Randy Bachman to showcase more than 80 of his guitars at NMC exhibit in Studio Bell

Canadian rock legend Randy Bachman poses with his reunited Gretsch guitar, which was stolen in 1977, during the Lost and Found Guitar Exchange Ceremony Friday, July 1, 2022, at Canadian Embassy in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

TORONTO -

Randy Bachman is shedding light on his incredible guitar obsession with a new temporary exhibit set to open at Calgary's National Music Centre inside Studio Bell next month.

Organizers say the Guess Who co-founder and "Taking Care of Business" hitmaker will showcase more than 80 of his prized axes for "Randy Bachman: Every Guitar Tells a Story."

The exhibit will include instruments from every part of Bachman's career and feature videos of the 79-year-old musician telling the stories behind them.

Highlights include the first guitar Bachman purchased from a Sears catalogue at 13 years old and his signature 1959 Les Paul electric guitar, which was used on the Guess Who's beloved hits "These Eyes," "No Time" and "American Woman."

Also planned for the display is his rare first-year white Stratocaster, which he played on numerous Bachman-Turner Overdrive albums, and his 1957 Gretsch electric guitar, which was famously stolen from a Toronto hotel in 1976 and recovered last year in Tokyo.

The exhibit runs from May 5 to Oct. 1 at the National Music Centre, located inside Studio Bell.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 5, 2023.