The precursor to BTO was the band Brave Belt, which was formed in 1970 by Randy Bachman and Chad Allan (both of The Guess Who), Robbie Bachman and Fred Turner. An original form of the group included musician Keith Emerson of The Nice (and later of Emerson, Lake & Palmer), but he was dropped due to illness. After two moderately successful Brave Belt albums came out, Allan was replaced by Tim Bachman, the third of the Bachman brothers, and the band changed its name to Bachman-Turner Overdrive.
Hailing from Winnipeg, Canada as stated before, BTO released their first album under that name in the spring of 1973. Their second album was Bachman-Turner Overdrive II, and it became a massive hit in the US and their native Canada. It also yielded their best-remembered single, "Takin' Care of Business" written by Randy Bachman. BTO were one of the early hard rock bands which opted for songs backed by catchy melodies and powerful riffing. The band also promoted a strait-laced lifestyle due to the Mormon religious beliefs of Randy Bachman.
Tim Bachman left because of limited performance skills and personal lifestyle issues, and was replaced by Blair Thornton. The first album with the modified lineup, 1974's Not Fragile became a hit, including the #1 single "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet". The band continued to steadily produce successful albums through the mid-1970s including Four Wheel Drive and Head On (both 1975).
After the release of Freeways in 1977, Randy Bachman left the group for a solo career and another band, Ironhorse. Randy was replaced by Jim Clench, formerly of April Wine, and BTO released a pair of albums before breaking up in 1979. They reunited in 1983, leading to a lawsuit between the brothers, as one group, led by Randy, toured as Bachman-Turner Overdrive and another, led by Robbie, toured as BTO (Robbie Bachman, Fred Turner, Blair Thornton, and Randy Murray). Interestingly enough, in 1984 the line up for Bachman-Turner's first studio LP in 5 years consisted of Randy and Tim Bachman, Fred Turner and Garry Peterson on drums. In 1986 they were the opening band for the newly reformed Van Halen. By that time Fred Turner had left the band, probably to join the "other" BTO. Robbie Bachman's BTO toured and performed until early 2005.
Musicians Randy Bachman and Fred Turner reunited in 2010 for a tour and collaboration on new songs. In 2010, they notably played the half-time show at the Grey Cup in Edmonton, AB.
Website: http://www.bachmanandturner.com/
Heartaches
Bachman-Turner Overdrive Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Had some time on my hands
The world's greatest plans in my jeans
I saw you, you came to me like you knew me
I don't think you knew that it threw me
I didn't know what to say to you then
I knew it would end up in
Visions of loving you and
Heartaches
Wishing we hadn't met for my sake
Seeing you here, is all I can stand
Every night I stand on the street where you left me
Standing in with the crowd
Trying not to look like I'm hangin' around
There you are, I see you once more and you're lovely
I try to tell myself, I'm not hungry
But every time you sway I get carried away
I need you more every day and my
Heartaches
Visions of loving you and
Heartaches
Wishing we hadn't met for my sake
Seeing you here, is all I can stand
I'm only a man who has heartaches
Deep burning pain as my heart breaks
Watchin' you walk sets my soul aflame
I could put the blame on the world's oldest game
I know the ways, I know that to pay won't relieve me
Cause it's not from the heart
It's only the act not the flame
I only wait and hope for the love that you're holding
Deep down inside you've been holdin' for that special time
But I don't see a sign, it's just not your mind
And my
Heartaches
Visions of loving you and
Heartaches
Wishing we hadn't met for my sake
Seeing you here, is all I can stand
I'm only a man who has heartaches
Deep burning pain as my heart breaks
Watchin' you walk sets my soul aflame
I could put the blame on the world's oldest game
Heartaches yeah yeah
Heartaches, heartaches
Let me tell you about my
Heartaches, heartaches, heartaches
Let me tell you about my
Heartaches, heartaches, oh
Bachman-Turner Overdrive's song Heartaches is a bittersweet tale of unrequited love and longing. The lyrics describe a man who is struggling with his feelings for a woman he has met. He was initially alone with his thoughts and big plans, when she unexpectedly appeared in his life. He was thrown off by her presence and didn't know what to say. He knew that his heart would be broken because he was falling for her, yet he couldn't help himself. Every time he sees her, he is filled with longing and despair, and he can't help but feel a deep burning pain in his heart.
The song is about how love can consume a person, even when it is not reciprocated. The lyrics talk about the deep feelings of longing and heartache that come with unrequited love. The singer knows that he is hurting himself by continuing to love someone who will not love him back, but he cannot help himself. The song is a reminder that love can be both beautiful and painful.
