Bad Company 2002

The post-Family band formed by Family masterminds Roger Chapman and Charlie Whitney. Where their former band balanced art-rock and blues-rock, the Streetwalkers were a throwback, a blues-rock band that put Chapman's extraordinary voice front and center. Unlike Family, however, the Streetwalkers, who were a good but not great band, sounded too calculated, as if they wanted to cash in on some of the pre-punk hard rock notoriety that bands like Bad Company and Thin Lizzy were getting. Where they remained consistent with their former aggregation was that the Streetwalkers, though popular in England, were virtually ignored in America.

Much to the delight of old-school headbangers, the classic lineup of one of the great (yet usually underappreciated) bands of the '70s, UFO, regrouped in 1993. UFO's first new record since reuniting, 1995's Walk On Water, saw the quintet pick up exactly where it left off, not altering its formula much at all. The reunion (or at least the team of Phil Mogg and Michael Schenker) remained together for several albums afterwards, including 2000's Covenant and 2002's Sharks. The latter release sees bassist Pete Way return to the fold and, unsurprisingly, "the song remains the same." The boys can still lay down a hard-rocking thumper with no problem (albeit in more of an obviously Bad Company-like style), especially on such standouts as "Serenity" and "Fighting Man." But few tracks here approach the magnitude of, say, Lights Out or Obsession - something that the aforementioned Walk On Water surprisingly did.

Free - The Complete Mini LP Set (1968-1973) {2002 Island Japan UICY-9130~9203, Disk Union Promo Box}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 2.99 Gb | MP3 @320 -> 1.22 Gb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (jpg) -> 138 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1968-73, 2002 Island / Universal Japan | UICY-9130~32 / UICY-9200~03
Rock / Blues Rock / Hard Rock / Classic Rock

Famed for their perennial "All Right Now," Free helped lay the foundations for the rise of hard rock, stripping the earthy sound of British blues down to its raw, minimalist core to pioneer a brand of proto-metal later popularized by 1970's superstars like Foreigner, Foghat and Bad Company. Free formed in London in 1968 when guitarist Paul Kossoff, then a member of the blues unit Black Cat Bones, was taken to see vocalist Paul Rodgers' group Brown Sugar by a friend, drummer Tom Mautner.

In the 1980s, tenor saxophonist Houston Person and bassist Ron Carter recorded a pair of unlikely but successful duo albums. Person, who has mostly been heard through the years with organ groups, piano trios, and accompanying the late singer Etta Jones, has a large tone worthy of Gene Ammons, while Ron Carter (who has played with everyone) clearly had a good time interacting with Person in the sparse format. In 2000, Person and Carter recorded their third duet album, and the results are at least as rewarding as their first two collaborations. On such songs as "Doxy," "Dear Old Stockholm," "On the Sunny Side of the Street," and "Mack the Knife," Person and Carter swing hard and sound at their most playful and creative in each other's company…

Best remembered for the late-'70s chart-topper "Baby Come Back," Player were formed in Los Angeles in 1977 by singer/guitarist Peter Beckett (formerly of the U.K. group Skyband), bassist Ronn Moss, and guitarist/keyboardist J.C. Crowley. After adding drummer John Friesen, Player signed to impresario Robert Stigwood's RSO label and issued "Baby Come Back," which sat atop the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks in early 1978. Their self-titled debut LP appeared that same year, as did the follow-up, Danger Zone.

A fiery guitarist and talented songwriter who plays a unique blend of Memphis R&B, southwest blues, and urban funk. Collection includes: Hell Or High Water (2002); The Hard Way (2004); Moment Of Truth (2007); Speak No Evil (2009); Red Clay Soul (2016); Winning Hand (2018).