Robbie Bachman, Bachman-Turner Overdrive, passes away at 69

NEW YORK (AP) — Robbie Bachman, the drummer for the Canadian hard rock band Bachman-Turner Overdrive that was known for such 1970s hits as “Takin’ Care of Business” and “You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet,” has died at age 69.

Randy Bachman, his brother and best friend, announced his death on social media, but did not give a cause.

“The pounding beat of BTO has left us,” Randy Bachman wrote. “He was an integral cog in our rock ‘n roll machine and we rocked the world together.”

Winnipeg natives, The Bachman Brothers, had been playing music since childhood.

Robbie Bachman was first a member of the Brave Belt with his brother Randy, who is a singer, guitarist, and songwriter. The group Brave Belt was formed in 1970 by the elder Bachman after the dissolution of the Guess Who.

Together with Tim Bachman (later replaced with Blair Thornton on guitar) and Fred Turner (bass), the two Bachmans formed Bachman-Turner Overdrive. They sold millions of records in three years thanks to their combination of catchy melodies and grinding guitar riffs. “You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet” topped the charts, and the band’s other hits included “Takin’ Care of Business,” “Hey You” and “Roll On Down the Highway.”

One well known fan, Stephen King, adopted the pen name “Richard Bachman” as a partial homage to BTO.

Randy Bachman, who left the group in mid-1970s gave permission for the remaining members to call themselves BTO (but not Bachman Turner Overdrive) to disengage himself from the band. Robbie Bachman and his bandmates continued to tour and record as BTO. However, their popularity declined and they ended up disbanding in 1980.

The band saw sporadic reunions over the years, and occasionally legal battles as Robbie Bachman and Randy Bachman fought for royalties and the rights to the band name. The brothers rarely performed together after the early 1990s, with Robbie Bachman once telling The Associated Press that Randy had “belittled” the other band members and likened them to the fictional parody group Spinal Tap.

Robbie Bachman has been semi-retired for the past few years. Bachman-Turner Overdrive inducted into Canada’s Music Hall of Fame in 2014.