EVERYONE PLEASE CHECK OUT A COUPLE OF MY VIDS, INCLUDING A COVER OF THE HUNTER (FREE) IM REALLY TRYING TO GO FOR THAT KOSSOFF SOUND/STYLE, SO PLEASE CHECK THEM OUT AND TELL ME WHAT U THINK. CHEERS!!!!!
@essertpitay definately a special band, one of a kind. Bad Co was great, but not breathtaking, like Free captures me as sometimes. Just a great moment in time.
You are right about the rhythm section just effortlessly flows and the guitar and vocals just surf on those great bass lines. Maybe my favorite Free songs.
@TheMullerFan Excellent comment, he was so tight and his pace was absolutely constant - laid the foundation for Koss and Andy to play the way they did. They all made each other as a 'group' but Kirke is the most underrated.
Speechless.......... Simply unique, awesome and amazingly wonderful.. Forever and ever in the anals of art , good taste simple beauty straight from the heart and soul...
Robert Plant has an unusually high pitched voice, and thats what set Zep apart from the rest. their music was rooted in blues, but it was probably more blues/rock. Free were a solid British blues band, and were on a par with early Fleetwood Mac. I dont think I could split Kossoff and Green. They were both wonderful to watch and listen to.
It's your opinion, mine is Rodger's voice has a thousand times better quality than Plant, musical, tone, vibrato, R. Plant is just a guy who screams a lot, no control over her voice stream. As for Page, do not make me laugh, Page has lived all her life in a Riff (whole lota love), and also is copying the style of Peter Green. The Zepp turned to catch a little of some other band another band, and has no done a good guitar solo in her life, he is very toll but low quality..
Certainly one of the greats, and seemingly understated at the time when it seemed the bands getting most of the hype were Zeppelin, Purple and Genesis. Someone mentioned Rory Gallagher, and I have to say I was fortunate enough to see him live back in 79. He blew my head off pretty much. I agree that the bass player in Free was awesome, and quite different come to think of it.
i was 15 and we went on a school trip - can you imagine - taken by our english teacher to see Free in 1970 at the Sunderland Empire and Kossof must have been only 2 yrs older than me ffn incredible. This was the 1st band I ever saw and what a band what memories
The quality of musicians in this group is unreal! Just incredible... To have been around when Free were gigging, AND Led Zep!?!?! Would be more than enough for me :O
Rogers and Kossoff get all the bouquets and they are timelessly brilliant. But the rhythm section is off the charts. Andy Fraser is one of the greatest rock bassists ever. Every learning young bass player should have this song to learn. The feel is incredible. I imagine Flea has listened to it a few times.
@woundedhorse andy's playing was a revolutionary. and all modern bass players are influenced by him somehow, even if the don't know. he just gave the bass in a band a new role, rhythm, and an equal position. he was the face of the band... subtle.
Agree totally with your comments on Frasers bass playing. I've often thought that also about Flea too!
I also rate Entwistle and Geezer Butler as bass players who do much more than just hold down a rhythm section. Its like they're lead guitarists in a lower frequency... ha ha
@woundedhorse Free were all about the groove and feel of their stuff, Kirke and Fraser are unmatched as a rhtythm section in my opinion. They both knew that sometimes it's about what you don't play, just as much as what you do play.
great stuff. Free were 2nd only to Zeppelin. Bad Co were great too but i agree free were more formualr rock Bad Co had great stuff, but Free were amazing and 2nd only to Zeppelin
jimmy page aint fit to lace kossoffs boots listen to come together in the morning and compare it to that arshole playing guitar with a violin bow what a fucking row playing guitar for page is a job for koss it was his whole life
Why bother comparing Free to Zep? No band can match the Zep standards but hey, different day. Neither Free or BadCo made music to compete with others, Zep or whoever in mind. With Free that sounds ridiculous.
To Put This Band in the Same Class as Zep is just wrong..Were They Great..Hell Yes...Were They in the Same League as Led Zeppelin..Hell No!!!...Led Zeppelin in Fact Was a Great Benefactor to Paul Rodgers When Swan Song ( Zeps Recording Label ) Took on Bad Company and Were a Driving Force Behind Their Success!!!!....Lots of Well Meaning Folks Make Unlearned Statements to Try and Sound Profound....But Profound Ignorance is Just Embarrassing to Those That Truly Know a Little About Music History...
'those who truly know a little about music history!!' - here is the history - Led Zeppelin and Free started at the same time - Zep first broke in the States and Free first broke in Sunderland. They both released four classic albums by 1971. Free were a brilliant live band - I saw Zep at Newcastle on the day that Zep IV came out - Free would have knocked spots off them that night - by the way - who mentioned Bad Company?!!
What seems to happen with Free is that we all wished they would have carried on. I dont consider Bad Co. as the same band either. No Frasier who wrote so much of their songs and took the Bass out of just being rythm, he should be held up there with Jack B and J.Entwistle,JPJones etc. No Kossof on guitar. Unfortunately He seems only be known to guitarists (for the most part) for his vibrato and phrazing. And all so young at the time. The just didnt exp.like Zep did. But their songs still hold up.
