AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Guess Who

Artist:The Guess Who

Song:American Woman

Album:Track Record: The Guess Who Collection

The 1970 single American Woman was one of two number one hits for the Canadian band The Guess Who. It's their biggest hit. By the time The Guess Who became internationally famous, they had been around for over a decade. When they first formed in Winnipeg in 1958, singer and guitarist Chad Allan called them Al and the Silvertones. By 1962, they were called Chad Allan and the Reflections. with Randy Bachman on guitar, Jim Kale on bass and Garry Peterson on drums. All three would remain in the band. Bob Ashley was the pianist. They released a few singles that went nowhere. After the group The Reflections scored a 1964 hit single with (Just Like) Romeo and Juliet, Allan changed the band name to Chad Allan and the Expression. And that's when they released the 1965 single Shakin' All Over. That was originally recorded by the British band Johnny Kidd & the Pirates. Shakin' All Over topped the Canadian charts and reached #22 on the Billboard Hot 100. As a publicity stunt, the band's label Quality Records credited the single to Guess Who? to generate speculation that the record was by a British Invasion band working incognito. The stunt backfired when DJs kept crediting the single to Guess Who and ultimately the band was forced to accept the new name. Pianist Bob Ashley got tired of touring and left in Jan. 1966. He was replaced by Burton Cummings who could also sing. At first, he shared lead vocals with Allan. But Allan soon left the band to work for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). He was not replaced. On the 1966 album It's Time, Bachman wrote most of the songs. The Guess Who were the house band for the CBC TV show Let's Go hosted by Chad Allan. So they were doing OK in Canada. The other key figure in The Guess Who's development was ad executive Jack Richardson. He saw The Guess Who on TV and put together a promotion with Coca-Cola featuring The Guess Who and The Staccatos. When the promotion was a success, Richardson started his own Nimbus 9 label and produced all of The Guess Who's albums. He signed with RCA Records for the 1969 album Wheatfield Soul. These Eyes was a top ten hit. This was followed by the album Canned Wheat and the hit single Laughing. And then they broke through with American Woman. Most of The Guess Who songs were written by Cummings and Bachman. According to Cummings, American Woman was improvised on stage at a concert at the Scarborough curling rink The Broom and Stone. It came out of a jam session. They saw a kid recording it on a cassette and they listened to it so Burton could formally write the lyrics. American Woman topped the charts and is still memorable today. Remember when Lenny Kravitz covered American Woman in 1999. That gave the song to a whole new generation. It's generally perceived to be an anti Vietnam War song. The B side No Sugar Tonight also topped the charts. Randy Bachman left The Guess Who in May 1970. He wasn't getting along with Cummings. Bachman went on to form Brave Belt and then had great success with Bachman Turner Overdrive. He was replaced by Kurt Winter and Greg Leskiw. Leskiw became Cummings' songwriting partner. After that The Guess Who was not as successful and they disbanded in 1975. This 2CD budget comp has all their hits. Cummings went on to a successful solo career. Here's The Guess Who performing American Woman 1970. This was before Bachman left. You can spot him hiding in the background.