Bad+company

Run with the Pack, Bad Company's third and best album, reiterates the raw, rowdy style of their debut, Bad Co., solidifies the loose ends that marred Straight Shooter and adds new directions of its own. Maybe most importantly, the record is refreshing proof that rockers don't have to produce literature in their lyrics or cultivate personae to create good art. Bad Company's is a purely musical triumph…

An Introduction To Bad Company is a new compilation of the British blues-rock band Bad Company by Rhino Records. Bad Company are an English hard rock supergroup formed in Westminster, London in 1973 by two former Free band members—singer Paul Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke— as well as Mott the Hoople guitarist Mick Ralphs and King Crimson bassist Boz Burrell. Peter Grant, who managed the rock band Led Zeppelin, also managed Bad Company until 1982. Bad Company enjoyed great success throughout the 1970s. Their first three albums, Bad Company (1974), Straight Shooter (1975), and Run With the Pack (1976), reached the top five in the album charts in both the UK and US. Many of their singles, such as "Bad Company", "Can't Get Enough", "Good Lovin' Gone Bad", "Feel Like Makin' Love", and "Shooting Star" remain staples of classic rock radio.

Cut straight on the heels of Bad Company's 1974 debut – just a matter of three months later; not quite long enough to know how big a success the first LP would be – Straight Shooter is seemingly cut from the same cloth as its predecessor…

Cut straight on the heels of Bad Company's 1974 debut – just a matter of three months later; not quite long enough to know how big a success the first LP would be – Straight Shooter is seemingly cut from the same cloth as its predecessor…

By the time Bad Company released Desolation Angels, it was evident that even Rodgers and Ralphs were getting tired of their '70s-styled, conveyor-belt brand of rock & roll, so they decided to add keyboards and some minor string work to the bulk of the tracks…

Cut straight on the heels of Bad Company's 1974 debut - just a matter of three months later; not quite long enough to know how big a success the first LP would be - Straight Shooter is seemingly cut from the same cloth as its predecessor. It is, after all, a tight collection of eight strong, steady, heavy rockers that never, ever proceed in a hurry, but from the moment "Good Lovin' Gone Bad" kicks off the proceedings, it's clear that Bad Company have decided to expand their palette this second time around. Where Bad Company was stark, minimalist hard rock, Straight Shooter bears lots of different, vibrant colors: acoustic guitars are used for light and shade, guitars are channeled through chorus pedals, pianos and organs alternate with the occasional wash of strings, and the entire thing feels bigger and bolder than before…

This is the album that got ignored when they made a compilation of the early Bad Co's best work, so why did it get ignored when it's so good. The title track alone is reason enough to buy this album as it showcases the best aspects of the band and especially Paul Rogers' voice…