@luftenant After Rodgers Left Free He Fronted Bad Co......Bad Co Was Signed By Swan Song Zeps Recording Label....Who Mentioned Bad Co....I Did........Although I Highly Respect All of Paul Rodgers Work I Believe that Bad Co is Completely Under Rated and Was a Vast Improvement Over Free But Still Not to be Compared to Zep......as to Free Knocking spots off Zep that's just Laughable....You Claim to Have Seen Both Live but the Video Accounts Don't Corroborate Your Account of the Events.
@iamironman211 - Bad Company were formula rock cack. They were the first mediocre rock band - the difference in the songs of Free and Bad Co is immense. Free were from the heart - Bad Co were just after the bucks - have you heard the 'Burning Sky' album? - don't tell me it's good.
I don't know why you keep going on about Swansong - I can't think of a decent album on Swansong - Zep were way past their peak - The Pretty Things were past it - Maggie Bell was past it - and Detective were too late.
@NeilThompson30 All that anyone has to do is pick up One album from Bad Company called 10 from Six....Yes it's a Compilation " Best of " Album But in a Nutshell Anyone That Says that Those Ten Songs are not some of the Best Rock Songs ever. then as others have said You are just Delusional Free Fan boys and resent the Fact That When 2 left over members of Free needed Help.....Jimmy Page was there to provide it in Spades.......I'm Sorry that you had trouble Coping With the death of Free. Move On
We need to move on from Free to Bad Company?!! Oh yes, and let's also move on from Crosby Stills and Nash to the Eagles, shall we? From genre integrity and seminal creativity to bland commercial cop-out. Yes let's all move on and join you in Cuckooland.
@iamironman211 ??? your getting your postings mixed up. I was just saying Bad Co. was not Free because of the lost talent of Frasier and Kossof. Bad Co. was more mainstream than Free. But I wouldnt say better than.
I'll be honest, Im a big classic rock fan but didnt really know too much about Free until recently. The class oozing out of this band is just unreal, im ashamed i havent known about them for all this time...Paul Rodgers voice is so raspy and melodic, Kossoff basically acted as a medium through which the drugs could play guitar...the fuckin bassist used to play solos for gods sake!
Free's passage through the firmament was a short one, but did they ever burn brightly. I keep coming back these tracks. Paul Rodgers: best rock singer ever. How to describe the guitar-playing of Kossoff? Restrained, impassioned... had a kind inward virtuosity. Never saw the band live, but I cherish the records.
Zeppelin was great as a studio band, live however, was a different story. I was fortunate enough to see them when I was a kid, and I was so overwhelmed at the time that I was inclined to overlook the mess they made of their live performance. In reflection I wonder if Jimmy had ever heard of a tuner...
The Firm - best of both worlds. Page and Rogers saw them back in the late 70's or early 80's can't remember (LOL), would have to check my ticket stub. But no sense comparing Zep & Free, both great vocals and guitars, but oh so different!
This Band comes the closest to taking the blues of the 50's and progressing it. Their songs just have an authentic swagger I don't find in any other band. Those vocals, and that guitar tone and note choice are to die for. And what kills me is how young these guys were--but they seemed much older (in a good way if that's possible). Just look around bands their age today and there's no comparison.
Superb! Such a talented bunch of young guys with real soul and energy. Paul Kossoff god love him was a sublime guitar player in that he crafted his playing in a minimalist manner - less is so much more. All these wanking million notes per second guitarists haven't a clue.
@ThomasSheridanArts Well said Thomas, you're right, these heavy metal widdlers are truly atrocious, Koss says it all, great tone, phrasing and that incredible vibrato, superb. 10 million notes the widdlers use but it doesn't mean a thing if it ain't got soul and feeling.
You guys are dumb, you can't compare Zep and Free. Free were had a lot more soul influence in their music and never got as guitar heavy as Zeppelin did. Paul Kossoff is the perfect example of minimalist playing, he knows where the notes go and never tried to show off by playing as fast as possible 24/7
Well, there's minimalist playing by CHOICE & then there's minimalist playing by virtue of not having the technique to play fast. Get it? Don't get me wrong, I love Koss. But let's be real...He clearly recognized his own limitations as a player and carved out his own style within those boundaries. As tasteful as his phrasing & vibrato were, he simply wasn't a player who possessed great speed. And that's not a derogatory statement, just a fact. I'll still take vibrato over speed.
@67goldtops the thing that gets me about free, the entire band, was how simple and effective they were together. there was no needless showmanship; they played as if they were all one being, one consciousness.
when you have that kind of ability then what you put out becomes greater than the sum of the parts.
all the speed in the world can not get you stomping your feet and moving your body the way these guys managed to do with less notes in a whole song than 10 seconds of a satriani number.
never saw Free, but saw Led Zep with the Prescence tour. Really good, saw Bad Company two times in the late 70's, very very good. I have just become familiar again with Free. Really good rock and roll.
Having seen both Free & Led Zepp a few times I must agree with VaryK that Free were the better band live. The audiences seemed to respond more to Free by participating in a vociferous fashion to every tune they played.
Where as with Zepp it was more a respectful reverence from the crowd, therefore, I found their gigs a little bit cold.
@Billsgang You are certainly entitled to your opinion.
From recollection, on the the two occasions that I saw Rory Gallagher & Taste, the audience reaction was nothing extraordinary. However, had I seen them perform in their native Ireland I am sure my recall may have been different.
