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Bachman-Cummings
June 13, 2007
Ameristar Casino
Kansas City, Missouri
By Chris Murphy
American Woman 2007 | Who Do You Love/Not Fade Away | Albert
Flasher | These Eyes | Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet | Clap for the
Wolfman | Let It Ride | Hand Me Down World | No Sugar Tonight
(New Mother Nature) | Hey You | Laughing | Undun | Little
Queenie |No Time | Share the Land | Takin' Care of Business
Legendary
Canadian rockers Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings kicked off a
rare American tour in Kansas City, Missouri on June 13, 2008.
The pair, best known for their work during The Guess Who’s
string of hits in the late 60’s and early 70’s, had not been
together in eight months but put on an excellent show at the
Ameristar Casino that left the crowd wanting more. According to
Cummings, the two had only come together 30 minutes before the
show. However, the band, which consisted of seven musicians,
sounded like they had been touring together for years. They not
only played the songs from their Guess Who days that made them
icons in Canada but also did stellar versions of four songs from
Bachman’s days with Bachman-Turner Overdrive as well as a few
songs off the recent Bachman-Cummings release of cover songs
titled Jukebox.
The night
got off to a somewhat slow start as the first song was “American
Woman 2007,” which is a slower re-working of their #1 hit
“American Woman.” After playing the song, Cummings commented
they re-recorded the song for their Jukebox release
because they had been playing it the same way for over 30 years
and it had gotten a little old. That comment actually drew a
few gasps from the audience who were afraid this would be a
theme for the night. Next up was a dedication to the late Bo
Diddley with his song “Who Do You Love,” which featured Bachman
on vocals. They even tagged on The Crickets “Not Fade Away,” a
song originally released in 1957 that featured the Bo Diddley
Beat. The song was well-received by the audience, but after
hearing two songs, one a different version of a classic and the
other a cover, the crowd began to wonder what was in store for
them.
Bachman-Cummings would not disappoint, however, as Cummings
finally sat down at the piano and the band played “Albert
Flasher,” a Guess Who song that was actually released after
Bachman left the band. The band got their first real standing
ovation after this song, the first of what would become common
after each song the rest of the night. With the intimate crowd,
the pair treated the show as somewhat of a “VH1’s Storytellers,”
with one or the other introducing each song with a tidbit of
information about the song. Next up was the song that Cummings
said “changed it all” for them, “These Eyes,” which hit #6 in
the US in 1969. At this point you could feel the appreciation
from not only the crowd, who was being treated to a rare treat
of hits, but also from the band, who are clearly happy they are
still able to perform the songs that made them famous.
Next up
Bachman took over lead vocals as the band lit into the
Bachman-Turner Overdrive #1 hit “Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet.” While
Bachman originally shared vocals in BTO with Fred Turner, he did
an admirable job all night singing the BTO hits and on this song
produced the night’s first audience sing-along. “Clap For the
Wolfman,” the Guess Who’s last US top 10 hit was next and
Cummings dedicated the song to their personal friend who the
song was written for, legendary DJ Wolfman Jack.
Bachman then
took over again for the BTO hit “Let It Ride.” Before the song,
Bachman told how the song originated. After leaving The Guess
Who, BTO were travelling to play New Orleans in a station wagon
and several truckers boxed them in on the highway. The band
eventually confronted one of the truckers at a truck stop, who
told them to “just let it ride.” This was followed by The Guess
Who’s first hit without Bachman “Hand Me Down World.” The song
was written by Bachman’s replacement, Curt Winter, and Cummings
claims to still have no idea what the lyrics mean.
Bachman, who
said earlier in the night the key to their success is that they
could each write half a song, said he once wrote three-fourths
of a song that Cummings was able to finish off with a completely
different tune. The band then played the song he was referring
to, the classic “No Sugar Tonight/New Mother Nature,” which was
one of the strongest songs of the evening. The tag-team effort
on vocals continued as Bachman next sang the BTO song “Hey You,”
which Cummings said Bachman wrote when he wasn’t very happy with
him.
Next Bachman
sang a pair of hits from 1969, “Laughing” and “Undun.” These
two songs gave The Guess Who a rarity in the music world, two
hit songs from the same single. After playing the A-side
“Laughing,” Cummings introduced the Bachman-penned B-side
“Undun” as one of the best songs ever written by a Canadian.
Not only were the songs a hit nearly 40 years ago, but the two
songs were the best back-to-back songs played all night.
After
playing another song from the duo’s Jukebox album, Chuck
Berry’s “Little Queenie,” the band got another customary
standing ovation. However, they immediately started the opening
chords of the top 10 hit “No Time” and the crowd stayed on their
feet for the entire song and stayed standing as the main set
closed with another top 10 hit “Share the Land.”
With so many
songs to choose from their repertoire, during the break I heard
several people start discussing what was left for them to play.
The band came back and stuck with what was working for them and
finished with another hit, the BTO crowd favorite “Takin’ Care
of Business.” Unfortunately, for what I am guessing is venue
policy, the 85-minute show came to an end. I have seen many
shows at this particular venue and they have all finished in
less than an hour and a half. I would have loved to hear some
lesser known hits from The Guess Who like “Glamour Boy,” “Rain
Dance,” or “Runnin’ Back to Saskatoon.” However, the band did
an excellent job of running through all the major hits from two
bands that I believe are very underappreciated in America, The
Guess Who and Bachman-Turner Overdrive.
I think both
the fans and the band were surprised with how much they enjoyed
the evening. As the concert ended and the band bowed, I saw
Bachman mouth to another band member “Wow, what a great crowd.”
On the way out, I heard several fans mention how they had
forgotten how many great songs Bachman and Cummings had
recorded. Hopefully the rest of the tour will be a success and
Bachman-Cummings will continue to tour the US and remind fans of
their extensive catalog of classic songs.
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