Brother (Canadian band)

Brother was formed in 1969 by guitarist/singer Kurt Winter, bassist/singer Bill Wallace, and drummer/singer Vance Schmidt (later known as Vance Masters). They were together for less than six months and are only known to have recorded three songs.[1][2] In the summer of 1970, the band members organized and headlined the Niverville Pop Festival, Manitoba's first rock festival.[3][4]

Through the Winnipeg rock scene, the members of Brother were longtime acquaintances of The Guess Who; and the two bands often attended each other's gigs.[5] Guitarist Randy Bachman left The Guess Who in mid-1970, and that band's leader Burton Cummings recruited Winter as Bachman's replacement.[6] Winter took some unrecorded Brother songs with him, including "Hand Me Down World" and "Bus Rider" which appeared on the 1970 Guess Who album Share the Land.[7] Some later Guess Who songs including "Rain Dance" and "Runnin' Back to Saskatoon" were also based on Brother songs.[1]

Brother ceased to exist after Winter's departure, with Wallace and Schmidt joining other Manitoba bands.[2] The three members of Brother briefly reunited in 1971 to record the single "Sending Money"; the recording was financed by Winter but it failed to attract notice.[8] The Guess Who's bassist Jim Kale departed that band in 1972 and was replaced by Wallace, making him the second member of Brother to move to The Guess Who.[9] Winter and Wallace were members of The Guess Who simultaneously for about two years; Winter left that band in 1974,[10] and Wallace remained until the band split in 1975.[11]

After The Guess Who broke up, various former members of that band attempted reunion tours with floating lineups. Winter briefly joined a lineup led by Jim Kale in 1977-78. Schmidt, now known as Vance Masters, joined Burton Cummings's solo band in 1978 and the following year he briefly participated in a different reunion lineup of The Guess Who, again led by Kale.[8] Wallace contributed to a Guess Who reunion show in 1979 and a lengthy nostalgia tour from 2000 to 2003.[12]

Brother reformed one more time for a charity performance in 1994.[1] Winter died in 1997.[13] Masters (Schmidt) is still active in the Manitoba music scene.[8]