Ivor, 55. Free was the first band that I seen live. Plymouth, Van Dyke club. I sat in 2 inches of sweat in a club that held 500 but crammed in 2000 people. Best british blues band ever, amazing. But then I got into rock blues (we called it r & b) and Led Zep are the best thing that I have seen, I will list them
I can't understand why Zeppelin gets all the press, still, to this day, and Free is (not), but almost forgotten, except in the circles where people know their blues rock and the quality. Along with Deep Purple, Mountain, and others, they were unbeatable.
@kestrel28 Well you cant deny that Zeppelin wasn't a good lineup. But I understand what you mean. Free should definitely be way more know for how good they were.
Not in the era in which they were contemporaries. Zep peaked as a concert band in '73. They steadily declined from there. However, I'll match the power they displayed from '68-'73 with any band.
@kestrel28 they are often forgotten cause they didnt lasted that long and zeppelin sold more records than them....also a zep was more interesting and dinamic as a band than free whereas free was technically perfect as a live band like purple and the others but critics and hardcore fans often praise a band capabilities and experimentation or a change in sound as some may say....that's where free & other bands failed,they where really good but they stayed as a hard rock blues band until the end
I think because by the time these guys came on the scene Hendrix, The Who, The Cream, and Zeppelin had already been there and done that. The inventors are usually the ones who get the credit. Don't get me wrong Mountain, Purple and Free are awesome, but by the time these bands peaked there were just too many of them. It was kind of like when the 80's hair metal scene got played out. I'm sure you remember when that happened?
@kestrel28 zep were way more innovative. listen to this song it doesnt match bonzos atomic drumming, pages 6 string wizardry or plants melodic wails. and the bassline is definitely too simple to be compared to anything jpj plays. call me a fanboy whatever but it's my opinion and i think it's a valid one. free are a great band but their songs are sub-par compared to zep.
@jimzer Valid..? hmm maybe, but not the most valid opinion i've heard. Zep were innovative true, but to start comparing the individuals in both these groups is just crazy, kirk/bonzo 2 totally different styles, Page def innovative but Kos a LOT more classy, the words "Plant & melodic" shouldn't be used together when comparing with Rodgers, and basslines.. "too simple"?!?! if he played anymore notes it would lose all the magic that is.. Free! but yes zep is good.
@thinwire Well, I am a fan of Free, but I think Zeppelin was the best at what they did. They're not quite the same style of music. And Zeppelin was much more diverse in their music. Also, I have to say that I think Zeppelin played with much more emotion and soul than Free, who were just sort of relaxed, bluesy rock. And Zeppelin was more creative and dynamic. And Page was so versatile, he could play bluegrass, hard rock, blues and metal. Led Zeppelin will always be my favorite band. : )
@trailblazer225 your right they're not the same style and they were more diverse. i really don't think "emotion & soul" are the right words cos Free had bags of both as did zep, but i would say zep had more vigor and theatre even, than say "more emotion and soul". All you have to do is look at Koss's face and Kirks for that matter to see the emotion. Although Fraser does look stoned most of the time!! hah
@thinwire i think both bands were as good as it gets, but i think where zeppelin had an advantage over their peers...was simply in the production. there are players i like a lot more than page...like kossoff...but as a producer, he knew his stuff.
@kestrel28@kestrel28 I think they're equal in vocals, and I think Plant one of the greatest. I would entertain an argument that they're equal in guitar (never a big fan of Page). No opinion on the bass guitarists. But I say Zep beats them hands down in songwriting and drumming, both which, of course, are huge (check out Zep's How Many More Times Live on Danish T.V. -- Bonham was magic and that band was tight tight tight largely because of him). IMHO
@kestrel28 i started on free at 15 in Australia back in 86 and went on listening to ACDC and so on , but when someone asks me whats my favourite band i have to say FREE no doubt at all...
@kestrel28 Because Led Zeppelin have the best rock lineup of all time, by miles. That and probably because Led Zeppelin were so different, don't get me wrong Free are good, but not on the same level as Led Zeppelin.
@paintedship Dude everyone rips people off in blues rock. have you ever noticed how every blues song uses the same chord progression? and the same licks? every single song just pay attention. it's all just the minor pentatonic scale.
@sniperkneupper that's not what I was referring to at all- look up Jake Holmes Dazed and Confused. Zep totally stole the song and gave him no credit and they've done stuff like that their whole career. Taurus by Spirit, rehashing old yardbirds lyrics and guitar riffs, blantantly stealing blues songs and claiming that them as theirs. I don't really need to go into it all- it's posted on very detailed articles all over the internet already.
Free, Humble Pie, Robin Trower these bands understood what music was all about. Now you get nothing but growlers who sound like pigs in heat. Yes that means you little deathmetal punks who think you know it all but you have no ear for tasty music.
Hey old guys, i`m 60 and i love them all 5 years more.
Joking- but you all are so right- we old f........ boys have seen the best what was live on stage- it ws the best music-periode! Long life the blues-rock-jojo
Back in 1970 i never appreciated that i was watching the BEST that would ever appear on Earth. Free, Hendrix, Mountain,..i'm ashamed to say i took 'em all for granted. Today none come close in terms of pure soulfulness/raw energy.
The riffs in this song are killing! Great intro-full of anticipation. The relentless funk has mucho tension. Koss' inversions on the chorus especially are really melodic for hard rock and the way they ring is majestic. Long Live Free!
