Paul Bernard Rodgers (born 17 December 1949) is an English-Canadian singer, songwriter and musician. He was the lead vocalist of numerous successful rock bands, including Free, Bad Company, the Firm and the Law. He has also performed as a solo artist and collaborated with the remaining active members of Queen under the moniker Queen + Paul Rodgers, from 2004 until they parted ways in 2009.[1][2] A poll in Rolling Stone magazine ranked him number 55 on its list of the "100 Greatest Singers of All Time".[3] In 2011, Rodgers received the British Academy's Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music.[4]
Rodgers has been cited as a significant influence on various rock singers. In 1991, John Mellencamp called Rodgers "the best rock singer ever".[5]Freddie Mercury in particular liked Rodgers and his aggressive style.[3]
Rodgers was born in Middlesbrough, England. He played bass[7] for a band named The Roadrunners. Colin Bradley originally had the lead vocal slot, but convinced Rodgers to sing and front the band as he was primarily interested in playing rhythm guitar and his oldest brother Joe (who managed the band) supported the idea. Just before leaving Middlesbrough for the London music scene, the band changed its name to The Wildflowers. Other members of this band were Micky Moody (later of Whitesnake) and Bruce Thomas (later of Elvis Costello and The Attractions).
In 1968, Rodgers joined bluesy rockers Free as singer and songwriter. In 1970, they shot up the international radio charts with "All Right Now", which Rodgers wrote with the group's bassist Andy Fraser.[8] It was a number one hit in more than 20 territories and acknowledged by ASCAP in 1990 for having received over a million radio plays in the US.
For a short time, Free were alongside Led Zeppelin as among the highest grossing British acts, though Free's status was not sustained. Free released four albums with a combination of blues, ballads and rock that were Top Five successes in the UK. When in 2000, the song "All Right Now" achieved the mark of two million radio plays in the UK, an award was given to Rodgers as one of the two writers.
After the first break-up of Free in the spring of 1971, Rodgers briefly formed a three-piece band called Peace. Alongside bassist Stewart McDonald and drummer Mick Underwood, Rodgers played guitar and sang lead vocals. Peace supported Mott the Hoople's UK tour in 1971, but broke up when Free reformed at the start of 1972. Two songs by Peace were eventually included on the fifth disc of the 2000 Free compilation Songs of Yesterday, along with a song that Rodgers recorded with the Maytals. A bootleg has circulated of a 22 December 1971 appearance by Peace, live in studio, on BBC Radio 1's Top Gear program.[9]
Guitar used by Rodgers, on display at the Hard Rock Cafe in Tenerife
Rodgers formed his next band, Bad Company, with Mick Ralphs, former guitarist of Mott the Hoople. The line-up also included Free drummer Simon Kirke, and Boz Burrell, former vocalist and bassist of King Crimson. Rodgers said he and Ralphs were still trying to come up with a name for the band, "and I just said 'Bad Company', and there was this scuffling noise and he said, 'Shit, I dropped the phone—that's it!'"[10]
Bad Company was the first act signed to Led Zeppelin's new record label, Swan Song. They toured from 1973 to 1982, and had several hits such as "Feel Like Makin' Love", "Can't Get Enough", "Shooting Star", "Bad Company", and "Run with the Pack". Rodgers played instruments on several tracks: "Bad Company" and "Run with the Pack" featured him on piano; "Rock and Roll Fantasy" on guitar; and on the ballad "Seagull" Rodgers played all of the instruments. Bad Company earned six platinum albums until Rodgers left in 1982, stating that he wanted to spend time with his young family.
It was revealed in April 2011 that after Jim Morrison's death in 1971, the rest of the Doors wanted Rodgers to replace him. Robbie Krieger flew to England to personally offer him the job. However, Rodgers has said that he was off the grid in a very rural area at the time, and the moment passed.[11][12] In late 1973, Rodgers was asked to become the singer of Deep Purple when Ian Gillan had left the band. He rejected their offer in order to start Bad Company.
