Why Does This Man Keep Getting Gigs?

If you don't know this man you probably should. He's been around for a very long time and has been a part of many acts over his career. His name is Paul Rodgers, adequate singer extraordinaire. The list of folks he's worked with include Mick Ralphs of Mott the Hoople, Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin, and the remaining members of Queen. He continues to find work with these great musicians and somehow seems to replace some of the best singers time and time again.

His first two projects were very good. He started with Free, known for their hit "All Right Now", who were one of the most successful acts along with Led Zeppelin in the early 1970's. Rodgers then went on to his second major project with Bad Company. Signed to Led Zeppelin's Swan Song label and using the same manager, Peter Grant, the band found immediate success with their first self-titled album. Not many bands can get away with not only naming a song after themselves but also putting it on their self-titled album. Their first two albums were strong across the board however they didn't really have a diverse repertoire of songs. Rodgers' vocal abilities also held back the band and their hits all had a very similar sound. By 1982, it wasn't going to work anymore.

Paul Rodgers stayed with his family and helped them grow for a while but an opportunity presented itself in 1983 that he couldn't turn down. Eric Clapton wanted to tour the country with one of the biggest charity collaborations in rock and roll history to create awareness for MS. Clapton hit the road with artists like Jeff Beck, Steve Winwood, Joe Cocker, and, most important in this story, Jimmy Page. Paul and Jimmy started working on a new song live on-stage. Jimmy had an old song set aside from his Zeppelin days known as "Swan Song". Paul Rodgers wrote up some lyrics and created a new track called "Midnight Moonlight". Soon the pair decided to create a new band, which is where Paul Rodgers downside started presenting itself.

The Firm began as a new supergroup for Page to mold into one of the biggest bands in the world. He had one of the most successful singers of the 70's in Rodgers and two young up and coming musicians with Tony Franklin and Chris Slade. Jimmy took the latest technology and formed soundscapes unlike anything he did previously. Unfortunately the singing wasn't there along with the lyric writing. Paul Rodgers could write a great hit song but he didn't have a vast array of tricks with his lyrics. His voice seemed overpowered much of the time by the complex arrangements by Jimmy. The first album just had no hook to it and no bite. The second one had a little more strength to it, but by that time the band had lost their opportunity to find success.

So Paul Rodgers went out on his own for a while and continued to release albums every once in a while. Then Queen came calling looking for a singer. He joined the band and released on live album through Best Buy and gained success once again. His voice, however, does not get close to Freddie Mercury. Not even in the same building. Or country. Or planet. He can sing some of the songs well (Tie Your Mother Down isn't bad). For the most part, he just doesn't live up to Mercury at all.

The main issue with Rodgers is that his voice doesn't capture the listener. Singers like Robert Plant, Freddie Mercury, Bono, and Roger Daltry cut through the surrounding instruments no matter the song. Rodgers can be easily masked. His range is limited. He has no tricks up his sleeve. His lyrics are just average rock lyrics. I think he has some talent and he deserved recognition for his work with Free and Bad Company. Unfortunately those bands fit his very specific strengths and he's become one of the more overrated singers in rock history. Hopefully he doesn't bring a great band like Queen down the same path that the Firm went down.