Line #15 Music/BadCompany


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Bad_Company_7899.jpg]]
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3	->''"That's why they call me''
4	->''[[TitleDrop Bad Company]], and I can't deny"''
5	-->--'''"Bad Company"''', from [[RuleOfThree Bad Company]]'s first album, ''[[SelfTitledAlbum Bad Company]]''
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7	An English arena rock band mainly active in the 1970s and, to a lesser extent, the 1980s, Bad Company is one of those bands where you've definitely heard their songs, you've definitely sung along, but you don't quite recognize their name. The band was a {{supergroup}} formed after the break-up or membership changes of several prominent British rock groups; the original line-up included Paul Rodgers (vocals, keyboards) and Simon Kirke (drums, percussion) from Music/{{Free}}, Mick Ralphs (guitar) of {{glam rock}}ers Music/MottTheHoople, and ex-Music/KingCrimson member Boz Burrell (bass guitar). Second only to Music/LedZeppelin in terms of popularity, the two groups shared many ties; Bad Company was signed to Led Zeppelin's Swan Song label[[note]]although their first four albums were on Creator/IslandRecords in England[[/note]], Led Zeppelin manager Peter Grant also guided Bad Company to success, and Paul Rodgers later played with Jimmy Page in The Firm.
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9	Bad Company became famous for a few singles: "[[IntercourseWithYou Feel Like Makin' Love]]", "Can't Get Enough", "Bad Company", "Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy" and "Shooting Star". Much like Paul Rodgers' first band, Music/{{Free}}, their sound is a mix of [[BluesRock blues-influenced]] HardRock and classically-influenced piano ballads. In this respect, they bear some similarities to the mid-to-late-1970s output of Music/{{Queen\|Band}}, with whom lead singer Paul Rodgers performed after the tragic death of Music/FreddieMercury.
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11	They broke up in 1982 due to decreasing sales, interpersonal conflicts (Rodgers and Burrell got into a fistfight during the recording of ''Rough Diamonds''), declining interest from Peter Grant (who gradually lost his enthusiasm for the music industry after the death of Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham), and a general weariness with the ShowBusiness meat grinder. As Mick Ralphs said years later, "Bad Company had become bigger than us all and to continue would have destroyed someone or something."
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13	In 1986, Mick Ralphs and Simon Kirke formed a new band -- but their then-current label, Creator/AtlanticRecords, insisted that they use the Bad Company name. With Paul Rodgers busy in The Firm, Brian Howe (formerly Music/TedNugent's vocalist) was recruited as the new singer, beginning Bad Company's TheBandMinusTheFace era. The group also became a RevolvingDoorBand; several new members came and went, with Ralphs and Kirke as the only constants (at least in the studio -- Ralphs had to sit out some tours due to recurring health problems). Eventually Howe was replaced by a third vocalist, Robert Hart. In 1990, they came back with their ''Holy Water'' album with its title track, 'Boys Cry Tough', 'If You Needed Somebody', 'Stranger Stranger', and 'Walk Through Fire' as its hit songs. In 1992, their ''Here Comes Trouble'' album yielded the hit song 'How About That' as the 1990's were nostalgic for the 1970's.
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15	When Peter Grant died in 1995, the original four members met at his funeral and eventually decided to work together again. This reunion was short-lived (1998–99), but it yielded four new songs that were released on a GreatestHits compilation, ''The Original Bad Company Anthology''. Since then, Rodgers, Kirke and other musicians (including Ralphs when his health permits) have kept the band sporadically touring ever since. However, there have been no studio recordings since two new songs were added to the 2002 LiveAlbum ''Merchants of Cool''. Boz Burrell died in 2006, making a full reunion impossible, but the other three founders still play live occasionally, doing a series of British concerts in 2016. However, Mick Ralphs suffered a stroke shortly afterwards; although he's recovering, the fact that the British shows were called the "Swan Song Tour" might become unwittingly prophetic. Former vocalist Brian Howe passed away in May 2020.