Do I ever love this stuff. Paul R. still sings like no one else ever could. Kossoff was so full of feeling in his lines. Frazier and Kirke rock to high heaven. Only thing is...there is no such thing as a Stealer. It's actually a thief, not a stealer. LOL! But I get the point!
the critics said they were slipping when they came out with song. i don't no, maybe because im only 59 but that has to be one of the best blues no's on the web. wow
what about me?
SteaIer 1 week ago
what's with the two mics, anyone know?
NDB1790 2 weeks ago
@NDB1790
One is for recording.
samansun 2 weeks ago
@NDB1790 Paul Rodgers getting in there before Mark E Smith ha
favoriteblueshirt 2 weeks ago
Its unbelievable how underated these guys are, so easy and loose man, i played this at a party every one loved the chilled out vibe, brilliant band.
ch3rrysunbur5t 2 months ago
to vinicius yep w snake came later but still v good m8
43carruthers 3 months ago
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EVERYONE PLEASE CHECK OUT A COUPLE OF MY VIDS, INCLUDING A COVER OF THE HUNTER (FREE) IM REALLY TRYING TO GO FOR THAT KOSSOFF SOUND/STYLE, SO PLEASE CHECK THEM OUT AND TELL ME WHAT U THINK. CHEERS!!!!!
LONG LIVE ROCK 'N' ROLL
1conorrocks 3 months ago
As I get older, Free "gets" into me more and more. This is the band.
essertpitay 3 months ago
@essertpitay definately a special band, one of a kind. Bad Co was great, but not breathtaking, like Free captures me as sometimes. Just a great moment in time.
glueforall 22 hours ago
It sounds quite like the old days Whitesnake to be. Well, maybe they are the ones who actually sound like Free :P
ViniciusMaffei 3 months ago
@ViniciusMaffei I would not put Whitesnake and Free in the same bracket.
essertpitay 14 hours ago
total class of its own.... superb..
SonOfCheepThrill 3 months ago
You are right about the rhythm section just effortlessly flows and the guitar and vocals just surf on those great bass lines. Maybe my favorite Free songs.
SuperRudy1956 4 months ago
class
TheWelshhead 4 months ago
no se que decir ??¿¿¿¿¿¿esto es bueniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiisimo
fmaykall 4 months ago
Kirke is probably the most solid drummer of all time. The amount of feel he can get out of a four-on-the-floor beat is amazing.
TheMullerFan 5 months ago
@TheMullerFan Excellent comment, he was so tight and his pace was absolutely constant - laid the foundation for Koss and Andy to play the way they did. They all made each other as a 'group' but Kirke is the most underrated.
cookieinthewoods 3 months ago
@abrookes1985 me too :)
MyKulli 5 months ago
EPIC!!!
spaceup80 5 months ago
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Andy - the best bassist of all time.......
janejudd 6 months ago
Andy - the best of all time.......
janejudd 6 months ago 3
I love these guys...They were so young but with a hard male energy...And pure sounds,too...
lisaveg1 7 months ago 2
These guys are IMHO the best live band. TIGHT
fromthe306 7 months ago
amzing song first time i hear it !! great bass lines!
merakos 7 months ago
fuk yeah
Mike1614b 8 months ago
love it when it's raw like that!
kurtcer 8 months ago 6
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darshi48 8 months ago
I actually prefer this to the version on the album. More raw, direct and soulful in my opinion.
rumputuski 9 months ago
you gotta love the bassline
lusitanpride1139 10 months ago
@abrookes1985 Paul from Free is very good friends with Led Zeppelin!
bassistabe 10 months ago
Kirke kooks.....
kevinherbert 10 months ago
makes me think of 'Maggie M'gill' of the Doors
iljakieft 10 months ago
Speechless.......... Simply unique, awesome and amazingly wonderful.. Forever and ever in the anals of art , good taste simple beauty straight from the heart and soul...
murcia1975 11 months ago
Robert Plant has an unusually high pitched voice, and thats what set Zep apart from the rest. their music was rooted in blues, but it was probably more blues/rock. Free were a solid British blues band, and were on a par with early Fleetwood Mac. I dont think I could split Kossoff and Green. They were both wonderful to watch and listen to.
Rankerbill1 11 months ago
It's your opinion, mine is Rodger's voice has a thousand times better quality than Plant, musical, tone, vibrato, R. Plant is just a guy who screams a lot, no control over her voice stream. As for Page, do not make me laugh, Page has lived all her life in a Riff (whole lota love), and also is copying the style of Peter Green. The Zepp turned to catch a little of some other band another band, and has no done a good guitar solo in her life, he is very toll but low quality..
YoGroucho 11 months ago
@YoGroucho Plant somebody who screams a lot ! .... na na na not even 5 % of the song the man scream... you made a confusion with Ian Gillian
BohemianConspiracy 10 months ago
Master tune!
DELROYJOHNSON73B 11 months ago
You can feel the 100's of watts of Marshall lurking behind Kossoff's clean notes, just waiting to be unleashed...
baseballnolie34 11 months ago
Now that takes me back to '72, when i had all my hair. :))
hez56 11 months ago
@hez56 where is your hair now?
generalacc 11 months ago
@hez56 Baldone knows lol
mafiasefic 7 months ago
Certainly one of the greats, and seemingly understated at the time when it seemed the bands getting most of the hype were Zeppelin, Purple and Genesis. Someone mentioned Rory Gallagher, and I have to say I was fortunate enough to see him live back in 79. He blew my head off pretty much. I agree that the bass player in Free was awesome, and quite different come to think of it.
