According to Rolling Stone, in an effort to put an end to Kale and Peterson's version of The Guess Who, Cummings — who wrote the band's classic hits like "American Woman" and "These Eyes" and owns the publishing for them — has canceled the performing rights agreements for the songs. That means no band, including the current incarnation of The Guess Who, is allowed to play those songs live.
"I'm willing to do anything to stop the fake band; they're taking [Bachman and my] life story and pretending it's theirs," Cummings tells Rolling Stone. "Yes, I'm going to lose some money, but we're going to find out what's worth what. I will not have this fake band going on any longer."
He adds, “I’m going to lose some money, but ... the name is worthless without those songs.”