1980s: Solo career and the Firm
In October 1983, Rodgers released his first solo LP Cut Loose. He composed all of the music and played all of the instruments. The album reached number 135 on Billboard's Pop Albums chart.[13]
When his friend Jimmy Page started to come around to his house, guitar in hand and Led Zeppelin at an end, the duo's first live pairing was on the US ARMS (Action Research into Multiple Sclerosis) Tour, which had first been mooted by Eric Clapton and, besides Rodgers and Page, would include Jeff Beck, Joe Cocker, Steve Winwood and others. The inspiration behind ARMS had been former Small Faces/Faces member Ronnie Lane's own struggle with M.S. This led to Rodgers and Page's further teaming in the group the Firm, which resulted in two albums and two tours. Critics' reception of the band was sometimes scathing (one review used the term "supersludge") and also mixed.[14] Even so, the Firm's two albums, The Firm and Mean Business, achieved moderate sales success[15] and produced the radio hits "Radioactive", "Satisfaction Guaranteed", and, in the UK, "All The King's Horses".
During this same period, a series of albums were produced called Willie and the Poor Boys.[16] Rodgers and Page were briefly part of this and recorded "These Arms of Mine", an Otis Redding tune. This recording also became a video promoting the CD.
1990s: The Law and solo career
The Law, Rodgers' 1991 musical venture with former the Who and Faces drummer Kenney Jones, produced Billboard's number one AOR chart hit "Laying Down the Law" written by Rodgers, but the album peaked at number 126 on the Billboard 200 chart. A second album can be found on the bootleg market, which is often referred to as The Law II. It is believed that this collection of songs were leftovers from the first album.[17]
Rodgers acknowledged the influence of Jimi Hendrix by collaborating with Steve Vai, Hendrix's Band of Gypsys (Buddy Miles and Billy Cox) and the London Metropolitan Orchestra and recorded the track "Bold As Love", on the Hendrix tribute album In From The Storm. Then Rodgers teamed with Journey guitarist Neal Schon and drummer Deen Castronovo for his release The Hendrix Set, a live 5-track CD, recorded in 1993 with Rodgers' interpretations of Hendrix songs. A Canadian and US tour followed.
In 1995, he formed a new band consisting of Jaz Lochrie on bass, Jimmy Copley on drums and Geoff Whitehorn on guitar. The band (The Paul Rodgers Band) toured extensively in Europe, US and in the UK until 1998 and released three albums – Live: The Loreley Tapes, Now and Electric. Now charted internationally in the Top 40. The single "Soul of Love" remained in rotation on more than 86 US radio stations for six months but was not a sales success. His 1997 world tour included Russia, Japan, Canada, US, UK, Germany, France, Romania, Bulgaria, Israel, Brazil, Greece and Argentina.
Rodgers and Bad Company hit Billboard's US BDS charts with the number one single "Hey, Hey" in 1999, one of four new tracks off Bad Company's The 'Original' Bad Co. Anthology. The second single release, Rodgers's "Hammer of Love", reached number two. For the first time in 20 years, all the original members of Bad Company toured the US.[18]
Rodgers focused on his solo career in 2000 and released Electric, his sixth solo CD. In its debut week, the single "Drifters" was US rock radio's number one on the Most Added FMQB Hot Trax list, number two on Most Added R&R Rock and number three on Most Added Album Net Power Cuts. "Drifters" remained in the top 10 for eight weeks on Billboard's Rock charts. That year, he played sold-out concerts in England, Scotland, Australia, United States and Canada. After his appearance on TV's Late Show with David Letterman in New York, he met and jammed with B. B. King. That same year, Rodgers, Jimmie Vaughan, Levon Helm, bluesmen Hubert Sumlin, Johnnie Johnson, James Cotton and others performed a sold out concert in Cleveland as a Muddy Water Blues: A Tribute to Muddy Waters.
In spring 2001, Rodgers returned to Australia, England and Scotland for the second run of sold-out shows. That summer he toured the US with Bad Company.
Rodgers and Bad Company released their first official live CD and DVD, In Concert: Merchants of Cool, in 2002. It included all the hits and a new single, "Joe Fabulous", penned by Rodgers, which hit number one at Classic Rock Radio and Top 20 on mainstream rock radio in the US. In its debut week, the DVD sales sound scanned at number three Canada, and number four in the US. The Joe Fabulous Tour kicked off in the US and sold out in the UK. While in London, Rodgers performed with Jeff Beck at the Royal Festival Hall. Rodgers was invited by long-time fan Tony Blair to perform at the Labour Party Conference. "I had the entire Labour Party singing the chorus of "Wishing Well", a song I wrote and shared with Free, ...'love in a peaceful world'. 'Love in a peaceful world'... over and over and over hoping the words would sink in but we went to war" recalled Rodgers. Twice in 2002, Rodgers performed on Britain's TV show Top of the Pops 2.