JakeAnnetts 11 months ago
blackmore,gillan and paice pissed on all of the line up fights i've been reading.
krevice 11 months ago
cool, very very very cool !
dave2806 1 year ago
No need to complain. Just enjoy yer face off!! Jings this is good!!!
stevies5 1 year ago
Even Christina Agulerua idolizes Rodgers. I know I spelled her name wrong. sorry.
rfw45 1 year ago
every rock/blues/r&b fan gives rodgers his due. trust me. lol
rfw45 1 year ago
Rodgers is the best r&b/blues rock singer of all time. Period!
rfw45 1 year ago
@abrookes1985
Absolutely right mate
Spent half my youth arguing about Hendrix/Clapton, Purple/Zep etc as we all did in those days
Not to mention Free, Wishbone Ash, Mountain, and all the others that I bought NME, Sounds & Melody Maker for.
Zep were huge and I'm a big fan but can't understand why Free weren't as massive as they should have been
I now realise we were so lucky to have all that amazing music to argue about
freegie27 1 year ago 4
gotta love that ol'school les paul!
jedd1981 1 year ago
kossoff rules
markrazio 1 year ago 11
fantastic memories of one of the greatest bands ever.
caslox 1 year ago 2
has to be one of the best bands eer
longfootbuddy 1 year ago
@longfootbuddy including bad company right?
longfootbuddy 1 year ago
@longfootbuddy of course
longfootbuddy 1 year ago
i was 15 and we went on a school trip - can you imagine - taken by our english teacher to see Free in 1970 at the Sunderland Empire and Kossof must have been only 2 yrs older than me ffn incredible. This was the 1st band I ever saw and what a band what memories
midbusker 1 year ago
awesome
aphasia1972 1 year ago
check" the firm " out!
yikescat56 1 year ago
fat bass line... : )
perceptionOFpink 1 year ago
Free is so great...i can't believe cuz the riffs are so easy and sooo niceeee
GeneralEisenhower 1 year ago
The quality of musicians in this group is unreal! Just incredible... To have been around when Free were gigging, AND Led Zep!?!?! Would be more than enough for me :O
ScageyGuitarist 1 year ago
Rogers and Kossoff get all the bouquets and they are timelessly brilliant. But the rhythm section is off the charts. Andy Fraser is one of the greatest rock bassists ever. Every learning young bass player should have this song to learn. The feel is incredible. I imagine Flea has listened to it a few times.
woundedhorse 1 year ago 46
@woundedhorse Thanks for mentioning Andy Fraser...so underrated!
babacool81 1 year ago
@woundedhorse andy's playing was a revolutionary. and all modern bass players are influenced by him somehow, even if the don't know. he just gave the bass in a band a new role, rhythm, and an equal position. he was the face of the band... subtle.
Psychocoko 10 months ago
@woundedhorse
Agree totally with your comments on Frasers bass playing. I've often thought that also about Flea too!
I also rate Entwistle and Geezer Butler as bass players who do much more than just hold down a rhythm section. Its like they're lead guitarists in a lower frequency... ha ha
frontman62 10 months ago
@woundedhorse Free were all about the groove and feel of their stuff, Kirke and Fraser are unmatched as a rhtythm section in my opinion. They both knew that sometimes it's about what you don't play, just as much as what you do play.
jackHNv 5 months ago
great stuff. Free were 2nd only to Zeppelin. Bad Co were great too but i agree free were more formualr rock Bad Co had great stuff, but Free were amazing and 2nd only to Zeppelin
Trowerfan100 1 year ago
Love the Free! One of my favorites for a very long time! I was a young teen when I used listen to them back in the day.
stargazer2756 1 year ago
jimmy page aint fit to lace kossoffs boots listen to come together in the morning and compare it to that arshole playing guitar with a violin bow what a fucking row playing guitar for page is a job for koss it was his whole life
boog560 1 year ago
Hahaha...a lengthy to and fro about the relative merits of Free and Led Zep.What a ridiculous waste of good listening time.
fendermac 1 year ago
Great bass line.
Blkojo 1 year ago
Why bother comparing Free to Zep? No band can match the Zep standards but hey, different day. Neither Free or BadCo made music to compete with others, Zep or whoever in mind. With Free that sounds ridiculous.
lukemanify 1 year ago
To Put This Band in the Same Class as Zep is just wrong..Were They Great..Hell Yes...Were They in the Same League as Led Zeppelin..Hell No!!!...Led Zeppelin in Fact Was a Great Benefactor to Paul Rodgers When Swan Song ( Zeps Recording Label ) Took on Bad Company and Were a Driving Force Behind Their Success!!!!....Lots of Well Meaning Folks Make Unlearned Statements to Try and Sound Profound....But Profound Ignorance is Just Embarrassing to Those That Truly Know a Little About Music History...
iamironman211 1 year ago
@iamironman211 - what on Earth are you talking about?
