Bachman-Turner Overdrive - Bachman-Turner Overdrive II [25]

Title: Bachman-Turner Overdrive - Bachman-Turner Overdrive II
Year/Genre/Sub-Genre/City: 1973, Rock, Hard Rock, Winnipeg, Manitoba 10/26
Matrix #: SRM-1-696 (Mercury, US, red label, 1973 Phonogram); runout not legible in photo
Condition: EX (LM) | Members: Randy B (43' - ), Fred T (43' - ), Tim B (51' - 23'), Robbie B (53' - 23') | Producer: Randy Bachman
Cultural Facts: [25]

1. Overdrive From a Truck Stop: Randy Bachman had walked away from The Guess Who in 1970, right as American Woman was topping the charts. His next band, Brave Belt, went nowhere until bassist Fred Turner took over more of the singing and the group rebranded. The Overdrive part of the name came from a trucking magazine called Overdrive that the band spotted on the road, which fit the blue-collar sound they were going for.
2. A Radio Catchphrase Became the Hit: Takin' Care of Business started life as a Bachman song called White Collar Worker that he felt was missing something. The fix came from a Winnipeg radio DJ whose on-air sign-off was a line about taking care of business, which Bachman heard while driving and swapped into the chorus. The finished track went to No. 12 in the US and became one of the most licensed songs in rock, showing up in ads and ballparks for decades.
3. Labels Kept Saying No: Before Mercury signed them, the band's demos were turned down by a long list of record companies. Mercury's Charlie Fach took a chance, and this second album, with Takin' Care of Business and Let It Ride, turned them into a headlining act within a year of the debut.