Elvis Presley’s motto, “Taking Care of Business,” was inspired by a hit song. The King missed out on meeting the star who wrote it.
Elvis Presley‘s motto, “Taking Care of Business,” which inspired by a hit song from the 1970s called “Takin’ Care of Business.” The King of Rock ‘n’ Roll had a strong reaction to the tune when he heard it on the radio. Subsequently, one of the writers of the hit revealed why he never got to meet the “Hound Dog” singer.
Bachman-Turner Overdrive’s ‘Takin’ Care of Business’ inspired Elvis Presley
Randy Bachman founded both The Guess Who and Bachman-Turner Overdrive. During a 2022 interview with Loudersound, Bachman discussed the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll’s impact on him. “It was thanks to seeing Elvis doing ‘Tutti Frutti’ on TV that I gave up the classical violin and took up rock ‘n’ roll,” Bachman recalled. For context, Little Richard originally wrote and performed “Tutti Frutti” and Elvis covered it on the second side of his debut album, Elvis Presley.
“Years later, I wrote the song ‘Takin’ Care of Business’ for BTO,” Bachman added. “Elvis heard it on the radio and liked it so much he adopted it as his anthem.” The song is from 1973. To this day, a lot of Elvis merchandise is emblazoned with the abbreviation “TCB” after the motto.
Why Randy Bachman didn’t get to meet Elvis Presley but his bandmates did
Bachman never crossed paths with the “Heartbreak Hotel” singer but other members of Bachman-Turner Overdrive did. “Anyway, when BTO were falling apart, we were offered the chance to meet Elvis,” he said. “Well, the rest of the band were told about the meeting, but things were so bad between us that they never told me.”
Though he wasn’t present, Elvis took an interest in Bachman. “First thing he said was: ‘Where’s Randy Bachman, the guy who wrote that song?’” Bachman revealed. “They said: ‘Er, he didn’t wanna come along.’ I was devastated when I found out what had happened. This was the man who changed my life! But when Elvis died, one of his entourage gave me a solid gold pendant that he always wore. It had the letters TCB, with a lightning flash through it.”
How ‘Takin’ Care of Business’ performed on the charts
“Takin’ Care of Business” became one of Bachman-Turner Overdrive’s most famous hits. The tune climbed to No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Notably, Bachman-Turner Overdrive and Elvis were battling each other for chart supremacy at the time. Far lower on the chart, at No. 54, was Elvis’ song “If You Talk in Your Sleep.” The fact that the “Can’t Help Falling in Love” singer was still releasing hits in the mid-1970s shows how much of an icon he was.
Bachman never got to meet the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll but it’s clear the two influenced each other in major way.
