Bad Company’s Paul Rodgers Reflects on Rock Hall Induction and Final Conversation With Mick Ralphs
Photo by Florian Stangl from Bayern, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Remembering a Call That Meant Everything
Paul Rodgers still remembers one of his final phone calls with guitarist Mick Ralphs — a moment that carried both pride and sadness. The Bad Company singer-songwriter was the one who got to deliver the long-awaited news: they had finally been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
“I said to him, ‘Do you remember when we were looking for a band name and we called each other with silly names?’ And then I just called him up one day and I said, ‘Bad Company,’ and he dropped the phone and he said, ‘Oh yeah, that’s it. That’s the name,’” Rodgers recalled.
“I said, ‘From then, it’s a long way, but it seems like we just blinked our eyes a couple of times and here we are at the Hall of Fame.’ So at least I was able to tell him that.”
Ralphs passed away in June, only a few weeks after hearing about the band’s induction.
Honoring a Legacy
Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke are now the last surviving original members of the British supergroup that produced classic rock staples like “Feel Like Makin’ Love,” “Can’t Get Enough,” and “Rock ’n’ Roll Fantasy.” Both will be part of the Rock Hall celebrations at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, airing live on Disney+ and later on ABC and Hulu.
“The fans have just been so great throughout the years. We feel like we’re celebrated, but it’s just not been stamped officially. That’s the only difference,” Rodgers said.
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A Star-Studded Class of 2025
Bad Company will join an eclectic list of 2025 inductees, including rock legend Chubby Checker, late soul singer Joe Cocker, pop icon Cyndi Lauper, hip-hop innovators Outkast, the White Stripes, and grunge icons Soundgarden.
Salt-N-Pepa, the trailblazing female rap group, and the late Warren Zevon will receive the Musical Influence Award. Producer Thom Bell, pianist Nicky Hopkins, and bassist Carol Kaye will each be honored with the Musical Excellence Award.
The event will also feature appearances from Elton John, Olivia Rodrigo, Doja Cat, Questlove, Twenty One Pilots, Missy Elliott, Beck, Brandi Carlile, Iggy Pop, David Letterman, Flea, and many more.
Rodgers recently announced that he will not perform during the ceremony to “prioritize my health,” but confirmed that Kirke and “some outstanding musicians” will represent the band onstage.
Building a Band That Broke the Mold
Bad Company formed in 1973 in London, uniting talents from some of rock’s most respected acts. Rodgers and Kirke came from Free, Ralphs from Mott the Hoople, and bassist Boz Burrell had just left King Crimson. The group was managed by Peter Grant, famed for guiding Led Zeppelin, and signed to Zeppelin’s Swan Song label.
“We had everything we needed,” Rodgers said. “You can’t really have a better start than that for a fledgling band. We had the music. We had Atlantic Records behind us. It was a magic roller coaster ride, actually.”
Kirke remembered that when they emerged, glam rock ruled the charts — with artists like David Bowie, Queen, and T. Rex leading the way. Bad Company decided to take a different approach.
“When we got together, I think the communal goal was we just wanted to do something that was stripped-down, right to the point, gritty and a little cheeky, a bit of fun,” he said.
From “Can’t Get Enough” to the Top of the Charts
The band’s earliest sessions were powered by songs that would soon become rock anthems. Ralphs brought in “Can’t Get Enough,” “Movin’ On,” and “Ready for Love.” Rodgers had “Rock Steady” and co-wrote “Seagull” with Ralphs. Together with Kirke, Rodgers wrote the band’s defining self-titled song, “Bad Company,” which carried the famous line, “Bad company/ ’Til the day I die.”
Their debut album, Bad Company, released in 1974, went straight to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and eventually achieved five-times platinum status.
Over the next decade, the band released six albums before disbanding in 1982 after Rough Diamonds. They later reunited several times with new lineups and toured again. Burrell passed away in 2006 after a long battle with cancer.
Kirke reflected on how the group’s raw, blues-based sound left its mark on the next generation. “Bad Company influenced many bands that followed, like Foreigner, Iron Maiden, and Def Leppard. But we were influenced, in turn, by the Beatles and soul and blues artists,” he said. “We just passed it on.”
Celebrating Their Influence
The Hall of Fame recognition comes just weeks after the release of Can’t Get Enough: A Tribute to Bad Company, a 10-track album that features rock legends and rising stars reinterpreting the band’s best-known songs.
Def Leppard’s Joe Elliott and Phil Collen recorded a version of “Seagull,” while Rodgers joined Halestorm for a new take on “Shooting Star.” The Struts delivered “Rock ’n’ Roll Fantasy,” Slash and Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators powered through “Feel Like Makin’ Love,” and Blackberry Smoke tackled “Run With the Pack.”
“What it’s really about is one generation inspiring the next generation, and that’s really what Otis Redding did for me,” Rodgers said, reflecting on his place in rock history and his gratitude for joining Redding in the Hall of Fame.
“Music was my calling — not to receive accolades — but to express myself, my thoughts, and my opinions about love and life through song, and hopefully send out a positive vibration from my heart to others.”
