The Knight I knew
This one’s personal. I met Terry Knight when I was 11. I was traveling alone on a plane from Cleveland to New York just after Thanksgiving 1972. I wasn’t too happy about heading back to boarding school and Terry and his beautiful Swedish girlfriend Pia invited me to sit between them. We played cards and talked and they really cheered me up. He told me that he managed Grand Funk Railroad, which at the time was one of the biggest bands around. We exchanged addresses and about a week later I got a box of Lps, cool T-shirts and other band swag. That Christmas and for the next three Christmas’s Pia and Terry and I exchanged cards. Much later I found this and his other records with Terry and the Pack. I read recently all about his falling out with Grand Funk, his failed attempts to cash in, his panned comeback with Mom’s Apple Pie, (a recalled cover that’s destined to be posted on Lp Cover Lover), and finally his descent into drugs before he got into a fight with his daughter and was killed by her boyfriend in 2004. At the time of my brief encounter, he was on top of the world with eight gold records. To me, he was just a really nice guy who went out of his way to cheer up a sad and lonely kid. I wonder how Pia is today.
(20 votes, average: 3.25 out of 5)
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August 9th, 2008 at 5:04 am
nice story.
August 9th, 2008 at 7:21 am
What a tale! “The reward for a good deed is having done it.” I’m sure Terry was as glad to help out a lonely kid as you were to meet a music industry kingpin. Kindness and connection like that are truly inspiring.
August 9th, 2008 at 7:52 am
Great story Matt. Thanks for sharing that.
August 9th, 2008 at 5:09 pm
The real Terry Knight is a different story.He signed Grand Funk to himself then got lucrative record deals with Capitol while paying the band pennies.He completely ripped them off for millions while paying them $350 a week.In late 1972 a colleague informed them of how they were being ripped off by Knight so they fired him.In December Grand Funk was doing 2 charity shows for Phoenix House in NYC,one of which was broadcast on TV for In Concert.Knight came in before the show with some NYC sherriffs and tried to confiscate their equipment.After a European tour that netted GFR millions,he parked the money in secret Swiss bank accounts.The IRS found out and charged Grand Funk with tax evasion and billed them for $400,000.Knight offered to loan them their ownmoney which he stole if they would re-sign with them.Real sweetheart isn’t he?
August 9th, 2008 at 7:02 pm
How cool to add a good story to the memories of all the bad times Mr. Knight had put Grand Funk through.
Thanks.