Three 1980s supergroups that were fantastic (and one that should have been)

The Firm

The Firm had four members when formed in 1984. One legend in Jimmy Page on guitar.  A great in Paul Rodgers of Free and Bad Company fame. A very accomplished drummer in Chris Slade, who was an original member of Manfred Mann's Earthband.  The bass player was Tony Franklin, for whom this was a breakthrough band. 

That’s not intended to be disparaging to the latter two members mentioned. It’s more about where the really super elements and well-known names came in. Page and Rodgers were known stars already and paired up after Led Zeppelin and Bad Company had broken up. Slade was well known within the music business, he and Franklin went on to play with more great artists and bands afterward. 

The Firm should have been huge really, yet they seem underappreciated at that time, and somewhat forgotten and overlooked since. They had two albums, a self-titled debut in 1985 and then Mean Business in 1986. Their first was a top 20 hit in the US and UK, the follow-up slightly below that at 22 in the US and 46 in the UK.

Better success came from the singles released. In particular “Radioactive” and “All The Kings Horses” both scored number one in the US Rock charts. Of their four singles, only “Radioactive” chartered in the UK, and even then at a lowly 76. commercially

The Firm did tours during their three years and visited the UK, Europe, and the US at times. They spent longer in front of US audiences, which makes sense given the better sales there. But those sales weren't huge and probably not near expectations for a band with those two main stars. The band folded after the tour in 1986, with Rodgers claiming the original plan was just for two albums anyway. 

Maybe it just wasn't the right time, yet the two albums are great and deserve a hearing. The band is a touch funkier than you might expect but still rock, has plenty of great guitar riffs and Rodgers’ voice is superb as always. They didn't cover any of their previous band's songs, but there is a delicious version of the Righteous Brothers “You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling” on the debut album. 

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