'those who truly know a little about music history!!' - here is the history - Led Zeppelin and Free started at the same time - Zep first broke in the States and Free first broke in Sunderland. They both released four classic albums by 1971. Free were a brilliant live band - I saw Zep at Newcastle on the day that Zep IV came out - Free would have knocked spots off them that night - by the way - who mentioned Bad Company?!!
NeilThompson30 1 year ago
@NeilThompson30 i enjoyed that read thank you free are much sexier too.
itstoogoodtopassby 1 year ago
What seems to happen with Free is that we all wished they would have carried on. I dont consider Bad Co. as the same band either. No Frasier who wrote so much of their songs and took the Bass out of just being rythm, he should be held up there with Jack B and J.Entwistle,JPJones etc. No Kossof on guitar. Unfortunately He seems only be known to guitarists (for the most part) for his vibrato and phrazing. And all so young at the time. The just didnt exp.like Zep did. But their songs still hold up.
luftenant 1 year ago 2
@luftenant After Rodgers Left Free He Fronted Bad Co......Bad Co Was Signed By Swan Song Zeps Recording Label....Who Mentioned Bad Co....I Did........Although I Highly Respect All of Paul Rodgers Work I Believe that Bad Co is Completely Under Rated and Was a Vast Improvement Over Free But Still Not to be Compared to Zep......as to Free Knocking spots off Zep that's just Laughable....You Claim to Have Seen Both Live but the Video Accounts Don't Corroborate Your Account of the Events.
iamironman211 1 year ago
@iamironman211 - Bad Company were formula rock cack. They were the first mediocre rock band - the difference in the songs of Free and Bad Co is immense. Free were from the heart - Bad Co were just after the bucks - have you heard the 'Burning Sky' album? - don't tell me it's good.
I don't know why you keep going on about Swansong - I can't think of a decent album on Swansong - Zep were way past their peak - The Pretty Things were past it - Maggie Bell was past it - and Detective were too late.
NeilThompson30 1 year ago
@NeilThompson30 All that anyone has to do is pick up One album from Bad Company called 10 from Six....Yes it's a Compilation " Best of " Album But in a Nutshell Anyone That Says that Those Ten Songs are not some of the Best Rock Songs ever. then as others have said You are just Delusional Free Fan boys and resent the Fact That When 2 left over members of Free needed Help.....Jimmy Page was there to provide it in Spades.......I'm Sorry that you had trouble Coping With the death of Free. Move On
iamironman211 1 year ago
@iamironman211 - I've got that album on CD - I'll give it a listen and comment back afterwards (best rock songs ever!! - this should be good)
NeilThompson30 1 year ago
@iamironman211
We need to move on from Free to Bad Company?!! Oh yes, and let's also move on from Crosby Stills and Nash to the Eagles, shall we? From genre integrity and seminal creativity to bland commercial cop-out. Yes let's all move on and join you in Cuckooland.
Drblooter99 1 year ago
@iamironman211 ??? your getting your postings mixed up. I was just saying Bad Co. was not Free because of the lost talent of Frasier and Kossof. Bad Co. was more mainstream than Free. But I wouldnt say better than.
luftenant 1 year ago
HAPPY DAYS ...thinking of having seen such talent ....a great legacey of music....
leedsolerhino 1 year ago
I'll be honest, Im a big classic rock fan but didnt really know too much about Free until recently. The class oozing out of this band is just unreal, im ashamed i havent known about them for all this time...Paul Rodgers voice is so raspy and melodic, Kossoff basically acted as a medium through which the drugs could play guitar...the fuckin bassist used to play solos for gods sake!
mcprofacy 1 year ago
Free's passage through the firmament was a short one, but did they ever burn brightly. I keep coming back these tracks. Paul Rodgers: best rock singer ever. How to describe the guitar-playing of Kossoff? Restrained, impassioned... had a kind inward virtuosity. Never saw the band live, but I cherish the records.
cbrace 1 year ago
kirt...
mznjh70 1 year ago
Zeppelin was great as a studio band, live however, was a different story. I was fortunate enough to see them when I was a kid, and I was so overwhelmed at the time that I was inclined to overlook the mess they made of their live performance. In reflection I wonder if Jimmy had ever heard of a tuner...
11harrison11 1 year ago
so much passion and feel
Hennersbass 1 year ago
love their sound
Taurusaud 1 year ago
The Firm - best of both worlds. Page and Rogers saw them back in the late 70's or early 80's can't remember (LOL), would have to check my ticket stub. But no sense comparing Zep & Free, both great vocals and guitars, but oh so different!
thegrillster 1 year ago
no filler
Mrtnd 1 year ago
This Band comes the closest to taking the blues of the 50's and progressing it. Their songs just have an authentic swagger I don't find in any other band. Those vocals, and that guitar tone and note choice are to die for. And what kills me is how young these guys were--but they seemed much older (in a good way if that's possible). Just look around bands their age today and there's no comparison.
univibe23 1 year ago 2
paul rodgers is most definitly the best and coolest vocalist of all time FACT!
MrWildrocker321 1 year ago 3
Oaul Rodgers is the coolest mother on the planet lol
MrWildrocker321 1 year ago
Superb! Such a talented bunch of young guys with real soul and energy. Paul Kossoff god love him was a sublime guitar player in that he crafted his playing in a minimalist manner - less is so much more. All these wanking million notes per second guitarists haven't a clue.
