乌鸦传媒淐lassic乌鸦传媒� Rock, as a term, is a bit of misnomer. Rock isn乌鸦传媒檛 a language that no one speaks anymore. Rock music is ageless, organic, hardworking, vital, and speaks a language that everybody understands, and sings along to.

That said, there is something about the music of the late 乌鸦传媒�60s and early 乌鸦传媒�70s that defines guitar-based rock 乌鸦传媒� a driving energy and unprecedented songwriting that really warrants the term 乌鸦传媒渃lassic.乌鸦传媒�

You can ask Randy Bachman, who was at the forefront of the creation of the genre. He and his bands, like Bachman Turner Overdrive, helped define rock in the early 乌鸦传媒�70s. That sound, and those songs, are going rock Western Financial Place in Cranbrook when BTO comes to town Sunday, April 6. Time is going to stand still.

乌鸦传媒淚 look back now, it乌鸦传媒檚 like a whole genre,乌鸦传媒� Bachman said, on the phone from his home in Victoria,  ahead of going on tour with BTO next month. 乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 like Blues, or Jazz. Classic Rock, it乌鸦传媒檚 a thing all over the world.

And I乌鸦传媒檓 so grateful for the blessing of having started 乌鸦传媒� in the mid-60s with the Guess Who, and living through the wonderful period of time from about 乌鸦传媒�61 or 62,乌鸦传媒� to the late 乌鸦传媒�70s when Disco came in 乌鸦传媒� 14 years of amazing Classic Rock.乌鸦传媒�

The early 乌鸦传媒�70s was a fertile, inventive time for music. 乌鸦传媒淭here was so much happening musically,乌鸦传媒� Bachman said. 乌鸦传媒淎nd it was almost like people were waiting for BTO to arrive on the scene.乌鸦传媒�

A song has a unique power to grow beyond it乌鸦传媒檚 original writing 乌鸦传媒� an organic quality that leads it to take on a life of its own, to become something greater than its writer, and to exist outside the time it was created. This is perhaps nowhere more true than in the case of 乌鸦传媒淭aking Care of Business.乌鸦传媒� The hit from BTO乌鸦传媒檚 second album, released in December, 1973. That song in particular has achieved an almost mythological status.

乌鸦传媒溛谘淮�媒楾aking Care Of Business乌鸦传媒� has become universal," Bachman said in an interview with The Townsman. "It is used as a sports anthem 乌鸦传媒� kids at summer camp sing it, high school bands play it, symphonies play it. Presidential candidates have used it for theme songs. The world record for most guitar players have played it 乌鸦传媒�"

"Taking Care Of Business乌鸦传媒� took seven years to write, Bachman says.

乌鸦传媒淸I first] wrote it in the late 乌鸦传媒�60s, as 乌鸦传媒橶hite Collar Worker.乌鸦传媒� It died. Because I was copying 乌鸦传媒楶aperback Writer,乌鸦传媒� And I threw away the choruses, just kept the verses. And [one night] we sang the new hook 乌鸦传媒� 乌鸦传媒渢aking care of business乌鸦传媒� 乌鸦传媒� on stage live. And it was magical. The crowd went crazy, and they still go crazy every night.乌鸦传媒�

Bachman Turner Overdrive乌鸦传媒檚 origin story is also legendary in the annals of Rock history. Bachman, of course, a founding member of The Guess Who, was already in the thick of Rock and Roll with that band, experiencing international success and hit songs, and the accompanying grind and all the turbulence that comes with that success.

乌鸦传媒淚t was survival of the fittest, honestly,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淚 left The Guess Who 乌鸦传媒� it was 1970 乌鸦传媒� it was not a great time in my life. To leave a band 乌鸦传媒� punks from Winnipeg, who乌鸦传媒檇 had a number one album and single in the world乌鸦传媒� [American Woman乌鸦传媒漖.乌鸦传媒�

It was then Bachman developed a medical issue, and had to stay home in Winnipeg for three months.

乌鸦传媒淭hey went on without me. And suddenly I乌鸦传媒檓 out of the band. And I want to start over, but I can乌鸦传媒檛 compete with the magic voice of Burton Cummings, one of the greatest singers in the world. Still today.

乌鸦传媒淚 didn乌鸦传媒檛 want to be second-rate Guess Who. I can write Guess Who pop songs, but I didn乌鸦传媒檛 want to do that anymore.

So Bachman formed a Country Rock band 乌鸦传媒� Brave Belt.

乌鸦传媒淲e all liked Country Rock, so I started a band called Brave Belt, doing Country Rock. Buffalo Springfield had broken up, Poco had broken up, the Eagles hadn乌鸦传媒檛 quite started yet, they乌鸦传媒檙e still backing Linda Ronstadt. Neil Young got me a deal with Reprise Record in L.A. I fly down there, I do two Brave Belt albums, they kind of like it, but it just doesn乌鸦传媒檛 click. We乌鸦传媒檙e not in L.A. playing the Whiskey a Gogo, we乌鸦传媒檙e in Winnipeg, right? We乌鸦传媒檙e too far away. And then they say, 乌鸦传媒榳e gotta drop you.乌鸦传媒�

乌鸦传媒淭hen I had a guy in New York tell me having a name of a band that doesn乌鸦传媒檛 do you any good. No one knows who this new band is. Use your name, it乌鸦传媒檚 under all these records 乌鸦传媒� 乌鸦传媒楴o Time,乌鸦传媒� 乌鸦传媒楢merican Woman,乌鸦传媒� 乌鸦传媒楽he乌鸦传媒檚 Come Undone 乌鸦传媒� you gotta go with name recognition. Use the name Bachman.乌鸦传媒�

At this time, Bachman said, he couldn乌鸦传媒檛 get anyone to join his band.

