Free were formed in 1968 towards the end of the British blues boom. But after two critically acclaimed albums, it was the release of the acclaimed single 'All Right Now' and the album Fire and Water in 1970 that brought them major success. Musical and personal differences took their toll and they split after the comparative failure of their next album. However, after starting new bands that failed to take off, Free reformed before disbanding for good in 1973 following further dissension and guitarist Paul Kossoff's drug problems.
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 beyond the 1970s, 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 with his band Back Street Crawler. A final chapter covers the band members' later history, most notably Rodgers' three years with Queen.
John Van der Kiste has published over seventy books, mostly historical biography and music, including 1973: A Year in Rock and Mott the Hoople and Ian Hunter in the 1970s for Sonicbond. He has also reviewed books and records for the local and national press and fanzines, and co-founded and edited the 70s fanzine Keep on Rockin'. He has performed with groups, run mobile discos, and written booklet notes for CD reissues from EMI and other labels. An occasional musician and songwriter, he also co-wrote one track on Riff Regan's Milestones album (2015) and played harmonica on London's The Hell for Leather Mob (2020). He lives in Devon, UK.