Bad Company is the debut studio album by the English hard rock supergroup Bad Company. The album was recorded at Headley Grange with Ronnie Lane's Mobile Studio in November 1973, and it was the first album released on Led Zeppelin's Swan Song Records label.
Paul Rodgers has such a gutsy rock voice, so much so that pretty much anything he sings is worth listening to. But, from a lyrical perspective, he only writes about wanting to fuck. Just said in different words from song to song, album to album, and band to band. Though on this record there is a mellow track about a seagull. Does he want to fuck it? Probably.
Bland Company. Short average dad rock. Not bad but not memorable.
Supergroups. Why are there always supergroups. All of the playing is good, and all of the songs are forgettable. Supergroups always sound way too polished, too over-produced, and too ironed to me. While great bands often feel like like more than the sum of their parts, Bad Company feel like far less. Don't let me Down is shockingly dull.
Shite
If this album doesn’t make you feel like a badass idk what to tell you
This was definitely an album in heavy heavy rotation in my house during my middle school days - 4 or 5 of these songs were so prominent on radio through the 80s that even if you didn't have the record, you knew most of it. Not much to analyze here - it's prototypical "Classic Rock" with very little wiggle room into anything else, and whether that's a pro or con is (as everything) up to personal taste, but for that quality (limitation?) this is almost as good as it gets. Paul Rodgers is or was *the* classic rock voice of the 70s/early 80s. There's nothing overly creative or experimental in terms of production and that's likely what makes it still work today - guitar/bass/drums and occasional piano/keys. It's also hard not to think of the movie "Almost Famous" when listening to this and also looking at the band (see the cover for "Burnin' Sky" and it seems pretty obvious where the movie writers got inspiration for the controversial t-shirts!) Deserving of an isolated comment is the bass playing of Boz Burrell on this album - to my ears he was the secret weapon on many of these songs, most of which have a simple and potentially dull chord progression but Burrell's fluid lines tied them together brilliantly. In particular check out the work on "Movin' On" Funny that when this came up I smiled but wasn't too excited to revisit it...if I'd written this before playing it again i would have said something like: "...even though I'm unlikely to go out of my way to listen to this again, that's just as much due to my having heard it hundreds of times as changing tastes..." but damn if it hasn't been fun listening to this album again. In the end, for what it is...it really is great from start to finish, and sometimes you just need uncomplicated straight up 70s guitar rock.
Bad comapany...til the day I dieeeee
Loved this album. It's short and full of good tracks. Pretty standard 70s and 80s rock vibe. Spotify ends up recommending a lot of great music if you start here
I feel like I need to talk about this album outside of it's title track. There's a reason this album is an absolute classic as it's a great example of 70's blues rock. There's really not a mediocre song on the album. Favorite Songs: Can't Get Enough, Bad Company
Good, solid, earnest, old fashioned dad rock.
Mediocre company I’d say. Carried through by the good bits!
6/10. Glad to see that sometimes people do name a song, an album, and their band all the same thing. Pleasant enough to listen to, but it really slipped into the background a lot.
I mean, it sounds like what it is: a rock album from the 70s. It's kind of a slow chug through chunky riffs with rough vocals over top. If that's what you came for, you'll be happy with what you get. Otherwise, it's just kinda meh.
Never herd of this group so it may be interesting… The album starts with can’t get enough, I mean it’s alright to be fair it’s just a generic rock song. No real hate towards it though. Rock steady is still generic as fuck but it has nicer guitar works so that’s a plus. Man this album is so bland yet listenable, ready for love has it’s moments on the instrumental department but just feels like a song that’s only in it for the pay cheque. Don’t let me down at least provides a nice pace change it’s actually a really nice piano track great closer for side one especially for this album. Then the band/ albums title track ( bad company) all of the elements of the song are interesting but it’s just like so many bands have done songs like this before so it’s just not the best. Then is the way I choose it’s okay, very okay just a bit slower than the others going for a kinda romantic feel. It’s alright ( It’s just hard to find ways to describe these songs seeing they’re so mid level). Movin’ on is a nice enough penultimate track, reminds me of can’t get enough but more enjoyable and although it’s not a favourite of all time this one is actually a really fun listen I can’t deny! Seagull makes sense as a closer just a nice acoustic song maybe a favourite but just because it’s so different to the rest of the album. 5 really generic songs, a good song halfway then two good ones at the end I must say not my favourite album. Only 8 tracks lasting 35 minutes from a group who have all had musical experience being a supergroup, doing nothing special sounding like they’re only in it for the money. If you like that then okay. Ps. I didn’t hate it it’s just generic, not unique enough to be a 4 not horrendous enough to be a 2.
