The Guess Who Show They Still Got it at Place Bell in Laval, QC [Photos]

Nostalgia is a powerful drug. The future may be clouded in mystery, but we often find ourselves looking at the past through rose-coloured glasses. This night featured a city-wide bicycle tour, a visiting country music superstar and a playoff hockey game. Despite it all, several thousand fans packed Laval’s Place Bell. All of them looking to have a good time in the present while revisiting the past.

Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman are Canadian rock royalty. As The Guess Who, and on their own, they have been rocking the world since the 1960s. It has been 23 years since they last toured together. That stretch of time came to an end this year. Their “Takin’ It Back Tour” promised fans the chance to experience once again the awesome music that The Guess Who have gifted us with over the years.

Opening the evening was another guitarist who certainly befits the status of legend, Don Felder. Eagles guitarist and writer of songs we all know and love, Felder, hit the stage with a thousand-yard smile. As one would expect, the set was full of classic Eagles songs. Beginning the set with “Already Gone” got the crowd grooving right from the start. Don Felder still plays a mean guitar, and his voice is as great now as it was back in the ’70s.

“One Of These Nights” and “Victim Of Love” quickly followed, but not before Felder shared little stories about the songs and that magical period of time when he was part of a band that ruled the world. We got some of his solo work as well. Including the very catchy “I Like The Things You Do.” Everything led to “Hotel California,” which closed his set. It may be true that you can check out any time you want, but there was nobody in the stands who wanted to leave. This was a great performance.

Before The Guess Who hit the stage, we were treated to a video retrospective. It showed the evolution of the band through the years. The crowd then erupted as Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings hit the stage. A long lawsuit has prevented them from touring as The Guess Who for several years now. Those issues taken care of, they decided to hit the road, giving the fans a more than welcome flashback to another time.

They opened with the instrumental “969 (The Oldest Man).” Bachman showed that he can still command the guitar. It also allowed Burton Cummings the chance to regale us with a flute solo early in the show. “Proper Stranger” gave us some vocals, and we found that Cummings can still hit all of the necessary notes. The band was rocking at full blast for “Hand Me Down World.”

The rest of the night featured a series of greatest hits and some stories about the songs and touring over the years. The wonderful trip back through time came to an end with “Takin’ Care Of Business.” Business had indeed been taken care of. The Guess Who was back. They claimed the Canadian Rock Crown in the late ’60s and early ’70s. In 2026, they still lay claim to the crown.