Bad Company: Bad Company [Gold] CD Track Listing

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Bad Company Bad Company [Gold] (1974)
Bad Company (Gold CD)\n2006 Audio Fidelity\n\nOriginally Released June 1974\nRemastered CD Edition Released September 6, 1994\nGold HDCD Edition Released February 14, 2006\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: Bad Company's 1974 self-titled release stands as one of the most important and accomplished debut hard rock albums from the '70s. Though hardly visionary, it was one of the most successful steps in the continuing evolution of rock & roll, riding on the coattails of achievement from artists like the Eagles and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. From the simple electric guitar lick on "Can't Get Enough" to the haunting bassline in "Bad Company" and the fast beats of "Movin' On," Bad Company exemplified raw rock & roll at its best. Erupting out of an experimental period created by the likes of Pink Floyd, Bad Company signified a return to more primal, stripped-down rock & roll. Even while labelmates Led Zeppelin's Houses of the Holy and IV featured highly acclaimed, colorful album artwork, Bad Company's austere black and white record cover stood out in stark contrast. Six years later, AC/DC used the same idea on their smash Back in Black. Throughout the 35-minute album, Paul Rodgers' mesmerizing and gritty vocals hardly vary in tonal quality, offering a perfect complement to Mick Ralphs' blues-based guitar work. Several songs include three-chord verses offset by unembellished, distorted choruses, filled rich with Rodgers' cries. Bad Company is an essential addition to the rock & roll library; clearly influential to '70s and '80s hard rock bands like Tom Petty, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Boston. -- Gautam Baksi\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nTheir first and their best, June 12, 2005\nReviewer: Docendo Discimus (Vita scholae)\nBad Company's albums were often rather uneven, but this their 1974 debut album is strong almost all the way through, and it is the group's best offering alongside "Straight Shooter". \n\nMany of their best and best-known songs are here: "Can't Get Enough", "Movin' On", "Rock Steady", "Ready For Love", "Bad Company". And "Bad Company" offers 34 minutes of classic, stripped-down rock n' roll, often bordering on hard rock. \nIt may not be particularly original, but it is enjoyable and melodic, combining good, solid musicianship and a great vocalist in former Free frontman Paul Rodgers. And of all the 70s "rock dinosaurs", Bad Company have stood the test of time better than most. \n\nThe only "problem" is that six (!) of these eight songs can be found on the excellent "Original Bad Company Anthology", which has virtually everything from Bad Company you'll ever need. But if you are going to purchase any of the group's original studio albums, this one and "Straight Shooter" are the ones to go for.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nThe masterpiece of a debut from the classic rock supergroup, April 25, 2005\nReviewer: Darth Kommissar (Las Vegas, NV (USA))\nClassic rock had plenty of supergroups, which were groups that took members from assorted popular bands and put them together in the same band. Unfortunately, due to the clashing of egos in these groups, many of them failed to last long. A major exception to the rule was Bad Company, who survived for many years and even released six classic albums (and that's just with their classic line-up.) The group combined former Free bandmates Paul Rodgers, vocals, and Simon Kirke, drums, with Boz Burrell, a former bassist-vocalist from King Crimson, and Mick Ralphs, the guitarist from Mott The Hoople. This legendary foursome released its first album in 1974, on Led Zeppelin's newly-formed Swan Song record label. How does it measure up? Does it measure up to the legendary status people build around it? To find out, read on. \n\nThere is a reason this album is hailed as a masterpiece - it IS a masterpiece. When you've got Rodgers, Ralphs, Burrell, and Kirke in the same group, you know that the end result is going to be something excellent. All eight tracks featured on the group's debut are rock classics, although admittingly some of the songs did become more popular than others. Kicking off the album is the classic pop-flavored hard rock of Can't Get Enough. This song is probably the most popular song on the album, and it doesn't surprise me that it would rise to such high status. Second is Rock Steady. This track is slower and less poppy than the opener, and it rocks harder. It's not as popular as the opening song but is no less excellent. We then go to Ready For Love, the bass-heavy classic rock ballad. Paul Rodgers has an excellent voice for doing ballads, and this was perhaps the first track that demonstrated it so well. It's yet another classic this album spawned. The fourth song on the album is one of the surprisingly-underrated ones of the bunch, Don't Let Me Down. This is another slower track, this one of which being very heavy on piano usage. It's a shame this song didn't become more popular, because it really is a good song. The second half of the album kicks off with the song that shares its name with the album title and bad name. Usually, when a song shares it name with the band and the album, it's a great song, and this is no exception to