ThomasSheridanArts 1 year ago 3
@ThomasSheridanArts Well said Thomas, you're right, these heavy metal widdlers are truly atrocious, Koss says it all, great tone, phrasing and that incredible vibrato, superb. 10 million notes the widdlers use but it doesn't mean a thing if it ain't got soul and feeling.
Gary1497 1 year ago 2
I think a better comparison would be to Joe Cocker (at least his first album).
metalburger2 1 year ago
You guys are dumb, you can't compare Zep and Free. Free were had a lot more soul influence in their music and never got as guitar heavy as Zeppelin did. Paul Kossoff is the perfect example of minimalist playing, he knows where the notes go and never tried to show off by playing as fast as possible 24/7
metalburger2 1 year ago 3
Well said Mr Burger2.. Why is it always Free compared to Zep
Too really different bands.. To me the only that both bands have in common .. Both bands have lost a band member
blindboybenton 1 year ago
@metalburger2
Well, there's minimalist playing by CHOICE & then there's minimalist playing by virtue of not having the technique to play fast. Get it? Don't get me wrong, I love Koss. But let's be real...He clearly recognized his own limitations as a player and carved out his own style within those boundaries. As tasteful as his phrasing & vibrato were, he simply wasn't a player who possessed great speed. And that's not a derogatory statement, just a fact. I'll still take vibrato over speed.
67goldtops 1 year ago
@67goldtops the thing that gets me about free, the entire band, was how simple and effective they were together. there was no needless showmanship; they played as if they were all one being, one consciousness.
when you have that kind of ability then what you put out becomes greater than the sum of the parts.
all the speed in the world can not get you stomping your feet and moving your body the way these guys managed to do with less notes in a whole song than 10 seconds of a satriani number.
rickdlol 1 year ago
@rickdlol
Agreed!
67goldtops 1 year ago
@rickdlol Exactly, they play the right notes, not all the notes.
Martiluk1 1 year ago
never saw Free, but saw Led Zep with the Prescence tour. Really good, saw Bad Company two times in the late 70's, very very good. I have just become familiar again with Free. Really good rock and roll.
moneydoctor 1 year ago
Andy Fraser is great
dockaiser 1 year ago 4
Bad Company were good as well !
MURRA1 1 year ago
why is everyone comparing free and zep?..chalk and cheese..might as well compare mozart with jedward!...both brilliant in their own right...end of!!
keithmarland 1 year ago 4
Well said. Keith.. Feed up with it all
They take it all so personnel too.
Getting all upset with each other!!!!!!!
blindboybenton 1 year ago
Led Zeppelin and Free. Apples and pears.
SirSpurlos 1 year ago 5
you are all crazy, led zeppelin not a good lineup?
free a better live band?
nothing i've ever seen beats the energy of a led zep gig.
and their music were also more diverse.
i wonder how many maniac free fans are gonna thumb me down now :p
anton9108 1 year ago
I've just thumb you UP :p Although im a Free fan i totally agree with you
noremorse146 1 year ago
hey i'm a free fan too, just sharing my opinion.
and paul rogers what a voice!
anton9108 1 year ago
Having seen both Free & Led Zepp a few times I must agree with VaryK that Free were the better band live. The audiences seemed to respond more to Free by participating in a vociferous fashion to every tune they played.
Where as with Zepp it was more a respectful reverence from the crowd, therefore, I found their gigs a little bit cold.
PInk Floyd & Free they were the best gigs.
emperorsdragon 2 years ago
emperorsdragon
Ever see Zeppelin in America?
67goldtops 1 year ago
@emperorsdragon respect man if only o was young enough to see thoese live man! rock and roll!!
jackwarrenguitar 1 year ago
@emperorsdragon I think Taste wiped the floor with both bands live
Billsgang 1 year ago
@Billsgang You are certainly entitled to your opinion.
From recollection, on the the two occasions that I saw Rory Gallagher & Taste, the audience reaction was nothing extraordinary. However, had I seen them perform in their native Ireland I am sure my recall may have been different.
emperorsdragon 1 year ago
Love this band! They are Great but so understimated
fbono19 2 years ago 11
I can never get bored listening to Paul Rodgers, one of the best singers ever.
floydian2007 2 years ago 53
@floydian2007 I could not have said that any better
kobetiha 1 year ago
Ivor, 55. Free was the first band that I seen live. Plymouth, Van Dyke club. I sat in 2 inches of sweat in a club that held 500 but crammed in 2000 people. Best british blues band ever, amazing. But then I got into rock blues (we called it r & b) and Led Zep are the best thing that I have seen, I will list them
Ivor
adivadiv 2 years ago
i fuckin' love it!!
mnincoming 2 years ago 2
I can't understand why Zeppelin gets all the press, still, to this day, and Free is (not), but almost forgotten, except in the circles where people know their blues rock and the quality. Along with Deep Purple, Mountain, and others, they were unbeatable.
kestrel28 2 years ago 64
@kestrel28 Well you cant deny that Zeppelin wasn't a good lineup. But I understand what you mean. Free should definitely be way more know for how good they were.
ThreeDaysOfPeace 2 years ago 2
kestrel28
You can't understand why Zeppelin gets all the press? Better players. Better writers. Better producer. Longer, more prolific career. Understand now?
67goldtops 2 years ago
free live performances are so much better then zepp.
