Mel Schacher's (Grand Funk Railroad) Setup

[phillybass101]

I am a certified bonified funk monster from the hood but guess what. I was the only brother in da hood who was listening to Grand Funk. No one including my family could understand me. Mad props go to Mel Schacher. He had as much inluence on me playing the bass as did larry Graham or Louis Johnson. Talk about powerful, in your face, take no prisoners lead bass. I beleive this is why big egoed lead instrument players can't stand me now. Electric Bass is truly one of the most powerful instruments ever created. And in the hands of Mel Schacher it was a weapon. The best thing is, he was playing with two other cats that let him play. I can recall too many times, when people would tell me to turn down, or that i was shaking walls, or do you know what you sound like. or they would give me dirty looks when i walked in with a newer bigger cab at a gig. Look who I learned from Mel made no excuses when he played.

 

[bobyoung53]

I bought my first Fender bass in 1971 because of the red album cover. I didn't know the difference between a Jazz and a P bass back then and ended up with a P bass. I will say he has my all time favorite bass sound.

 

[billgoodwin]

My older sister bought Grand Funk (aka the Red album) when it first came out. I was seven at the time and that was my first real jolt of heavy, groove, funk music and I still have the lp in all it's scratchy glory. It remains one of the biggest influences of me becoming a musician / bass player. Mel had it going on for sure.

 

[mcm]

Mel - Absolutely killer

 

[COBRARI]

I was stuck on an Island (Kodiak in the miitary) back in mid 69-mid 70.
A guy shows up with this LP by Grand Funk. It had the musicians on the cover with I think Mark holding a model train.
We had turntables back then. We wore that LP out. It was just the best stuff to listen to at the time.
I really liked his bass sound. The Red LP got a lot of play time and I became a Mel fan. Got a Jazz bass.

High Falootin' Woman, Please don't Worry and Got this Thing on the Move were the first three songs I taught myself when I finally started figuring out basslines by ear.

Saw GFR about 7 years ago. No Farner but Mel was there with his signature sound. One of those State Fair gigs.

He plays the bass like a boss.

 

[rico bass]

I think I have the jazz bass from grand funk , I bought it in NY 1980 non original pickguard covering the large route for the eb bass pickup 1 string missing and nut was off the bass, plays and sounds great the serial no. dates either 68//69 if I could see a color photo of him playing the sunburst jazz bass I might see the wear markings at top of body. It has finish wear at top of body all covers are intact.

 

[Rezdog]

Greetings from the North,

+1 phillybass 101

Mel was down with the brothers. His tone was the definition of the new young machismo. In Detroit where I spent much of my youth there were only 2 other bass players whose influence meant as much and they worked for Motown. I used to drive my Mom insane by repeatedly playing Grand Funk's 'Paranoid' from the Red album over and over....... I'll always remember him playing his humbucker stuffed Jazz thru WEST amps at Cobo Hall when they really went big time.

Rezdog

 

[Steve Dallman]

I had a West 2X15 cabinet back in the day. Two 15" EV SRO speakers. The cabinet was deep, and was made of 1" thick particle board. It far, far outweighed my Dual Showman cabinet with Altec's.

Did I mention that cabinet was heavy? I had a Carvin 2X15" folded horn cabinet that was lighter.

 

[Tom Murphy]

I'm kind of a Johnny come lately to the thread here. But I too was GREATLY influenced by Mel. I saw Grand Funk live New Years Eve 1970-71, Closer To Home and Live Album were the albums they were promoting at the time. I just remember feeling every bone in by body rattle like Homer Simpson and I knew bass was the instrument for me. Watching the girls react to the band was also a major positive! LOL!

I saw some people touch on Mel's original Jazz Bass. He played it stock for a bit with black tape wound strings and then decided it wasn't beefy enough. So he pulled a Gibson "Sidewinder" from a EB-0 he had and with a chisel opened up a spot big enough to drop it right where the Jazz neck pickup was. He used the standard Fender 250k potentiometer and disconnected the rear pickup from the signal. So when you hear that bass from Closer To Home onward, you're hearing a Fender Jazz that is essentially an EB-0 with the help of a Heathkit unit and tubes that were badly matched for his West Fillmore heads, it was a signal path made in HEAVEN!