that rule. With piano-heavy slow verses and a hard rocking chorus, this song was destined to become a classic rock radio staple - and sure enough it did. The song is based the story from the film Bad Company, which is where the band got their name. Following that masterpiece we have an underrated tune entitled The Way I Choose. This is one of the ballads on the album, and it's one of the few songs on the album that stays soft and melodic all the way through, with no parts that really rock hard. Despite this, the song rules. Movin' On, track number seven, is another classic pop-oriented hard rocker, in the vain of Can't Get Enough. Much like that track, this one will not fail to please. This wasn't nearly as popular as that track but is no less excellent. And closing things out is the underrated Seagull. This is another ballad, but it's unlike the others in that acoustic guitars are the main instrument. The band is so well-known for its electric guitar work, that their acoustic stuff is often overlooked. I can't believe this one didn't become a bigger hit, because I'm sure it could have been a chart-topper if it had been released as a single. In the end, Bad Company's debut is pure classic rock excellence. It's a mandatory addition to any classic rock collection. \n\nBad Company's albums are in desperate need of reissuing, since they seem to be fading off of store shelves (particularly the later ones.) The albums could use some remastering. Deluxe reissues with expanded liner notes and bonus tracks would be nice, but I wouldn't count on the record company doing something like that anytime soon. \n\nIn the end, this is a masterpiece of an album. Many people claim the album is overrated, and I agree to a point - I feel that the album IS overrated, but it's one of the few albums out there that deserves to be overrated. Still, don't overlook the band's other releases. If you only want to buy one Bad Company album, or you don't want to shell out the cash for the two-disc Anthology compilation, the band's debut is the obvious choice. No classic rock collection should be without this album, plain and simple.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nCan't get enough of this album!!!, August 20, 2003\nReviewer: chris meesey (Garland, TX United States)\nMany people like hard rock that is actually neo-heavy metal: all superfast guitars, snotty vocals, and 30-minute drum solos. (Us old timers remember when the latter were the norm in concert.) Others like their rock to be gritty, soulful, and blues-based. Well, Bad Company, along with Swan Song labelmates Led Zeppelin, were among the founding fathers of soulful hard rock. Paul Rodgers, that vocal master of passionate understatement, had just started enjoying great success with Free until his beloved guitarist, Paul Kossoff, started to suffer from the ravages of drug-induced illnesses which eventually killed him. Also, he found he could no longer see eye-to-eye with talented but tempramental bassist Andy Frasier. Finding that he and Free drummer Simon Kirke were still on the same wavelength, they began jamming with guitarist Mick Ralphs, late of Mott the Hoople. The trio added bassist Boz Burrell from King Crimson and formed Bad Company. Since they had plenty of good material left over from their old groups, they were able to create this incredible first album, which quickly climbed the charts. Proof that the band still regards the material highly: no fewer than six of the eight cuts are still regularly performed in concert!!! The wonderful "Rock Steady" is still one of these concert highlights, a midtempo grinder that features great interplay between Paul and Mick. The title track, with Paul on piano, is still an encore staple, while "Ready for Love" proves Mick can write as well as he can play. Boz and Simon provide superb anchor throughout. And what can one say about the incredible opener "Can't Get Enough"???? Just this: the title of that song just about says it all for Bad Company's entire debut album. The listener just can't get enough of their hard-driving, passionate, yet soulful sound.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nStill Rock Steady After All These Years, April 25, 2002\nReviewer: R. Mix "Funkingroovin" (Albuquerque, New Mexico United States)\nIt's hard, nearly twenty-eight years on, to remember the enormity of this album's impact in 1974. \n\nIn a music scene then-dominated by progressive rock, glam rock, singer-songwriters, hard rock slash heavy metal and top forty, and rife with self-indulgence (musical and otherwise), Bad Company's debut blew in like a fresh spring breeze. \n\nIt was the perfect melding of musical talents, and armed with a strong batch of songs, Bad Company created one of the best chart-topping albums ever. 'Bad Company' was a primer on the value of economy, of soulful simplicity, of unadorned arrangements that let three instruments and one very powerful voice do the talking. \n\nNeither the band nor the album changed the course of rock 'n roll, or served as touchstones to a burgeoning movement the way Iggy & The Stooges or the New York Dolls did, but in their way, Bad Company created an album more enduring than either of them. Were it not so well-known, it could easily be confused for one of last Tuesday's new releases. \n\nWhile many critics of the day dismissed them for what were seen as chest-thumping, "I'm a man, baby" lyrics (hardly appropriate for the dawning of the age of the Sensitive Male), the utter beauty and power of this album's eight songs remain undiminished, and expose those criticisms as the nitpicking they are. \n\n'Bad Company' is as timeless as a black turtleneck.