In 2003, Rodgers toured as a solo artist for the first time in two years playing 25 US dates. In his solo band were guitarist Howard Leese (formerly of Heart), bassist Lynn Sorensen and drummer Jeff Kathan. Jools Holland invited Rodgers to record "I Told The Truth" for Holland's album Small World Big Band. The CD also featured Eric Clapton, Ronnie Wood, Peter Gabriel, Michael McDonald, Ringo Starr and others. This led to Rodgers performing two sold-out nights at London's Royal Albert Hall with Holland and his 18-piece rhythm and blues orchestra, and several UK TV appearances. He also appeared with Jeff Beck, performing some songs from Beck's back catalogue (along with several other notable musicians, including John Mclaughlin, Roger Waters and the White Stripes) for part of a week-long series of charity concerts put on by Jeff Beck at the Royal Festival Hall in London.
Paul Rodgers and Queen at the NEC, Birmingham, 6 May 2005.
In late 2004, after a successful live television performance, two of the three living members of the British rock group Queen proposed a collaboration with Rodgers, in which he would sing lead vocals on a European tour. Rodgers thus joined Brian May and Roger Taylor (former bassist John Deacon retired in the late 1990s), with the group billed as Queen + Paul Rodgers and they subsequently toured worldwide in 2005 and 2006. The participants clearly stated, including on Brian May's own website, "that Rodgers would be "featured with" Queen as: "Queen + Paul Rodgers", not replacing the late Freddie Mercury". The group subsequently released a live album with songs from Queen, Bad Company and Free, called Return of the Champions, and a DVD of the same name. Both featured live recordings from their SheffieldHallam FM Arena concert on 9 May 2005. The DVD features "Imagine" from Hyde Park. "For one glorious summer" opined music critic Sean Michaels "we were all Paul Rodgers".[19] Another DVD was released in 2006 from a live performance in Japan, called Super Live in Japan.
The summer of 2006 saw Rodgers again focused on his solo career with a world tour, which commenced in Austin, Texas, US in June, then on to Japan, finishing in Glasgow, Scotland, in October 2006.
On 15 August 2006, Brian May confirmed through his website that "Queen + Paul Rodgers" would begin producing a new studio album beginning in October, to be recorded at Roger Taylor's home.[20]
In April 2007 Rodgers released a live album of his 2006 tour, Live in Glasgow, recorded in Glasgow, Scotland 13 October 2006, with a DVD of the same show released the following month.
On 27–28 December 2007, Rodgers performed with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra during their Winter 2007 Tour in Houston, Texas and Dallas, Texas. Unannounced, he joined the band at the end of their show to sing "Bad Company" and "All Right Now".
Rogers was a judge for the sixth and seventh annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists.[21]
On 27 June 2008, Rodgers and Queen performed at the Concert for Nelson Mandela to celebrate Mandela's 90th birthday.
On 8 August 2008, Rodgers and original members Mick Ralphs and Simon Kirke reunited as Bad Company to perform a one-night only, sold-out performance at the Seminole Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Florida. The live performance was released on Blu-ray, DVD, and CD on 9 February 2010 and the tracks included seventeen Bad Company hits. Rodgers dedicated "Gone, Gone, Gone" to original bassist Boz Burrell, who died in 2006.
On 14 May 2009, Rodgers announced he was ending his five-year-long collaboration with Queen, although did not rule out the possibility of working with them again. On 17 November 2009, it was announced he would join the other surviving members of Bad Company for an eight-date UK tour in April 2010.
2010s: Solo career and more Bad Company
On 5 June 2010 he began small tour of California, US by performing at the Temecula Valley Balloon & Wine Festival. One week later, on 12 June, Rodgers and his band appeared as headliners on the Grandstand Stage at the San Diego County Fair in Del Mar, California, followed by casino shows in Lemoore on 17 June and in Santa Ynez on 18 June.
Rodgers performed a solo UK tour in April 2011 with Joe Elliot's Down 'n' Outz. The concert of 28 April at Birmingham's National Indoor Arena was filmed for a future live DVD release.
