Garry Peterson

Garry Peterson (born May 26, 1945) is a Canadian drummer. He has been in The Guess Who and Bachman–Turner Overdrive.

He was born in Winnipeg, and started playing the drums at age two, and professionally when he was four years old. When he was six, he played drums for Peggy Lee at the Chicago Theatre. At nine years old, he joined the American Federation of Musicians. Garry has also backed Lionel Hampton, The Four Lands, and The Andrew Sisters.

Garry and Randy Bachman from the band The Embers met Chad Allan, Bob Ashley, and Jim Kale and became Chad Allan and the Reflections. They later changed to The Guess Who. The Guess Who charted fourteen Top 40 singles in the United States and more than thirty in Canada. These songs include “American Woman”, “These Eyes”, “Laughing”, “No Sugar Tonight/New Mother Nature”.

The Guess Who stopped in 1975, and Garry formed an unsuccessful band with Roy Kenner. He later worked jobs in a hotel and as an insurance salesman. He backed Burton Cummings for a while, until 1983, when he decided to leave Cummings to join Bachman–Turner Overdrive. Peterson plays on their 1984 Bachman–Turner Overdrive album. Garry was kicked off of the bands tour after breaking his ankle in an Ice hockey accident. Garry has received a phone call from Tim Bachman saying that the band “no longer required” him. Peterson’s booting from BTO was an especially dark time for him, as he lost his house since he was receiving no income, and Burton Cummings never forgave him for ditching him to go with Bachman.

A year after leaving Bachman—Turner Overdrive, he went back to The Guess Who. From 2023 onwards, Bachman and Burton Cummings have been getting into legal battles with the new Guess Who featuring Garry Peterson. These battles include a Cease and desist and accusations of false advertising. As a result of a court agreement, as of April 2024, Peterson’s Guess Who can not perform songs written/co-written by Cummings or Bachman.

Garry has received many honors as a part of the Guess Who. These include, an induction into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame (1987), induction into the Canada's Walk of Fame (1999), and receiving the Governor General's Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement for their contributions to popular music in Canada (2002).

Born in Canada, Garry now lives in the United States, Greensboro, North Carolina, with his wife Kimberly.