Guess Who: Burton Cummings, Randy Bachman settle name lawsuit

A long-running battle over the Guess Who name has come to an end.

The Winnipeg rock band’s founding members Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman say they’ve settled their lawsuit with original members Jim Kale and Garry Peterson.

As part of the agreement, Cummings and Bachman have acquired the trademark for the band’s name, which was at the centre of the dispute.

Last year, Bachman and Cummings sued their former bandmates and alleged they had assembled a “cover band” to perform and release albums under the Guess Who name while misleading fans into thinking they were still involved in the act.

Lawyers for Kale and Peterson responded by saying the pair had used the Guess Who name for decades after Bachman and Cummings departed the band in the 1970s and that the statute of limitations had expired on a trademark dispute.

A representative for the band did not provide details about the settlement.

The Guess Who is one of Canada’s most recognized classic rock acts with a run of hits during the late 1960s and early 1970s that included “American Woman,” “These Eyes” and “No Sugar Tonight.”

   This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 4, 2024.