Top

The Guess Who American Woman

March 21, 2012 by · Comments Off on The Guess Who American Woman 

The Guess Who American Woman, The Guess Who are a Canadian rock band from Winnipeg, Manitoba. Initially gaining recognition in Canada, they also found international success from the late 1960s through the mid-1970s with numerous hit singles, including “American Woman”, “These Eyes” and “Share the Land”. Several former members of The Guess Who, notably Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman (of Bachman-Turner Overdrive), have also found considerable success outside the band.

The band was inducted into The Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1987.

The Guess Who started out as a local Winnipeg band formed by singer/guitarist Chad Allan in 1958 and initially called Al and the Silvertones. This was changed to Chad Allan & the Reflections by 1962, by which point the band consisted of Chad Allan (vocals/guitar), Bob Ashley (keyboards), Randy Bachman (guitars), Jim Kale (bass), and Garry Peterson (drums). The Reflections name was chosen since it was similar to the British group The Shadows, which was one of the band’s biggest influences. All the band members were born in Winnipeg.

The band’s debut single (“Tribute To Buddy Holly”) was released on Canadian-American Records in 1962. Chad Allan and the Reflections then signed with Quality Records and released several flop singles in 1963/64, including one mis-credited to Bob Ashley & The Reflections. By 1965, the group was forced to change its name to Chad Allan & the Expressions after a U.S. group called The Reflections had scored a hit with “Just Like Romeo & Juliet”.

Bottom