The news of late is filled with sad headlines of rockers who have left this world for that great gig in the sky. Guitar-great Jeff Beck was a real shock. Even more shocking was seeing that Elvis’ daughter Lisa Marie died of cardiac arrest. I hadn’t realized she had struggles with opioid addiction.
But the biggest shock for me was seeing that Robbie Bachman, the drummer for Bachman-Turner Overdrive, had passed away. If you know me at all, you know that BTO has been a driving force in my life since their first album was released late in 1973. I saw BTO in concert in every decade from the ’70s up to the early 2000s when the band finally hung up their guitars for good. Little BTO story: I became self-employed for two reasons: One, my grandfather, who was a gambler, gave me some advice as I entered college which was “The house always wins. Be the house.” That sunk in, even at age 18. And two, from BTO’s “Taking Care of Business” came this line “If you ever get annoyed, look at me I’m self-employed. I love to work at nothing all day.” Oddly enough, from age 12 to 17, I had been self-employed. So upon entering college, I told my counselor my desire to run my own business, and he told me to get a degree in radio/television with a minor in business. He said I would be able to write my own ticket someday. And in 1986, almost exactly ten years after that counselor’s advice, I started my own business and have enjoyed “working at nothing all day” ever since.
So, in honor of Lisa Marie Presley’s passing, I dug out this drawing I did of Elvis with a 1957 Chevy in the background. This was one of the first car drawings I did as a “professional” illustrator. I did a couple more of the “classic rock year” mash-up of a band and a car from the same year. I got bored of the concept and started doing cars only, which became a lucrative source of income for me over the years.
And below, is a video I shot of Bachman-Turner Overdrive in the fall of 1990 in Naperville, Illinois, at an event called the “Last Fling” which is an annual event that ends with a classic rock band performing in a free concert. It was the last time the classic “Not Fragile” line-up of BTO ever performed together. I had just acquired an S-VHS camcorder (unfortunately it was monaural) and decided to capture the whole concert. By the end the concert, my right arm was worn out, and then a bunch of idiots saw I was recording and started jumping up and down in front of me so I had to dodge a lot of heads for BTO’s encore of “You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet” thus explaining the rather shaky video. RIP Robbie Bachman, may all your drum solos be epic.
Oh thank you for remembering Lisa Marie Presley the joy of drawing Elvis Presley’s for my nieces and nephew. To collecting records and watching his movies GI blues and Blue Hawaii they even had an Elvis day at lake Ontario park. Bachman Turner Overdrive never had the draw that Elvis or Earth wind and fire (Fred White the drummer died) had for me .Maybe it was the amount of radio play or being too butch they looked big burly and scary. But you encouraged interest in BTO but with 95% failure rate for small business owners it’ll take more than a butch guy towering over me to make me self employed. Love the car picture and how Lisa Marie dressed pulled off little black dress real well.
You’re welcome! I’m one of those quiet Elvis fans who watch his films and listen to his music but never make much noise about it. Not sure why. My mom loved Elvis so I’m sure that’s where I learned to dig his music.
Ah, the guys from BTO appear to be husky Canadians, but are gentle giants from what I’ve seen of them. For a few years there, BTO made a lot of noise and sold a ton of records, but their flame withered just as quickly. They were in the right place at the right time in my life as 1973 to 1977 were those formative years where I evolved from an innocent high school kid from the Midwest to a hard drinking, hard rockin’ college dude. Luckily, I outgrew that lifestyle or else I wouldn’t be here drawing comics about my life back in 1977. 🙂
Saw them live once in the early 70’s when they were touring small towns, I thought they’d go far 😉
I saw them every time they hit Chicago from ’74 to ’76. They blew the doors off of the old Chicago Stadium every time. The February ’76 show was the best one as they had Styx open up for them. One helluva show.
Unfortunately, the only time they played this little bitty town was when they were driving around playing in hockey rinks before they hit it big 🙁
We got a lot just before they became really popular, BTO, Lighthouse, Greaseball Boogie Band, Horslips, Stampeders, Powder Blues Band, Peppertree, etc.
