BURTON CUMMINGS

In 1975, after 10 years, Cummings left The Guess Who to become a solo artist and the group disbanded. Solo hits in Canada included "Stand Tall" (also his only American hit, peaking at #10), "I'm Scared," "Break it to Them Gently," and "Fine State of Affairs." Cummings charted outside Canada with "Stand Tall" and "You Saved My Soul." His Dream of A Child album released in 1978 was the biggest Canadian album in history at that time. Burton helped the sales of this album through extensive autograph signing. Cummings ultimately made the move to Sherman Oaks, California, and began writing and singing for films in the late 1970s. He currently winters in California and returns to Winnipeg in the summer, living in Canada throughout autumn. He co-starred in the movie "Melanie." In 2000, Cummings, Bachman and original drummer Garry Peterson toured as The Guess Who. Bassist Jim Kale played one show and former Guess Who sidemen Donnie McDougall and Bill Wallace re-joined the line-up through the remainder of the tour in Canada and later in the U.S. Cummings purchased Winnipeg's "Salisbury House" restaurant chain with manager Lorne Saifer and a few other local celebrities. He also toured with the re-united The Guess Who from 2000 through the summer of 2003. In 2001, Burton and the rest of The Guess Who received honorary doctorates at Brandon University in Brandon, Manitoba. Cummings was also made a member of the Order of Manitoba. Most recently, the band played at the so-called "SARSstock" concert in Toronto. On November 23rd, 2004, Burton Cummings' new single "With God on Our Side" debuted at 21st spot on a Canadian music internet music chart. "With God on Our Side" is a cover of the famous Bob Dylan song. Cummings continues to work on releasing a new album, plays occasional shows with Randy Bachman as The Bachman-Cummings Band, featuring The Carpet Frogs, a band from Toronto and makes occasional appearances at various Canadian casinos as a solo performer. The Bachman-Cummings Band have released a compilation album titled the Bachman Cummings Song Book featuring hits from The Guess Who, Bachman-Turner Overdrive and Cummings' solo career. They have also released an album titled The Thunderbird Trax, which is an album that Cummings and Bachman recorded in Bachman's toolshed in British Columbia in 1987, this album was previously never released for the general public, and in 2006 was finally released for sale exclusively at Bachman-Cummings concerts, and not online or in stores. It is now available on the Bachman-Cummings website (see below). First Time Around TV Special now on DVD released Nov 2006 on the Sony BMG label. Cummings' first new studio album in 17 years, since Plus Signs was released on June 12, 2007 as a Bachman & Cummings album. The album is titled Jukebox and covers various songs from the 1960s that influenced Bachman and Cummings. There are already plans for a follow up album to Jukebox with Jukebox II sometime in the future, as well as a Television special. Burton Cummings released his first solo album of new material in 18 years titled Above The Ground The album is has 19 tracks - all original songs written by Cummings on November 4, 2009. Many of the tunes had been written by Cummings over the years and were recorded with the help of his touring band The Carpet Frogs from Toronto. Above the Ground has been highly anticipated and has been at or near the top of the Amazon.ca charts since its release. The release also includes a behind the scenes look at the recording process. Above the Ground is a Canadian release. A U.S. release of the album is scheduled for Spring/Summer 2010. On Dec. 30, 2009, Cummings was named an officer of the Order of Canada, by Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean. dedication to community and service to the nation