I’ve written more than I care to about the weird symbiosis I’ve had with the Random Album Generator over the last 8 or so months, but I wouldn’t keep bringing it up if it didn’t keep happening. So, on today’s installment of “The Matrix is Real”, we have Bad Company’s self titled debut record. Every Tuesday night, for the better part of the last 15 years, I’ve listened to The Best Show (with Tom Scharpling). It started its life as call-in comedy radio show during the tail end of the Clinton Administration on New Jersey’s WFMU, the greatest radio station in America - a free form, listener supported station…you can and should stream it sometime. By the mid-aughts, the radio show was being podcast the next day after the show aired on terrestrial radio. In 2013, Tom Scharpling left WFMU to do the show independently as a streaming call-in show/podcast. Currently, The Best Show still operates as podcast, but also streams on Twitch each Tuesday night. If you like indie rock and comedy, the Best Show should be right up your alley: they have live in studio performances from the likes of Lou Barlow, The Black Lips, Mike Watt, and more; comedic guests like Patton Oswald, Marc Maron, Matt Berry; weekly calls from Superchunk/Mountain Goats/Bob Mould drummer Jon Wurster, where he calls in as a fictional character, typically from the fictional town of Newbridge, NJ; and, of course calls, from listeners on a variety of lighthearted and funny topics - a personal favorite was “Who is the dumbest member of CSNY?”. It’s one of my favorite things on earth. It’s truly the *best* show around. Right now, you’re thinking “holy fuck, dude, get to the point”…hang on, I’m almost there. One of the staples of The Best Show, for the last decade plus, is the song Bad Company by Bad Company from the album we are here to discuss, “Bad Company”. The premise is simple, but might take a minute to explain. Because the Best Show is a call-in show, sometimes they get great callers, sometimes they get mediocre callers and, you guessed it, sometimes they get truly awful callers. When a truly awful or especially boring caller calls in, Tom will often lose interest and/or patience with them, and that is where Bad Company comes in. While an insufferable caller is rambling on about something off topic or idiotic, Scharpling will discreetly begin to fade in the song Bad Company (”Company…always on my mind”) into the background of their call. With the studio setup, everyone but the caller can hear the opening strains of the song kicking in. Listeners become giddy, because they know what’s coming. Scharpling will deftly keep the caller rambling, feigning interest in their tale, pushing them closer and closer to the first chorus of the song. Then, as Paul Rodgers sings “That’s why the call me…[snare hits] Bad Company!”, Scharpling hangs up of the caller, often mid-sentence. It is unbelievably hilarious to me and, at the same time, maybe the dumbest thing that makes me laugh…It never fails to make me laugh. [there’s a super cut of people getting Bad Company’d on YouTube, if you’re interested.] Anyway, that the generator recommended this record on a Tuesday, the day I always listen to/watch the Best Show is just another coincidence in a long line of increasingly specific coincidences I’ve experienced during this project. If there was ever a song I associated with Tuesday’s, it’s “Bad Company”. Who knows, maybe I thought this project would be a good way to pass some time, but it’s actually going to be the thing that causes a mental breakdown. Who knows. At this point, I’m just here for the ride. Oh, and you should listen to the Best Show. Tuesday nights on Twitch, BestShow4Life, the next day on the podcast platform of your choice and archives of the first 14 years over at WFMU.org. There’s literally like 24 years worth of shows you can listen to and, let’s face it, if you’re doing this project, you’ve probably got some other time you’re looking to kill.
Enjoyable enough, straight down the middle cheesy 70s rock. Have to give them a shout out for pulling off the trifecta of naming your band "Bad Company", titling your album "Bad Company" and having a song called "Bad Company". Rarefied air: https://www.stereogum.com/928281/20-songs-named-after-the-bands-that-played-them/lists/
In the 70s this album was considered good. If I was still 14 I might think so, but I'm an adult and it's generic blooze rawk. Awful.
Escuchado hoy 2021, no parece gran cosa
Hell yeah.