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17	Not to be confused with ''VideoGame/BattlefieldBadCompany'', the manga ''Manga/BadCompany'', the ''ComicBook/TwoThousandAD'' strip ''Bad Company'', or [[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureDiamondIsUnbreakable Keicho Nijimura]]'s [[FightingSpirit Stand]].
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19	!!Studio discography:
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21	* ''[[SelfTitledAlbum Bad Company]]'' (1974)
22	* ''Straight Shooter'' (1975)
23	* ''Run With the Pack'' (1976)
24	* ''Burnin' Sky'' (1977)
25	* ''Desolation Angels'' (1979)
26	* ''Rough Diamonds'' (1982) (last full album by the original lineup)
27	* ''Fame and Fortune'' (1986) (first of four studio albums with Brian Howe on vocals)
28	* ''Dangerous Age'' (1988)
29	* ''Holy Water'' (1990)
30	* ''Here Comes Trouble'' (1992)
31	* ''Company of Strangers'' (1995) (first of two studio albums with Robert Hart on vocals)
32	* ''Stories Told & Untold'' (1996) (half new material, half remakes of songs by the original lineup)
33
34	----
35	!!Bad Company demonstrates examples of:
36	* TheBandMinusTheFace: The 1986–96 era without Paul Rodgers. To be fair, the only reason Ralphs and Kirke used the name "Bad Company" was due to their label's ExecutiveMeddling.[[invoked]]
37	* CanonDiscontinuity: The band's official website disavows the existence of any studio album made after 1982's ''Rough Diamonds'', likely because [[TheBandMinusTheFace Paul Rodgers doesn't appear on them]].
38	** Though ''Holy Water'' is available on iTunes, mostly due to the success of the PowerBallad "If You Needed Somebody."
39	* DownerEnding: "Shooting Star", about a man named Johnny who becomes a rock star, ends with him dead from a combination of sleeping pills and booze.
40	* GreatestHitsAlbum: One of the most recent is essentially a Paul Rodgers album, ''The Very Best of Free and Bad Company (featuring Paul Rodgers).''
41	* HeavyMeta: "Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy", the original line-up's last big hit single.
42	* IAmTheBand: Like Ian Paice of Music/DeepPurple, drummer Simon Kirke is the only member who's been in every version of the band.
43	* IntercourseWithYou: "Feel Like Makin' Love".
44	* NewSoundAlbum: For the most part, the four albums with Brian Howe as lead vocalist, which were less blues-influenced and more in line with Damn Yankees-style '80s arena rock.
45	* PowerBallad
46	* RevolvingDoorBand: {{Averted\|Trope}} with the 1973–82 lineup, but in full effect since 1986. As noted, Simon Kirke is the only member to be in every lineup.
47	* RockStarSong: "Shooting Star", which may or may not be about guitarist Paul Kossoff of Free.
48	* SelfTitledAlbum: Their debut, ''Bad Company'', complete with MinimalisticCoverArt by Creator/{{Hipgnosis}}.
49	** They also have a rare honor of [[ShapedLikeItself a song called "Bad Company" by the band Bad Company off of the album]] ''[[ShapedLikeItself Bad Company]]''.
50	* ShoutOut: The inner gatefold of ''Run With the Pack'' shows the band sitting in a hotel room, with WesternAnimation/BugsBunny on the TV screen.
51	* SpiritualSuccessor: To Music/{{Free}}, arguably.
52	* StalkerWithACrush: The protagonist of the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_AMKtiS6UEQ "If You Needed Somebody"]] video comes across as a benign version of this. It's unclear whether the scene at about 3:23 of him kissing the object of his affection is real or fantasy.
53	* StepUpToTheMicrophone: Drummer Simon Kirke sings "100 Miles" on the ''Holy Water'' album.
54	* {{Supergroup}}
55	* {{Yandere}}: The protagonist of "Burnin' Sky", who breaks out of prison to be with his beloved.

Context Music / BadCompany