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nLiberated, if not Free, July 17, 2001\nReviewer: Gavin Wilson (Thames Ditton, Surrey United Kingdom)\nThis album has to be played loud! If you have neighbours or family who might complain, play it through headphones or play it in the car. But to do this album justice, don't play it quietly in the background. The drums sound particularly good on this remastered edition.\nBad 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' (1972), 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?\n\nIt 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 their equal best LP alongside the follow-up 'Straight Shooter'.\n\nThe title track is my favourite. It magnificently accentuates the image of outlaw drifters which their manager Peter Grant (of Led Zeppelin fame) 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.\n\nIf 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 when drunk, 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.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nMade a Big Impact on Me, December 19, 1999\nReviewer: A music fan\nThe first time I ever saw this album cover, I was totally taken aback. It was 1974, and I was in 6th grade. I sat next to a girl whose brother was a prisoner of war in Vietnam, and she had an 8 track tape by a rock group by the name of Bad Company. The all black album cover, with its white lettering, really caught my attention. In fact, I was even a little bit intimidated by the name and the austere look of the tape. Over the years, I've come to admire the starkness of this album cover. Give Bad Company credit, they did it long before AC/DC came up with "Back in Black." As you can probably guess, the music has the same hard edge to it.\nWhen you buy this album, you get five well-known Bad Company hits: "Can't Get Enough," "Rock Steady," "Ready For Love," "Bad Company," and "Movin' On." That should be motive enough to buy it, as I'll usually purchase an album even if it just has two or three good songs on it. I have both the original CD, as well as the remastered one. I actually prefer the original, because it seems a little darker to me. The remastering seems to have taken just a little tiny bit of the bite out of it.\n\nI've been a drummer for many years; let me tell you about the drumming on this album. I sat down and listened critically to all three of my Bad Company CDs, taking notes on the playing so I can improve my own abilities. This album has some very tasteful rock drumming on it. Simon Kirke does a fine job of keeping a solid rhythm, but yet also keeping it innovative. He adds some nice touches, but he doesn't overdo things. The drumming on "Straight Shooter" (1974) is a notch below this, as Kirke seems content to just keep a good solid rhythm, but without the variety. The same goes for "The Best of Bad Company Live...What You Hear Is What You Get" (1993). As far as this album goes, let's also give some credit to Simon Kirke for co-authoring the title track "Bad Company" along with Paul Rodgers. Kirke is not just a drummer, he's also a songwriter!\n\nI like "Straight Shooter," but I differ with those who say that it is Bad Company's best work. In my opinion, this is the definitive Bad Company album. It is loaded with big hits and it has a great album cover. There is one word that sums up this album to me: IMPACT!\n\nHalf.com Album Notes\nBad Company: Paul Rodgers (vocals, guitar, piano); Mick Ralphs (guitar, keyboards); Boz Burrell (bass instrument); Simon Kirke (drums).\n\nAdditional personnel: Mel Collins (saxophone); Sue & Sunny (background vocals).\n\nRecording information: Headley Garage, Hampshire, England (11/1973).\n\n1974's BAD COMPANY laid the groundwork for much of the mainstream hard rock that would dominate FM radio and album sales in the 1970s and '80s. In contrast to the expansive canvases of psychedelic music and the virtuoso excesses of prog rock, Bad Company's debut stripped the blues-rock model down to its essentials, playing muscular, amped-up power chords over driving 4/4 beats. Though the singing of vocalist Paul Rodgers (who had previously been in the blues-based band Free) has a rather flat affect, it is powerful and distinctive, meshing perfectly with the bluesy riffs of guitarist Mick Ralphs.\n\nThe tightly structured songs are cut from similar cloth, but the exuberant "Can't Get Enough," the snarling "Bad Company," and moody, spectral "Ready For Love" provide enough variety to keep things interesting. The gentle "Seagull," though uncharacteristically introspective for the band, is one of Rodgers/Ralphs's finest compositions. Subsequent Bad Company albums would rework the same basic themes, but BAD COMPANY, the group's opening salvo, was their defining work. It remains a classic of straightforward, blues-based rock.\n\nIndustry Reviews\n4 Stars - Excellent - Sparse, unadorned and tuneful...alternates between good-natured...and soulful ballads....The title tracks became the blueprint for Bon Jovi's career... -- Q Magazine (01/01/1995)
This rock cd contains 8 tracks and runs 35min 11sec.
Freedb: 74083d08
Buy: from Amazon.com

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