Whatzup
Not Fragile (1974)
Bachman Turner Overdrive

by Dennis Donahue BTO

      Randy Bachman was the founding member of the Canadian singles band The Guess Who, which he left in 1970 after creative differences forced him into solo exile. He soon after teamed up with Fred Turner and his brother Tim Bachman to form Bachman Turner Overdrive in 1972.

      In 1974, the tour de force Not Fragile was released to a warm critical reception until the single “You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet” altered rock music as we know it. (Randy didn’t intend to release this with the stuttering vocals. He sang it with the stutter to make fun of his brother, Gary, who had a speech impediment. During mic checks he would sing it with the stutter, then, as a goof he would record it and give it to Gary. The record execs liked it better, so that’s the one they released.)

      Not Fragile was the third release by the original line-up and also gave us the rock anthems “Roll On Down The Highway” and “Not Fragile.” Being of Mormon persuasion the Bachman boys didn’t actually live out the rock n' roll lifestyle that they sang of, but rather, were nonetheless adopted by the ‘blue-collar’ crowds that followed their career across North America throughout the 1970s.

      This is the most popular BTO album, because quite frankly - it's the band’s finest work. Considered a little too commercial for its time, it has since been measured as one of the best ‘southern rock’ albums of the 70s. Bachman Turner Overdrive had other hits, such as “Hey You” and “Takin’ Care Of Business” (released before Not Fragile), but after the jazzy single “Lookin’ Out For #1” in 1976, BTO all but disappeared from the charts.

      They released their last record in 1984 and have nine greatest hits compilations. That’s right, nine. 

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