Band:	Bad Company
Album:	Bad Company
Style:	Hard rock, Blues rock
Release date:	July 1974

01. Can't Get Enough
02. Rock Steady
03. Ready For Love
04. Don't Let Me Down
05. Bad Company
06. The Way I Choose
07. Movin' On
08. Seagull

Bad Company almost defined stadium rock. Always more highly regarded in the US than in their native England, the band was formed from the remnants of Free, whom many believed had been the greatest British blues/rock band. Their final album, Heartbreaker, was a masterpiece whose qualities have become increasingly clear over the years. I remember my astonishment at the time that the sublime (but dead) Paul Kossoff was effectively being replaced on guitar by Mick Ralphs from the rather lightweight Mott The Hoople. And who was this Boz Burrell on bass? Which King Crimson albums had he actually played on?

It turned out that these niggles didn't matter. What held Bad Company and late Free together was the multi-talented Paul Rodgers. He didn't just have arguably the strongest voice. He also played both piano and a great guitar - all the guitars and solos on the epic Free single Wishing Well, for example, are his. He continued on piano and 2nd guitar for the debut Bad Company, which for me is equally their best LP alongside the follow-up Straight Shooter.

The title track is my favourite. It magnificently accentuates the image of outlaw drifters which their manager Peter Grant (of Led Zeppelin) worked hard to promote. It would seem to be the ideal soundtrack for an introspective cowboy Western, but I've yet to see the movie.

If this album has any minor flaws, or a song that isn't quite as superb as the rest, the problem can be resolved by playing this loud, or at any time when you want to enjoy rather than be super-critical. The high-quality production values shine through on this good-time rock CD.