Line by Line Meaning
Look at me, I was just a man who was lonely
I was an individual in search of companionship.
Had some time on my hands
I had leisure time with nothing to do.
The world's greatest plans in my jeans
I was optimistic and ambitious in my mindset.
I saw you, you came to me like you knew me
When I met you it felt like we've met before.
I don't think you knew that it threw me
I don't think you were aware of how much you impacted me.
I didn't know what to say to you then
I was at a loss for words and had no idea what to say to you.
I knew it would end up in Heartaches
I knew our story would not have a happy ending.
Visions of loving you and Heartaches
I couldn't help but picture myself being in love with you which would inevitably cause me heartbreak.
Wishing we hadn't met for my sake
I wished we had never met as it would have saved me the pain that I feel now.
Seeing you here, is all I can stand
Seeing you is all I can tolerate, it's difficult for me to be around you.
Every night I stand on the street where you left me
I constantly revisit the place where our paths separated.
Standing in with the crowd
I try to blend in and act as if I'm not waiting for you.
Trying not to look like I'm hangin' around
I make an effort to appear as if I'm doing something else and not standing there hoping to see you.
There you are, I see you once more and you're lovely
When I see you again, I can't help but be charmed by your beauty.
I try to tell myself, I'm not hungry
I try to convince myself that I'm not in need of your affection.
But every time you sway I get carried away
Every time you move, I find myself getting drawn to you.
I need you more every day and my Heartaches
My pain intensifies as I become more emotionally reliant on you.
I'm only a man who has heartaches
I'm only human and prone to feelings of pain and sadness when it comes to love.
Deep burning pain as my heart breaks
The pain of heartbreak is intense and all-consuming.
Watchin' you walk sets my soul aflame
Observing you walk away creates a feeling of intense passion within me.
I could put the blame on the world's oldest game
I could blame love for my pain, but the truth is that it's my own fault for falling for you.
I know the ways, I know that to pay won't relieve me
I'm aware of how to cope with the pain of heartbreak, but I know that there's no quick fix to solving it.
Cause it's not from the heart
The pain I feel is not physical, but emotional.
It's only the act not the flame
The attraction I had towards you was just physical rather than a deep and profound love.
I only wait and hope for the love that you're holding
I wait and hope that you reciprocate the same love and affection back to me.
Deep down inside you've been holdin' for that special time
I believe that you also feel the same way that I do but you're just waiting for the right time to express it.
But I don't see a sign, it's just not your mind and my Heartaches
As much as I want to believe that you feel the same way about me, I see no signs of it which causes me more pain.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CHARLES FRED TURNER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@sauquoit13456
On this day in 1979 {May 5th} Bachman-Turner Overdrive performed "Heartaches" on the ABC-TV Saturday-afternoon program, 'American Bandstand'...
Five weeks earlier "Heartaches" peaked at position #60 {for 1 week} on Billboard's Hot Top 100 chart and it spent seven weeks on the Top 100...
It reached #32 on the Canadian RPM Singles chart...
Between 1973 and 1979 the Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada quartet had eleven records on the Hot Top 100 chart, one made the Top 10 and it peaked at #1*, "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet", for one week on November 3rd, 1974 and it stayed on the Top 100 for seventeen weeks...
They also had one Top 20 record, "Takin' Care of Business", it reached #12 in 1974...
* And from the 'For What It's Worth' department; "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" prevented "Jazzman" by Carole King from reaching the top spot, "Jazzman" peaked at #2 for one week the same week that "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" reached #1...
@beanyrich2764
I LOVE THIS SONG.
@jtbrock
Not a well known fact, but Anne Murray covered this song in 1986 on her Something To Talk About album.
@yevetterich8135
I love BTO ive been a fan forever,love allthere music. but i really love this song! Beany Rich. Wva.
@menchitty11
Yes to both! Bryan Adams did sing lead on Roxy Roller when he was lead singer for Sweeney Todd, and Nick Gilder also provided lead vocals for the same song during his tenure with Sweeney Todd.
@ccalccol
entered Billboard Feb 24, 1974 ..reached #64
@joeblow7740
+Colin Sanders No, later than that.
@menchitty11
That's right! Adams wrote "Wastin' Time" and Vallance wrote "Jamaica" and "Rock & Roll Hell", and co-wrote "Here She Comes Again" and "Amelia Earhart". Vallance also acted as producer.
@zachhoran
An unknown Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance had a songwriting credit or two on this album.
@zachhoran
He did sing on Sweeney Todd's Roxy Roller at one point, no? Or was that NIck Gilder of Hot CHild in the City fame?