Drummer Robbie Bachman, the youngest of the three Canadian Bachman brothers who played in BTO and its predecessor Brave Belt, has died at the age of 69.
His oldest brother, Randy, tweeted the news Thursday evening, writing, "Another sad departure. The pounding beat behind BTO, my little brother Robbie has joined Mum, Dad and brother Gary [the second oldest and the only one not in a band] on the other side. Maybe Jeff Beck needs a drummer! He was an integral cog in our rock 'n' roll machine and we rocked the world together."
The other remaining Bachman brother is Tim, who played rhythm guitar with Randy in BTO and Brave Belt.
The brothers had various difficulties with each other following Randy's 1977 departure from Bachman-Turner Overdrive. When they were inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame at the 2014 Juno Awards, Randy and Robbie had been estranged since their father's funeral in 1993. In the late '80s, Randy sued Tim to prevent him from touring as BTO without any other original members, while Randy and Robbie were out with a reunited Bachman-Turner Overdrive.
In addition to drumming, Robbie Bachman also designed the group's signature "gear" logo.