Celebrating Simon Kirke on his 76th birthday. —Ed.
Bad Company played meat and potatoes hard rock for the masses—they stripped things down to the fundamentals in a way that few other rock bands ever have, and the kids in the arenas loved them for it.
Austerity was their calling card; they made America’s Lynyrd Skynyrd—whose Ronnie Van Zant cited Rodgers as his biggest influence—sound like progressive rockers. They were a math problem every bit as simple as the Ramones, but without the zip. Bad Company steamrolled their way to the big time. They were every bit as remorseless as Killdozer, who paid them homage with their cover of “Good Lovin’ Gone Bad.”
Bad Company were formed in 1973 by former members of Free (vocalist Paul Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke), Mott the Hoople (guitarist Mick Ralphs), and King Crimson (bassist Boz Burrell), which made them a supergroup I suppose, albeit a low-rent one. Or perhaps I say that simply because Bad Company never scored very high in the charisma department—they weren’t flamboyant, had zero flash, wit or lyrical ideas, and weren’t the types you’d find at Rodney Bingenheimer’s English Disco in Los Angeles. They may have called themselves Bad Company—and I could be dead wrong about this—but in my mind’s eye I see them going back to their hotel rooms after a show and brushing their teeth. Vigorously.
Their debut LP, 1974’s Bad Company, was their strongest. It boasted five classic cuts, and only one dead carp. Their next one, 1975’s Straight Shooter, had a killer A Side but a B side that kills the album’s forward momentum stone dead—the steamroller runs out of gas. It’s a primo example of the sophomore album curse, and also, I suspect, of a common guarantor of debut album follow-up failure—rushing into the studio too soon after recording the first one. Rodgers and Ralphs, the band’s primary songwriters, obviously lacked sufficient material to fill out the album, leaving them to serve up a clunker or two. Worse, they handed the ball off to Kirke—nobody’s idea of a songwriter—who contributed two tracks. They’re tepid tap water at best.
Hampton, NH | Vinyl lover spins lifelong passion into Wardtone Records in Hampton: Adam Ward has loved music and vinyl since he was 5, spinning his dad’s LPs on the family phonograph, singing along at the top of his lungs. He’s now channeling that lifelong passion into his newest venture—Wardtone Records—a shop set to celebrate its grand opening Aug. 1-2 at 835 Lafayette Road in Hampton with live performances and giveaways. The store offers a curated selection of new and vintage CDs, cassette tapes, with vinyl taking center stage. Ward, 43, said he spent 20 years working in finance, but his heart and side-gigs were always in the realm of music. Toying with the idea of opening a record store for years, Ward said he tested the waters at nearby Fox Run Mall with “pop-up” events, putting up a table and selling records and such. He also attended fairs and record shows. The result 
AU | Your Favourite Record Store Revealed: And the winner is… The Music’s search for Australia’s greatest record store is over! With six weeks of voting coming to a close, our readers have had their say, and the most popular stores from each state can now be revealed. Of course, everybody’s favourite record store is subjective…. the best store is the one you love. The real purpose of the exercise has been our journey across the weeks, being able to shine a light on what’s happening out there in the over 200 small stores we have uncovered, bringing tunes to loyal customers. Who wins is less important than the fun we’ve had profiling stores, finding out what punters are buying, shining a light on what’s challenging and of course celebrating the best bits of working in a record store. …Without any further ado, here are 
Where to turn in times like these? When you’ve got a foot in the grave and your head in the oven? Exile on Main Street, naturally. It’s as beat down an LP as ever you’ll hear; Mick, Keith and Company are torn and frayed and have shit on their shoes and the whole album sounds like it was recorded in a sub-basement of Hell.
John was first inspired by bands like Black Flag that took him on a journey through punk with many bands and establishing himself and a benevolent master of chaos ceremonies. In 2008, he was cast in a Fuse Channel show called Rock and Roll Acid Test in a stuntman/maniac with a hammer role. This is what first brought the family out to California, where they started making their very distinctive films entirely on their own. Now they have become punk masters of horror.
Santa Cruz, CA | Vinyl Destination: The Streetlight Records empire marks 50 years of music education. Since 1997, there has been a Streetlight Records in Santa Cruz. However, the history of the Streetlight chain goes back much further. One can tell by the profusion of 50th anniversary T-shirts now for sale—and by this weekend’s celebration, half a century after the original San Francisco shop opened in 1975. Robert Fallon started Streetlight Records in Noe Valley 50 years ago. A second San Francisco store opened on Market Street in the Castro four years later. The San Jose location emerged in 1981 and moved to a new location in 1992, followed by a Santa Cruz store in 1997. Those last two are now the only ones left. Though both San Francisco shops are long gone, veteran Streetlight folks still refer to the Noe Valley store as “The Mother Ship,” since it opened before there was any serious used vinyl industry of any sort. Thanks to San Jose and Santa Cruz, 
Northwich, UK | The Doghouse vinyl record shop opening in Northwich: A new vinyl record shop is launching in Northwich and it already has a celebrity fan. The Doghouse, opening upstairs at the Salty Dog on High Street on Saturday, July 26, is the brainchild of Jason Davies, owner of Rare Vitamin Records, and a tireless promotor of locally grown musical talent. Partnering Jason in the venue is Paul Swinnerton, a Blackpool-based musician, record industry stalwart, and longtime friend of the Salty Dog’s owner, Chris Mundie. The shop will be the new headquarters of Rare Vitamin, and set above Northwich’s top music pub, there is scope to host all sorts of pop-up events and launches. To get the ball rolling, The Doghouse is throwing 
They’re not going to be inducted into baseball’s Hall of Fame anytime soon, either. Hell, they only hit two homers over the course of their long career, and their lifetime batting average is in the .233 range. Forget about Cooperstown; these guys would be lucky to earn a spot on the bench of the 1962 New York Mets.
