Free And Bad Company books due in 2022

Wymer Publishing have two interesting books due this year. Links for their website, where you'll find further information, are below. I don't have any other details (Press Release information is below) so check them out there, and you can order directly from the website if you wish.

In April they release 'Free & Bad Comany in the 1970s'  by John Van der Kiste (Paperback / softback, 160 pages, 16 colour pages, £15.99).

Free were formed in 1968 towards the end of the British blues boom. After two critically acclaimed albums, the release of 'All Right Now' and the album Fire and Water in 1970 brought them major success. Musical and personal differences took their toll and they split after the comparative failure of their next album and single.

 

After starting new bands that never took off they reformed, but following further dissension and guitarist Paul Kossoff's drug problems they disbanded for good in 1973. Vocalist Paul Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke then formed Bad Company, who became one of the hottest bands on both sides of the Atlantic, maintaining a stable line-up with ex-Mott The Hoople guitarist Mick Ralphs and ex-King Crimson bassist Boz Burrell for the rest of the decade. Each member later pursued outside ventures, although they regrouped at intervals, recruiting new members after Ralphs' retirement and Burrell's death.

 

This book examines both bands' work and career from 1968 to 1980, plus the Kossoff, Kirke, Tetsu, Rabbit album, Kossoff's solo work and Back Street Crawler, with a chapter on their later history, notably Rodgers' three years with Queen.

Free and Bad Company in the 1970s

 

Then in July comes 'Bad Company A Visual Biography' by Martin Popoff (Hardcover, 22 pages, colour throughout, £59.99) 

This is currently available for pre-order at £41.99 until the end of March.

Bad Company A Visual Biography documents the full career of Messrs Paul Rodgers, Simon Kirke, Mick Ralphs and Boz Burrell as well as later Bad Co. members including Brian Howe, Robert Hart and Dave Colwell. Popoff takes you on a journey built around his interviews with various band members — the tale unfolds via an exhaustive chronology designed to satisfy the most knowledgeable of Bad Company fans.

 

Not content with charting the band’s history, Popoff covers the bands that Bad Company was derived from — Free, Mott The Hoople and King Crimson, which gave Bad Company the supergroup tag upon their launch in 1973. In addition, the solo careers are also covered, most notably Paul Rodgers, including his spell with Queen.

 

This large format coffee table book is fully illustrated throughout, documenting the story visually from the sixties. As well as an abundance of concert images the stunning photographic content is topped off with many off stage shots. Bad Company A Visual Biography will augment any Bad Co. fan’s collection.

Bad Company A Visual Biography