Fred Turner (musician)

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C.F (Fred) Turner (born Charles Frederick Turner, 16 October 1943 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada) was a founding member of the 1970's rock band Bachman-Turner Overdrive.

Fred Turner played in a number of bands during his early adult years. Based upon advice Randy Bachman received from Neil Young, he was subsequently asked to join his band, Brave Belt.^{[citation needed]} Brave Belt later became known as Bachman-Turner Overdrive (BTO). While Randy Bachman was the more widely-known name because of his years with The Guess Who, Robbie Bachman accurately stated for the record in numerous interviews that there could have been no "BTO sound" without Turner's contributions: "The first Brave Belt albums were very country rock. Everything changed when Fred joined the band. We had Fred Turner's heavy, rough voice. Randy is not really a hard rock guy. Fred Turner's got the voice. We evolved because of Mr. Turner."^[1]

When Randy Bachman quit BTO in 1979, Turner switched from playing bass to rhythm guitar to make room for bassist/vocalist Jim Clench.

Fred Turner last played on stage in 2004 with Randy Murray, and was backed by members of the Little River Band because drummer Robbie Bachman was unable to make BTO's last show.

He was the lead vocalist on most of Bachman-Turner Overdrive's most memorable tracks. He is known for his powerful, soulful voice^{[citation needed]}, as evidenced on "Not Fragile," "Roll on Down the Highway," "Let It Ride," "Blue Collar" and "House of the Rising Sun."

He is currently retired.