The Story and Meaning Behind “Laughing,” the Not-So-Happy Smash by The Guess Who

The Guess Who worked their way from local Canadian stars to major American hitmakers as the ’60s turned into the ’70s. That period of success was marked by the songwriting collaboration of Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings, and it included “Laughing,” a wonderful Top-10 ballad from 1969.

What was the song about? How did Bachman first come up with the idea for the song? And why was this successful songwriting partnership so short-lived? Let’s find out all about how “Laughing” came to bittersweet life.

Who Are They?

Name changes are common among bands, and The Guess Who underwent their share of them. Forming in Canada, they were originally fronted by Chad Allan, which can explain the early names Al and the Silvertones and Chad Allan and the Reflections. The Guess Who moniker came about when the band’s record company sent out one of their singles to radio stations in 1965 and thought a mysterious name might convince DJs to play it. It worked, and the name stuck.

That early Canadian hit single (and a minor one in the U.S.) was “Shakin’ All Over,” but the band couldn’t quite break out of their local environs for a few years after that. Allan left the band and was replaced by Burton Cummings, who had already joined as keyboardist and then took over as lead vocalist.

Guitarist Randy Bachman had been doing most of the band’s songwriting when they weren’t playing cover songs. However, for the 1969 album Wheatfield Soul, Cummings and Bachman became more of a songwriting team. That duo penned the band’s first big U.S. hit “These Eyes,” which showed that they had a touch for the slow songs. “Laughing” continued in that vein.

Writing “Laughing”

Randy Bachman came up with the idea for “Laughing” while the band was driving from town to town around Canada playing shows. As they’d travel through the various regions, they’d pick up different local radio stations. But all the stations tended to play the same songs, one of which was the Bee Gees’ then-current hit “New York Mining Disaster 1941.”

To pass the time, Bachman started strumming the opening chords to the Bee Gees song, but he started changing the notes ever so slightly to create a slightly different feel. As he endlessly fooled around with it, Cummings began to get annoyed and suggested they write some lyrics to the thing already. Since the music seemed to suggest a Roy Orbison-type feel, they decided on the title “Laughing,” since Orbison had famously done a song called “Crying.”

Unfortunately, as quickly as the Cummings/Bachman songwriting partnership hit its groove, it just as quickly dissolved. After The Guess Who churned out six Top-25 hits in 1969 and 1970, Bachman left the band, due to both differences with Cummings and his desire for clean living clashed with the rest of the band’s partying ways.

What is the Meaning of “Laughing”?

“Laughing” presents the cruel dichotomy that has arisen between former lovers in how they’re handling their breakup. The narrator is devastated, but the girl seems to have moved beyond it to the point she’s practically gleeful. Cummings drives this point home with his ha-ha-ha vocals towards the song’s end.

The guy, however, can’t take things so lightly: I should laugh, but I cry / Because your love has passed me by. He can’t find anything about which to be joyful: I go alone now, calling your name / After losing at the game. In the chorus, he explains how devastated he is by her callousness: Laughing it ain’t the way it should be / You took away everything I had, you put the hurt on me.

The Burton Cummings-led version of The Guess Who churned out a few more hits following Bachman’s departure, while Bachman found success with Bachman Turner Overdrive. But that two-year sweet-spot period where everything was rolling for these two is undeniable, and “Laughing” is a shining example of it.

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