Wow, this is an exceptional album, just brimming with classics. Six of these songs are classic rock staples and the remaining two are top notch deep tracks. Consider for a moment just how rare that is. There isn't a bad song on here. It's warm, sexy, bluesy rock for the ages. Bad Company are the standard bearers for blues-based rock in the 1970s and 80s. This band and these songs set the bar for how rock would sound for years with countless bands attempting and failing to catch their sound. The band is a murderer’s row of musicians hailing from some really great groups – Free, Mott, King Crimson. This is also probably one of the best executed albums I have ever heard. The compositions are tight, flawless. Not an extraneous note or overly long solo to be found. The band has a steadiness and intensity to their sound without all the showboating some of their peers were prone to. Lyrically, they manage to come off as tough, but with enough sensitivity to pull off a song like "Ready for Love" without sounding silly. Paul Rodgers' warm and soulful vocals are ridiculously good. He really is one of the best rock vocalists ever, and criminally underappreciated. Fave Songs: Rock Steady, Ready for Love, Can't Get Enough, Bad Company
Huh. If you'd asked me yesterday if I'd ever gone through a Bad Company phase, I would've said, no. But as soon as I saw the track listing of this album, I remembered owning this on cassette. And a quick perusal of their album covers made me remember I had at least two others. So, I guess I had a bit of a Bad Co. phase and I forgot! Anyway, this album is great! When I think of Classic Rock, this is exactly what I'm thinking. While I love just about every song on here, my two favorites are the gentle ballads Don't Let Me Down and Seagull. It's so great to hear them again! Thanks so much for jogging my memory, 1001!
honestly, that was just boring. i'm sure in its time, it was fine, but...it just conjures visions of budweiser in pull-tab cans, and a bunch of stupid people standing around thinking they're deep. it's possible i'm projecting a little here.
Beetje standaard jaren 70-spul. Niet echt slecht, maar het heeft een grote 'waarom moet ik dit eigenlijk luisteren?'-factor. Daarmee ben je nog geen classic album, kortom.
This is rock and roll from the early 70s although they clearly weren't in the same league as The Who, the Stones or Led Zep. The lead guitarist and bass player are quite good at playing their instruments but the songs aren't very interesting. I can't understand why they would think it was a good idea to make a song titled (and having the slowly sung chorus) "Don't Let Me Down" given Lennon's classic was released only a few years earlier. This album has aged like a 1974 Chateau le Vinaigre.
Bland. I rather listen to Led Zeppelin and Blue Oyster Cult than this.
There are a couple of hits on here but it’s boomer rock and doesn’t add anything special to the genre. People joke that the Eagles are bland and haven’t added to the genre. This is a far more bland album than anything the Eagles have put out. I see almost no impact to the music world if this album hadn’t been made. This list doesn’t need this album.
Really good
Pretty good
Getting some real southern metal vibes here
That voice!
Nice discoverment
Venga, le voy a dar un 5
Fantastic. Classic rock!
SLAMS!!! The old man has listened to them for years so this was a nice treat.
I remember sitting in my dad's old truck fumbling through cassette tapes. He had the all the classics, including Bad Company. Such a great album!
Amazing. Seagull, enough said
Surpise! Not hip hop at all! 😂
its deffo good. something middle aged men love for sure.
Never heard of the band but really enjoyed the album
Classic rock vibes. Easy to listen to.
Pretty much what you would want from a classic rock album!
What a great 70's hard rock album! Nearly every song is a hit. Favorite Tracks: "Can't Get Enough" "Rock Steady" "Don't Let Me Down" "Bad Company"
Балдеж, на альбоме есть как рок триллеры, так и много лиричнлй музыки, одноименная песня однозначно хит!
interesting good
A fantastic album with a fantastic track list. Absolutely legendary.
Excellent album. Solid rock tunes.
A favorite from the end of my teenage years. Thanks for reminding me.
a great early rock record
So many good songs
Wow! Forgot how great this album and this band are!
This was one of my favourite albums and I loved listening to it again.
Good rock, good stuff
Quintessential Bad Company- a very good album that I’d listen to again
Just good old fashioned 70s rock. Every song on this album is a banger.
Lot of good classic songs. Worth repeating
Kamalt El Hadra 7 Me Rbo3 Etheleth Men 3l Bouheli Mte3 Dostoevsky. Kamalt Sawrt Clip A3melli3lik. My first bank account.
