Bad Company, ‘Bad Company’ – Butch’s Way Back Wednesday

As a music fan there is always something new and great, but there really is something special about the songs you grew up listening to. For me, that was 70′s and 80′s classic rock. If I am in a shi**y mood, I throw in a little Zeppelin or Rush and take a trip back to rolling in my mom’s T-Bird. Now every Wednesday you get to take that trip with me. It’s Way Back Wednesday with Butch, and today’s feature goes way back 40 years to 1974… Bad Company’s, “Bad Company.”

"Bad Company" was released as the third single from their debut album Bad Company in 1974, although it did not chart (in America). The song was co-written by the group's lead singer Paul Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke, and themeaning comes from the movie of the same name featuring Jeff Bridges and Barry Brown.

The band's signature song also happens to be the name of the group and it’s something that Paul Rodgers fought hard for, because management and the record label thought it was a “terrible name.” Rodgers has described the song as one that has a Western vibe, “with an almost biblical, promise-land kind of lawless feel to it.” He says the song name (and we’d argue the same for the legendary piano opening) helped to back up the theme of ‘Bad Company.’

Now take a trip back 40 years with us to 1974...

Last summer, two of classic rock’s mainstays, Bad Company and Lynryd Skynyrd, teamed up for one of the season’s most successful tours. So it makes sense that the duo are back for another round of dates. Check out the dates here.