I agree his tone got a bit less aggressive in the Gibson Ripper days, although you could still tell it was Mel. Nice to meet all you Mel Schacher fans!

 

[EASonBass]

What about E Plurbis Funk? Unsurpassed Mel tone if you ask me!

 

[yodedude2]

Does anyone have any idea how he routed that Sidewinder pickup properly into the Jazz Bass?

i watched the vid, thinking...that's not a jazz neck pickup. thanks for the clarification.

 

[LetItGrowTone]

I had a West 2X15 cabinet back in the day. Two 15" EV SRO speakers. The cabinet was deep, and was made of 1" thick particle board.

Old thread. Doesn't matter.
Was the cabinet ported? Sounds sealed to me.

 

[P. Aaron]

Let's give a nod to Don Brewer for creating the spaces that let Mel flourish.

Most bass players' frustrations come from passionless playing or a fills heavy drummer that clogs every lane.

 

[Humberto Gillan]

I'm kind of a Johnny come lately to the thread here. But I too was GREATLY influenced by Mel. I saw Grand Funk live New Years Eve 1970-71, Closer To Home and Live Album were the albums they were promoting at the time. I just remember feeling every bone in by body rattle like Homer Simpson and I knew bass was the instrument for me. Watching the girls react to the band was also a major positive! LOL!

I saw some people touch on Mel's original Jazz Bass. He played it stock for a bit with black tape wound strings and then decided it wasn't beefy enough. So he pulled a Gibson "Sidewinder" from a EB-0 he had and with a chisel opened up a spot big enough to drop it right where the Jazz neck pickup was. He used the standard Fender 250k potentiometer and disconnected the rear pickup from the signal. So when you hear that bass from Closer To Home onward, you're hearing a Fender Jazz that is essentially an EB-0 with the help of a Heathkit unit and tubes that were badly matched for his West Fillmore heads, it was a signal path made in HEAVEN!

I agree his tone got a bit less aggressive in the Gibson Ripper days, although you could still tell it was Mel. Nice to meet all you Mel Schacher fans!

I think that he used the EB-0 in their first two albums, as the bass in On Time and Grand Funk doesn't have that thin and flat sound from the Fender single coils and it's the mudbucker at it's purest, while he used the un-modified jazz bass in concerts.

 

[bobyoung53]

I think that he used the EB-0 in their first two albums, as the bass in On Time and Grand Funk doesn't have that thin and flat sound from the Fender single coils and it's the mudbucker at it's purest, while he used the un-modified jazz bass in concerts.

He used a Fender Jazz with an EB-0 pickup in place of the neck pickup

I think that he used the EB-0 in their first two albums, as the bass in On Time and Grand Funk doesn't have that thin and flat sound from the Fender single coils and it's the mudbucker at it's purest, while he used the un-modified jazz bass in concerts.

He used a P bass later on too after the Jazz. I've seen photos of him with the original Jazz with the Gibson pickup at concerts.

 

[The Owl]

 

[bobyoung53]

View attachment 3475009 View attachment 3475010

Is that yours? If so, how's it sound?

 

[The Owl]

Is that yours? If so, how's it sound?

No, not mine at all. Just found these pics and thought Mel fans would like a closeup of the amps.

 

[bobyoung53]

No, not mine at all. Just found these pics and thought Mel fans would like a closeup of the amps.

Yeah, those things are really rare, there was one on ebay a year or two ago but the price was high and I don't think it sold. I posted it in the amps section, was pretty beat.

 

[The Owl]

Grand Funk RR were one of 3 reasons I started playing music (the others were Cream and Hendrix). Closer To Home and E Pluribus Funk saw a lot of time on my turntable.