If nobody’s heard of that last one, it’s a shame they didn’t go a lot further…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAgrcC-sNbE
I did get a chance to catch the Stampeders ten years or so ago when they dropped by the next town over, just as good as the first time.
I caught Sytx in Kingston, Ont around ’78 or ’79, great show, never been in the same area as them since 🙁
That’s the hazards of not living in a city, you don’t feel like driving a couple of hours back from a concert and it’s probably not safe after breathing the air in one either 😉
I was more the skinny mini skirted out layer when I entered college. More concerned about local bunnies, a bat hiding in brick work or spiders than being cool or dating. Just could not keep up with hard rocking dudes one can only run so fast in pumps.
The drumming in BTO was perfect for their sound, They did have a few different drummers at different times but Robbie made their distinctive sound his .
Yes, Guess Who drummer Garry Peterson played drums for BTO during the 1980s when Randy Bachman, brother Tim, and Fred Turner reformed the group. Robbie Bachman and Blair Thorton had issues with how Randy handled the band, so they bowed out during that time period. Robbie and Randy apparently did not get along in later years as Robbie carried quite the chip on his shoulder in interviews regarding Randy. It’s a shame the two brothers couldn’t get along.
Going to Heaven in a ’56 Chevy Bel-Air.
When I go, I’ve already asked my buddy with a backhoe to bury me in a ’69 ElDorado ragtop.
I don’t own one so he’ll have to steal it but that’s ok, I won’t mind 😉
The perfect crime. Stolen car buried where no one can find it. Nice way to go, man! And if he can’t find the real thing, he can have you cremated and stuff you into an Eldorado model. Close enough. 🙂
Nice! The late ’50s Bel-Airs are cool cars. My dad was a Chevy guy, so I grew up around those cars. I ended up being a Dodge person myself (thanks to the ’60 Charger) for most of my life but my ’93 Miata is the car of choice these days.
Well, if Mike Nesmith can take an El Dorado to the Moon, why not take a Bel-Air to Heaven?
There’s a Tesla on it’s way out of the solar system so it won’t be burning out on re-entry…
and of course that’s a lead in to this one…
It’s not the original but the art came out a little better, I think 😉
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8l121LGlWU
I saw Elvis in 1976. I was young.but it was my first concert. Its funny, at the time I didn’t care, but now its a flex. People who can’t handle their meds make me crazy. I am a chronic pain sufferer, I’ve been on a small opioid regimen for many years. I’ve never abused this. But the minute anybody finds out you get assumed to be a drug addict and a medication seeker. The abusers make it tough on the people who need pain management to function.
First, very cool first concert experience!
Second, what a bummer that the abusers ruin it for the vast majority of users who not only need these medications, but use them properly. I take Vyvance for my ADHD and it’s a controled substance and it’s hard as hell sometimes to get my doctor’s office and the pharmacy all on the same page so I don’t miss doses. Going on and off medications can be nasty shit and you’d think both my doctor and the pharmacy would be aware of that fact. Ugh.
Anyway, hello there! Hope life is treating you well other than the pain medication situation.
Sorry it took so long to see this post. Its been fun, memory issues. MRIs of my back are painting an ugly picture. They are doing my head next. I had to quit my Anti depressants and that was and still is a ripe slice of hell. You know how it is the joy and magic of getting old.
Sorry it took so long to see this post. Its been fun, memory issues. MRIs of my back are painting an ugly picture. They are doing my head next. I had to quit my Anti depressants and that was and still is a ripe slice of hell. You know how it is the joy and magic of getting old.
Babysat addicts for more years than I ever intended to, got paid but it still takes something out of you.
It’s everywhere though, the dirt was still settling on my mother’s grave and we were back at her house after the service when one of my sister’s ‘friends’ asked if she’d left any medications behind…I’d already cleaned them out and disposed of them because I knew what was coming…you shouldn’t have to do that.
Hint: the only time junkies read the newspaper is to see when a funeral is so they can do a quick B&E while everyone’s out and the first thing they head for is the medicine cabinet.
I have once or twice heard of the song “Taking care of Business,” but I never knew who sung the song or when it came out. Thanks to you now I do. Thank you for this musical history lesson.