Bad Company consists of Dave Colwell (rhythm guitarist), Jaz Lochrie (bassist), Paul Rodgers (vocalist), Simon Kirke (percussionist, drummer).
This article is about the rock band. For other uses see Bad company (disambiguation)
Bad Company was a British rock band founded in 1973, consisting of band members from Free ( Paul Rodgers, Simon Kirke), Mott The Hoople ( Mick Ralphs) and King Crimson ( Boz Burrell). They consequently took their first inspiration for the band and its name and 1973 radio play hit, also of the same name, from the 1972 classic Western, "Bad Company" that starred Barry Brown and Jeff Bridges. They then became one of the early supergroups of the 1970s, and were managed by Peter Grant, who had also guided Led Zeppelin to massive success.
Their first single, Can't Get Enough, which Ralphs had originally written for Mott the Hoople before being told that it was unsuitable for the group, was a Top 20 hit in the UK and Top 10 in the US in 1974. They also enjoyed success on both sides of the Atlantic with their debut album Bad Co. In the following year they charted with Good Lovin' Gone Bad and the slower Feel Like Makin' Love, both from the album Straight Shooter. Each subsequent album, Run With The Pack, Burning Sky, and Desolation Angels, fared less well than its predecessor.
By the end of the 1970s they were increasingly disenchanted with playing large stadiums. Grant's interest in the group, and in management generally, waned after Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham died in 1980. In the words of Kirke, "Peter was definitely the glue which held us all together and in his absence we came apart." After the release of the album Rough Diamonds in 1982 they disbanded, but reformed in 1986 with ex- Ted Nugent vocalist Brian Howe, in place of Rodgers and Steve Price replacing Boz Burrell on bass. Throughout the 1990s, the band continued with various musicians, with drummer Simon Kirke the only original member. The 2003 line-up of Bad Company includes Mick Ralphs and Simon Kirke plus Dave Colwell (keyboards), Rick Wills (bass guitar), and Robert Hart (vocals). All four reunited briefly in 1999 to record four new tracks, which appeared on a compilation of previously released material, 'The Original Bad Co Anthology'.
