As a soloist, after his time in The Guess Who and Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Randy Bachman churned out some great music. In 1992, he released an album that passed by largely unnoticed due to weak promotion—Any Road. “Prairie Town” had vocal contributions from Neil Young and The Cowboy Junkies’ Margot Timmins and is a song in which he reminisces about his early rock ‘n roll days in Winnipeg. “Overworked and Underpaid” echoes the kind of blue-collar rock that made B.T.O. so lovable and win over a generation of gearheads, and it is our 26th favourite song of all-time by a Canadian artist. Randy Bachman is a true Canadian legend and this song is him at his sizzling best.
Lyrics
From daybreak ’til the sun goes down
It’s just another day of the blues
Some work 9 to 5, some work all night
Everybody’s got to pay some kind of dues
Overworked and underpaid
Overworked and underpaid
Every blue collar feels his dollar getting smaller
It’s hard to keep from coming unglued
Sometimes you’re wrong, sometimes you’re right
Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose
And there’s a price you have to pay
To go on living day to day
No satisfaction guaranteed
Overworked and underpaid
Overworked and underpaid
It’s a treadmill existence with no way out
You either hang loose or hang tight
You know that you can shake it, you can always get by
Keep on keepin on ’til you get it right
And there’s a price you have to pay
To go on living day to day
No satisfaction guaranteed
Overworked and underpaid
Overworked and underpaid
Some have it made in the shade
Overworked and underpaid
…
Summary
Song: “Overworked and Underpaid”
Album: Any Road
Year: 1992
Artist: Randy Bachman
Origin: Winnipeg, MB
To view other songs in the Top 50, click on 50 Favourite Songs in the Categories menu on the right-hand column.