乌鸦传媒淣obody would play with me, after leaving the Guess Who, the golden boys. So I had to go to my younger brothers [Robbie and Tal]. We start a band with Fred Turner, who I乌鸦传媒檝e known since I was 15 or 16. And we became Bachman-Turner 乌鸦传媒� three Bachmans and a Turner.

乌鸦传媒淭hat was the early 乌鸦传媒�70s. At the time there was Seals and Crofts, Brewer and Shipley ['One Toke Over The Line'] 乌鸦传媒� two guys with guitars. So we go in as Bachman-Turner, people think we乌鸦传媒檙e a folk act with two guys. We乌鸦传媒檙e trying to get people up dancing. I乌鸦传媒檓 trying to evolve out of Country Rock into something heavier, that people will dance to. And we乌鸦传媒檙e getting nowhere, but we keep trying.乌鸦传媒�

Then, in an almost apocryphal story, Bachman picked up a trucker magazine at a Husky truck stop in Windsor, called 乌鸦传媒淥verdrive. 乌鸦传媒淎 trucking term, but no one had ever used it in music,乌鸦传媒� Bachman said. He sought and got permission from the publisher to use the name Overdrive in the band.

乌鸦传媒淲e called the label, we乌鸦传媒檙e going to be called Bachman Turner Overdrive. They said, 'wow, those are three powerful words, but it乌鸦传媒檚 too long.' I said, we can call it BTO. They said, 乌鸦传媒楾hat乌鸦传媒檚 it!乌鸦传媒�

BTO乌鸦传媒檚 eponymous first album, was released in May, 1973. Shortly after its release, the band got a call from Scott Shannon, a programming director in St. Louis. Missouri.

乌鸦传媒淗e said, 乌鸦传媒橧 just got your album. I really like it. Nobody乌鸦传媒檚 is playing it, but I think there乌鸦传媒檚 something there. I乌鸦传媒檓 doing the same thing with a couple other friends of mine 乌鸦传媒� Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top, Pat Johnson from the Doobie Brothers, Charlie Daniels, the Alllman Brothers. You guys come and play my drive-in movie theatre, we乌鸦传媒檙e going to have a rock and roll weekend.'乌鸦传媒�

And so it happened. From there to New Orleans, and on tour with ZZ Top et al.

乌鸦传媒淓verybody thought we were a southern band. We乌鸦传媒檙e getting no airplay in Canada. And then the second album comes out, and we hit it lucky, with 乌鸦传媒楲et It Ride,乌鸦传媒� and 乌鸦传媒楾aking Care of Business乌鸦传媒� 乌鸦传媒� top 40 singles. And we乌鸦传媒檙e selling millions of albums and millions of singles.

乌鸦传媒淎nd suddenly, we乌鸦传媒檙e on top, and we don乌鸦传媒檛 even know it. Because we乌鸦传媒檙e on the road, 300 days a year in a station wagon, and we don乌鸦传媒檛 know what乌鸦传媒檚 going on in the world 乌鸦传媒� there乌鸦传媒檚 no MTV, there乌鸦传媒檚 no news or internet. We乌鸦传媒檙e struggling from gig to gig. And suddenly we hit number one again, with the Not Fragile album, and 乌鸦传媒榊ou Ain't Seen Nothin乌鸦传媒� Yet.乌鸦传媒�

乌鸦传媒淭hree solid years on the road. Three hundred gigs a year. That乌鸦传媒檚 what paid off. We worked and worked and worked.乌鸦传媒�

And the timing, after all, was right. The music was an idea who乌鸦传媒檚 time had come.

乌鸦传媒淧eople were looking for something a little bit heavier,乌鸦传媒� Bachman said. 乌鸦传媒淶eppelin was coming out. Things were getting away from the Beatles, and Pop music. This is like heavy, heavy guitars, which became heavy metal. It was a great genre to be in. Heavy pop, and suddenly, heavy rock.乌鸦传媒�

The original BTO line-up of Randy Bachman, Fred Turner, Tim Bachman, and Robbie Bachman released two albums in 1973. Blair Thornton joined in 1974, in place of Tim Bachman, and this line-up released four albums between 1974 and 1977, including two that reached the top 5 in the U.S. pop charts.

As the '70s moved into the '80s, through changing times and changing personnel, BTO released several more albums. The band disbanded in early 1980, reunited some year later, took a hiatus in the early 2000s. But their hit songs never went away.

And now, Randy Bachman has revived the band and is hitting the highway this year on a tour that hits B.C. in April. Joining Bachman are his son Tal Bachman on lead vocals and guitar, Koko Bachman on drums, Lance LaPointe on bass and vocals and Brent Howard on guitar and vocals.

Their aim is to electrify the crowd and see them get up and dance.

"The whole trick of our tour thing is people having fun and dancing," Bachman said. "And if you can do that when you乌鸦传媒檙e a kid 乌鸦传媒� and we were back in the 乌鸦传媒�60s and 乌鸦传媒�70s 乌鸦传媒� then you乌鸦传媒檙e lucky.

"And to get to now, 50 years later, and playing the same 18 or 20 songs, and having everybody, of all ages, from five and six to 95, reacting to these songs 乌鸦传媒� dancing, singing, playing air guitar, playing air drums, reliving moments of joy that are long forgotten, because nobody knows what the hell is happening tomorrow 乌鸦传媒� playing this music just unlocks memories for everybody."

B.C. tour dates:

April 1: Save-ON-Foods Memorial Centre, Victoria

April 3: Abbotsford Centre, Abbotsford

April 4: SOuth Okanagan Events Centre, Penticton

April 6, Western Financial Place, Cranbrook

April 8, CN Centre, Prince George

More information on the tour is.