Excellent listen
classic
Paul Rodgers is my absolute, number one, most favorite voice of all time. He can do no wrong. That is all.
I was exposed to this in my youth through my sister's record collection, but I wasn't terribly attracted to it then. Back then I would listen to "Can't Get Enough" but generally didn't listen long too much after that. It felt too "grown up" for me. I guess I'm grown up now, because I really love all of this. Very well done 70s rock that makes me feel like the cool kid I always wanted to be. I loved sitting back with the lights low and chilling out to this album. Definitely has earned a place in my permanent rotation.
Although I may have seen this band in concert in my younger years, but I don't think that I was ever a fan. Listening now, I am totally puzzled as to why. This album was simply awesome!
Fantastic album beginning to end.
cool
An amazing piece of music overall. Has the right amount of distortion to musicality with a good voice to boot. Every song is very well done and mixed.
Sometimes you get an album to listen to that you haven't heard the whole album before (that's me with this one) but by the time you're done you realize you know 3/4 of the album because it got so much airplay. This album is full of great songs from beginning to end. Staight up rock, done extreemly well. Good stuff here, will listen to again and again.
I haven’t listed to record in several decades. SEVERAL. I had pretty much written off most “classic rock” after hearing this stuff ad nauseum growing up as a kid. I wasn’t looking forward to listening to this. Objectively, I gotta say this record is fucking fantastic. Rodgers vocals set the template for a rock lead: from soulful to stone hard. The backing vocals blend, support, and enhance. Ralph’s guitar is huge and heavy with solos that shine but don’t seek the spotlight. If I were to nitpick… I would cut the saxophone. But that’s a tiny distraction in a nearly flawless record that should only be listened to at speaker shaking levels. A totally unexpected 5 for me.
This is classic and well-craft rock n roll.
This is such a blast back to high school for me. It came out in my freshman year and it is the soundtrack for much of high school for me.
classic and cool
I love the music from this album….
Great album. Masterpiece for a debut album
One of the best debut albums of all time. True classic rock classic.
Best album so far
Paul Rodgers is a classic. His voice never gets old. This record is at once of its time and timeless!
Listened to this album many times in my youth so its like putting on an old coat, still comfortable and full of memories. Good quality straight down the line rock songs here, not much filler
I've heard of the title track, but otherwise am largely un-familiar with the rest of their music. I am loving the classic 70's rock sound they are putting out. Another surprise 5/5.
Blues rock. Me ha gustado bastante. ¿Hasta vinilo? Venga, va.
Great album. I much prefer this over Free. Less blues. More rock. It really rocks! Miles better than the average album from the 21th century.
Great album! I was familiar with "Can't Get Enough," "Ready for Love," and the title track, but a couple of the others sounded slightly familiar as well. "Rock Steady" was a standout - reminded me of a 70's Whitesnake song. Good old rock 'n' roll!
amazing album - 10/10 whoever that singer is, he has the voice of a god
Vraiment tr`s bon. Une bonne rrecette pour du bon rock, j'ai écouté 2 fois de suite 5
One of my favorites
Le petit rayon de soleil de ma journée
Fairly decent 70s rock. Good sound and highly polished. Never heard anything other than Bad Company's hits, so was nice to hear other B-sides. Favorite was The Way I Choose. Solid album.
-Classic rock tunes -What else to say, just a good rock album.
Timeless. Feel good music, with some great slow ballads.
not so bad=)
7/10
This fine album.
Pretty solid classic rock. Short and sweet.
Classic 70s rock album. Every song is good.
Good, solid hard rock. I See it paving the way for heavier stuff! Song 'bad company' stands out more than everything else. Also I love that this is a supergroup where this band stands out more than any of the earlier bands. I guess Free was big? whatever.
Yes! Loved this!
Promising, should listen again
This album just plain rocks, and still holds up. I don't really have anything else to add.
Classic album
generous 4
Big fan of the Bad Co. and this is a good album. “Movin’ On” is a lifetime favorite, and a lot of other good tunes here. I really like the soulful bluesyness on this solid Rock n Roll album. Upon listening, my mind wandered immediately to the other Paul Rogers (vocalist) albums I love - anything by Free, the Bad Company “Desolation Angels” LP and his solo blues album covering Muddy Waters - check it all out if you can. Easy 4.
Surprised how many songs I recognized. Will be likely to put this on more so than most other albums we have listened to
awesome album. so many memories!