| Name |
Paul Rodgers |
| Height |
|
| Naionality |
English |
| Date of Birth |
17-December-1949 |
| Place of Birth |
Middlesbrough |
| Famous for |
Singing |
Paul Bernard Rodgers is an English rock singer-songwriter, best known for his success in the 1970s as a member of Free and Bad Company. After stints in two less successful bands in the 1980s and early 1990s, The Firm and The Law, he became a solo artist. He has recently toured and recorded with another 1970s band, Queen. Rodgers has been dubbed "The Voice" by his fans. A poll in Rolling Stone magazine ranked him number 55 on its list of the "100 Greatest Singers of All Time".
Rodgers has been cited as a significant influence on a number of notable rock singers, including David Coverdale, John Waite, Steve Overland, Lou Gramm, Jimi Jamison, Eric Martin, Steve Walsh, Joe Lynn Turner, Paul Young, Robin McAuley, Jimmy Barnes, Richie Kotzen and Joe Bonamassa. In 1991, John Mellencamp called Rodgers "the best rock singer ever." Freddie Mercury of Queen in particular idolized Rodgers and drew inspiration from Rodgers' aggressive style.
In the early 1980s, it was rumoured that Rodgers would sing with The Rossington-Collins Band (made up of the survivors of Lynyrd Skynyrd).
In October 1983, Rodgers released his first solo LP Cut Loose. He composed all of the music and played all of the instruments. The album reached number 135 on the Billboard's Pop Albums chart.
When his friend Jimmy Page started to come around to his house, guitar in hand and Led Zeppelin at an end, the duo's first live pairing was on the US ARMS (Action Research into Multiple Sclerosis) Tour, which had first been mooted by Eric Clapton and, besides Rodgers and Page, would include Jeff Beck, Joe Cocker, Steve Winwood and others. The inspiration behind ARMS had been former Small Faces/Faces member Ronnie Lane's own struggle with M.S. This led to Rodgers and Page's further teaming in the group The Firm, which resulted in two albums and two tours. Both Firm world tours managed only average attendance. Despite being panned by critics, The Firm's two albums, The Firm and Mean Business, achieved moderate sales success and produced the radio hits "Radioactive", "Satisfaction Guaranteed", and, in the UK, "All The King's Horses".
During this same period, a series of albums were produced called Willy and the Poor Boys. Rodgers and Page were briefly part of this and recorded "These Arms of Mine", an Otis Redding tune. This recording also became a video promoting the CD.
