Randy Bachman has no problem coming across as a regular guy.

He co-founded the Guess Who and Bachman Turner Overdrive, bands responsible for staples of hoser rock such as “American Woman”, “Taking Care of Business” and “Let It Ride”. Unshaven and dressed-down, BTO swaggered through a sea of 70s glam rock like the Trailer Park Boys at a drag show.

Which makes Bachman an interesting choice to kick off Luminato, a festival that supposedly celebrates all things hoity-toity.

The “Toronto festival of arts and creativity” decided to honour the guitar this year. Its organizers could have done worse than picking one of Canada’s seminal guitar heroes to perform a free opening night set at Yonge-Dundas Square.

Bachman’s appearance dovetails nicely with festival features about his idol and mentor, guitarist Lenny Breau, including the one-man play, 5 O’Clock Bells and a 90-minute documentary, The Genius of Lenny Breau.

At 65, Bachman looks like an aging mechanic who happens to play guitar like god. Unfortunately Bachman’s thin, rickety vocals left one yearning for Burton Cummings’ elastic tenor or Fred Turner’s leather-lunged growl.

Bachman seemed uncomfortable at times as front-man. Each of his band-mates handled lead vocals on certain songs.

What Bachman lacked as a vocalist he made up for as a talker. He had a way with a tale, such as the saga of one burly American trucker who taunted BTO members with the phrase, “Let it ride”, inspiring the song.

Bachman’s raconteur skills are no doubt well-honed by his radio show, Randy’s Vinyl tap, a CBC program where Bachman spins sides and talks music.

The concert’s energy level jumped a notch when the short-statured, big-voiced bluesman Duke Robillard joined Bachman onstage. The two guitarists, who recently recorded together, seemed to genuinely like jamming.

With Robillard onstage, the band played the blues standard “Early in the Morning”, which Bachman recorded with Jeff Healy, not long before the Toronto musician’s death.

The tune, however, where Bachman’s magic truly came alive was the BTO road anthem, “Roll On Down the Highway”. The youngish sidemen, at that point, fed off their elder bandleader’s energy while he delivered proof positive that the audience who packed the square had come for the real deal.

It was rock ‘n roll.