In May 2011 Rodgers received an Ivor Novello Award for "Outstanding contribution to British music"[22][23]
In 2014, Rodgers was once again touring with Bad Company.[25]
Rodgers again performed with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra on their New Year's Eve show in Seattle, Washington. Rodgers performed Can't Get Enough and All Right Now.[26]
In 2017 Rodgers embarked on a 'Free Spirit' UK Tour in May 2017 to celebrate the music of Free by performing songs strictly from the Free catalogue.[27] Rodgers said "It was 50 years ago in 1967 when Paul Kossoff and I met and later formed Free". In 2018 a CD/DVD set was released which captured the final show from the 'Free Spirit' tour filmed at the Royal Albert Hall on 28 May 2017.
In the summer of 2018 Rodgers toured with Jeff Beck.[28] In 2023, he released the album Midnight Rose, his first solo album of original material in 24 years. He stated in an interview that he had no plans to tour in support of it.[29]
Personal life
Rodgers became a Canadian citizen on 21 October 2011 and resides in British Columbia.[30][31][6]
Relationships and family
Rodgers has a daughter, Natalie, from an early relationship, who resides in his hometown of Middlesbrough.[citation needed]
He married Machiko Shimizu in 1971 and has two children from that marriage, Steve and Jasmine. Both are musicians, known for being members of the rock band Bôa.[32] Rodgers and Shimizu divorced in 1996.[33]
In 2016 Rodgers suffered the first of two major strokes. The second, which came in 2019, greatly affected his speech and musical abilities. These, along with 11 more minor strokes, required an endarterectomy. He has since made a full recovery.[35]
Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1970 by Freddie Mercury, Brian May, and Roger Taylor, later joined by John Deacon (bass). Their earliest works were influenced by progressive rock, hard rock and heavy metal, but the band gradually ventured into more conventional and radio-friendly works by incorporating further styles, such as arena rock and pop rock.
Brian Harold May is an English musician, songwriter, record producer, animal welfare activist and astrophysicist. He achieved worldwide fame as the lead guitarist and backing vocalist of the rock band Queen, which he co-founded with singer Freddie Mercury and drummer Roger Taylor. His guitar work and songwriting contributions helped Queen become one of the most successful acts in music history.
Geoffrey Arnold Beck was an English guitarist. He rose to prominence as a member of the rock band the Yardbirds, and afterwards founded and fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, he switched to an instrumental style with focus on an innovative sound, and his releases spanned genres and styles ranging from blues rock, hard rock, jazz fusion and a blend of guitar-rock and electronica.
Bad Company were an English rock supergroup that was formed in London in 1973 by singer Paul Rodgers, drummer Simon Kirke, guitarist Mick Ralphs and bassist Boz Burrell. Kirke was the only member to remain throughout the band's entire run, while he and Ralphs were the only members to appear on every studio album. Peter Grant, who managed the rock band Led Zeppelin, also managed Bad Company until 1982.
Free were an English rock band formed in London in 1968 by Paul Rodgers (vocals), Paul Kossoff (guitar), Andy Fraser and Simon Kirke. They are best known for their hit songs "All Right Now" and "Wishing Well". Although renowned for their live performances and non-stop touring, their music did not sell well until their third studio album, Fire and Water (1970), which featured the hit "All Right Now". The song helped secure them a performance at the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival, where they played to an audience of 600,000 people. In the early 1970s they became one of the best-selling British blues rock groups; by the time they disbanded, they had sold more than 20 million records worldwide and had played in more than 700 arenas and festival concerts. "All Right Now" remains a staple of R&B and rock, and has entered ASCAP's "One Million" airplay singles club.
Michael Geoffrey Ralphs is a retired English guitarist, vocalist and songwriter, who was a founding member of rock bands Mott the Hoople and Bad Company. Though not a constant member, he appeared on every studio album by the latter band alongside drummer Simon Kirke.
Paul Francis Kossoff was an English guitarist, best known as the co-founder and guitarist of the rock band Free. In 2010, he was ranked number 51 in Rolling Stone's list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
A Night at the Opera is the fourth studio album by the British rock band Queen, released on 28 November 1975, by EMI Records in the United Kingdom and Elektra Records in the United States. Produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Queen, it was reportedly the most expensive album ever recorded at the time of its release.
