in the mid 70's.... the girls poured talcum powder on the floor.. so as to give them boards (all the action!!)
I didn't know Grand Funk's cut until later..
I got 'small' on the floor with a version by The Fabulous Johnny C... which was a holy grail on the Northern Scene back then(DJ's often covered up their turntable so you couldn't peek) and order a stateside copy and steal his thunder... I did all this in T. Rex T. Shirt!!
As those baggy blue pants and double denim was not my bag!
Grand Funk version is punchy as hell, these bands (and Chicago) acted as springboards to educate me into other genres.

 

[Magic]

@Nai Noswad
exactly! This song was definitely a springboard into other music genres.

I remember talcum parties….not my own…but my parents would have parties and the bar & dance floor was always in our garage. Mom would sawdust and powder the floor for better dance action. good memories!

 

[Slipn]

Grew up since 7th grade with Grand Funk in my ears.. They evolved.. YES.. Mark just had to keep inventing stuff.. But for a 3 man band in the beginning, they were just what was needed to saddle up with groups from the late 60's and 70's who dominated the radio. Then along came Black Sabbath and KISS and kids indulged, in the future of what was a train off the tracks..
If you listened to this..

 

[dr wu]

Like the harder blues/rock edged early stuff .....after We're an American Band I lost interest,
Some Kind of Wonderful was '75 when they were doing radio friendly songs which they started with Shinin On lp. The first 3 are still the best for me,,,but the ladies liked songs like Locomotion and Wonderful.

 

[OldHippie]

A guy moved up to Upper Michigan where I lived from Flint in 1971. With him he brought Grand Funk Railroad. I was hooked, I still listen to the red album probably once a month. Anyways, I guess I just babbled my way through this.

 

[E-Z]

I have 2-separate cd box sets of 'The Funk' basically covering all their albums except the Good Singin', Good Playin' album from 1976 which strangely is my favourite 'Funk' album which Frank Zappa produced anyway I know they were VERY POPULAR in the USA during the 1970s and into the 1980s but I don't like some of the 'soul' leanings that they included amongst some of there songs but you can't please everyone.

 

[RedSG]

Our band does Some Kind Of Wonderful and it goes over well.

 

[Slipn]

Our band does Some Kind Of Wonderful and it goes over well.

Do you guys have anything uploaded we can hear??:?

 

[RedSG]

Do you guys have anything uploaded we can hear??:?

No recordings worth putting online! We have fun, mistakes and all.