BAD COMPANY ~In Concert: Merchants Of Cool
Sanctuary Records

Finally, a decent live disc (and DVD) from this quintessential ‘70s Rock band. With a legacy that runs the gamut as the biggest band to tour the States since Led Zeppelin to a glorified cover band two decades later with only one original member, Bad Company plant seeds to reinvent themselves. ‘Merchants Of Cool’ proves that this line up can still put on one hell of a show. For fans of the band, the return of original vocalist Paul Rodgers to the fold is exactly what the band needed to pull it back on track. However the trade off has been the loss of guitarist Mick Ralphs (now been replaced by Ralphs’ protégé David Colwell), and bassist Boz Burrell (replaced by Jaz Lochrie). Original drummer Simon Kirke once said, “Bad Company is all about great songs,” and this disc packs in 14 of them. Kicking off with ‘Burning Sky’, the band run through ‘Can’t Get Enough,’ ‘Feel Like Makin’ Love,’ ‘Ready For Love’ and the landmark ‘Bad Company’ while still throwing in gems ‘Deal With The Preacher,’ ‘Rock And Roll Fantasy’ and a magnificent version of ‘Silver Blue And Gold.’ Or course the magic of Rodgers and Kirke ripen the performance which is spiced up by ‘All Right Now’ their massive Free anthem. Even Paul’s banter with the crowd between numbers gives the whole performance real honesty. Packaging on both the CD and DVD is classy without being slick. Added bonus include new songs ‘Joe Fabulous’ and ‘Saving Grace.’ This is a tremendous stepping-stone in rebuilding the band's career.

Review by Todd Smith http://www.thecutting-edge.net/