"Tie Your Mother Down" is a song by the British rock band Queen, written by lead guitarist Brian May. It is the opening track and the second single from their 1976 album A Day at the Races. On its original release as a single in 1977 the song peaked at 31 in the UK Singles Chart. More than 20 years later, it was released as a double a-side to "No-One but You " where it reached 13 in UK Singles Chart. On the album the song is preceded by a one-minute instrumental intro featuring a Shepard tone melody, performed by Brian May, which is reprised in the ending of "Teo Torriatte": this was intended to create a "circle" within the album.
William Wyman Sherwood is an American multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, singer, record producer and mixing engineer. He is best known for his tenures in the English progressive rock band Yes as guitarist and keyboardist in 1994 and from 1997 to 2000 and as bassist since 2015, following the death of original bassist Chris Squire. He is also known for working with former and current Yes members on other projects.
Simon Frederick St George Kirke is an English musician who was the co-founder, drummer, and only continuous member of the rock supergroup Bad Company. Prior to forming Bad Company he was the drummer and co-founder of Free.
Philip "Spike" Edney is an English musician who has performed with a number of bands since the 1970s, most notably with Queen in their live concerts since 1984.
Heartbreaker is the sixth and final studio album by the English rock band Free, that provided them with one of their most successful singles, "Wishing Well". It was recorded in late 1972 after bassist Andy Fraser had left the band and while guitarist Paul Kossoff was ailing from an addiction to Mandrax (Quaalude) and features a different line up from previous albums. Tetsu Yamauchi was brought in to replace Fraser, while John "Rabbit" Bundrick became the band's keyboard player to compensate for the increasingly unreliable Kossoff. Both Yamauchi and Bundrick had played with Kossoff and drummer Simon Kirke on the album Kossoff, Kirke, Tetsu & Rabbit during that period in late 1971 when Free had broken up for the first time. Also, several other musicians were used on the album. The album was co-produced by Andy Johns as well as Free themselves.
Queen + Paul Rodgers was a collaboration between Queen and Paul Rodgers, formerly of Bad Company, Free, The Firm and The Law. Guitarist May had previously performed with Rodgers on several occasions, including a performance at the Royal Albert Hall.
Queen on Fire – Live at the Bowl is a DVD/live album by the British rock band Queen released on 25 October 2004 in Europe and on 9 November 2004 in the US. It was recorded live at the Milton Keynes Bowl, Buckinghamshire, England, on 5 June 1982 during the Hot Space Tour. A DVD was also released with the complete concert and bonus material, such as band interviews and tour highlights.
"I Want It All" is a song by British rock band Queen, featured on their 1989 studio album, The Miracle. Written by guitarist and vocalist Brian May and produced by David Richards, it was released as the first single from the album on 2 May 1989. "I Want It All" reached number three on the singles charts of the United Kingdom, Finland, Ireland and New Zealand, as well as on the US Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart. Elsewhere, it peaked at number two in the Netherlands and charted within the top 10 in Australia, Belgium, Germany, Norway and Switzerland. With its message about fighting for one's own goals it became an anti-apartheid protest song in South Africa.
Jamie Moses is an English rock and pop singer and guitarist. He was formerly a member of The Brian May Band, Queen + Paul Rodgers, Mike & the Mechanics and Broken English.
The Hot Space Tour was the ninth headlining concert tour by the British rock band Queen in support of their 1982 album Hot Space. The tour started on the 9th of April in Gothenburg, Sweden and ended, after sixty-nine concerts, in Tokorozawa, Japan on the 3rd of November.
The Cosmos Rocks is the only studio album by Queen + Paul Rodgers, released on 15 September 2008. It contains 14 new tracks written by Brian May, Roger Taylor, and Paul Rodgers. This is the first studio album of new material from the two remaining members of Queen since 1995's Made in Heaven.
"Say It's Not True" is a song by Queen + Paul Rodgers, released on World AIDS Day, 1 December 2007 as the lead single from the supergroup's sole album, The Cosmos Rocks. The song was written by drummer Roger Taylor and features all three members on vocals. It was available as a free download from QueenOnline.com. The song was performed live on the Queen + Paul Rodgers 2005/06 world tour, however the live rendition was acoustic and only featured Taylor on vocals. When played on the Rock the Cosmos Tour, the song was sung by Taylor, May and Rodgers as on the single.
References
↑ "Discography". Paul Rodgers Official Site. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
↑ Diakiw, Kevin (20 November 2013). "A Tale of Two Surreys". The Surrey Leader. Archived from the original on 24 November 2013. Retrieved 20 November 2013.
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