VarykGerai 2 years ago 5
VarykGerai
Not in the era in which they were contemporaries. Zep peaked as a concert band in '73. They steadily declined from there. However, I'll match the power they displayed from '68-'73 with any band.
67goldtops 2 years ago
@kestrel28 they are often forgotten cause they didnt lasted that long and zeppelin sold more records than them....also a zep was more interesting and dinamic as a band than free whereas free was technically perfect as a live band like purple and the others but critics and hardcore fans often praise a band capabilities and experimentation or a change in sound as some may say....that's where free & other bands failed,they where really good but they stayed as a hard rock blues band until the end
theachtungtree 1 year ago
@kestrel28 Hear hear! You only have to look at the individual line up of the group and it doesn't get any better than that, truly amazing!
LDF1979 1 year ago
@kestrel28 NO DOUBT..... Love Zeppelin, but in my opinion, Free is NO DOUBT in the same league as them, and personally, I PREFER THEM....
wolfatnight 1 year ago
@kestrel28
I think because by the time these guys came on the scene Hendrix, The Who, The Cream, and Zeppelin had already been there and done that. The inventors are usually the ones who get the credit. Don't get me wrong Mountain, Purple and Free are awesome, but by the time these bands peaked there were just too many of them. It was kind of like when the 80's hair metal scene got played out. I'm sure you remember when that happened?
kingkull0423 1 year ago
@kingkull0423 I think you will find Free pre date Zeppelin as a band.
welshsteff1970 1 year ago
@welshsteff1970
thanks for the correction.
kingkull0423 1 year ago
@kestrel28 zep were way more innovative. listen to this song it doesnt match bonzos atomic drumming, pages 6 string wizardry or plants melodic wails. and the bassline is definitely too simple to be compared to anything jpj plays. call me a fanboy whatever but it's my opinion and i think it's a valid one. free are a great band but their songs are sub-par compared to zep.
jimzer 1 year ago
@jimzer yeh but free are just classic rock just realy chilled out stuff not having a wank on a guitar basicly
MrTheresnousernames 1 year ago
@jimzer Valid..? hmm maybe, but not the most valid opinion i've heard. Zep were innovative true, but to start comparing the individuals in both these groups is just crazy, kirk/bonzo 2 totally different styles, Page def innovative but Kos a LOT more classy, the words "Plant & melodic" shouldn't be used together when comparing with Rodgers, and basslines.. "too simple"?!?! if he played anymore notes it would lose all the magic that is.. Free! but yes zep is good.
thinwire 1 year ago
@thinwire Well, I am a fan of Free, but I think Zeppelin was the best at what they did. They're not quite the same style of music. And Zeppelin was much more diverse in their music. Also, I have to say that I think Zeppelin played with much more emotion and soul than Free, who were just sort of relaxed, bluesy rock. And Zeppelin was more creative and dynamic. And Page was so versatile, he could play bluegrass, hard rock, blues and metal. Led Zeppelin will always be my favorite band. : )
trailblazer225 1 year ago
@trailblazer225 your right they're not the same style and they were more diverse. i really don't think "emotion & soul" are the right words cos Free had bags of both as did zep, but i would say zep had more vigor and theatre even, than say "more emotion and soul". All you have to do is look at Koss's face and Kirks for that matter to see the emotion. Although Fraser does look stoned most of the time!! hah
thinwire 1 year ago
@thinwire i think both bands were as good as it gets, but i think where zeppelin had an advantage over their peers...was simply in the production. there are players i like a lot more than page...like kossoff...but as a producer, he knew his stuff.
dljone9 1 year ago
@kestrel28 kossoff left sooner than expected....just like the rest of the "GREATS"...hendrix..bruce..ronnie v. zant..the lists goes on...
FREE cant do without kossoff apparently!
pichuan1 1 year ago
@kestrel28 exactly led zeppelin is way too overrated i like deep purple,the free,cream more than led zepps
aphasia1972 1 year ago
@kestrel28 rainbow too!!!!!
that is not a problem nobody will tell you what to listen
deivo4 1 year ago
@kestrel28 why the angst neeb? Enjoy this for what it is. One of the best. ;)
stevies5 1 year ago
@kestrel28 @kestrel28 I think they're equal in vocals, and I think Plant one of the greatest. I would entertain an argument that they're equal in guitar (never a big fan of Page). No opinion on the bass guitarists. But I say Zep beats them hands down in songwriting and drumming, both which, of course, are huge (check out Zep's How Many More Times Live on Danish T.V. -- Bonham was magic and that band was tight tight tight largely because of him). IMHO
Birkebine 1 year ago
Comment removed
koedrand 1 year ago
@kestrel28 i started on free at 15 in Australia back in 86 and went on listening to ACDC and so on , but when someone asks me whats my favourite band i have to say FREE no doubt at all...
chrisnable1 1 year ago
@kestrel28 Because Led Zeppelin have the best rock lineup of all time, by miles. That and probably because Led Zeppelin were so different, don't get me wrong Free are good, but not on the same level as Led Zeppelin.
Murreh 1 year ago
@Murreh stick your a is best, b is better up your ass ok?
VarykGerai 1 year ago
@Murreh Led Zep ripped off so many people it's ridiculous, give me Free any day
paintedship 1 year ago 3
@paintedship Led Zeppelin still has the best lineup of all time by far. Give me Led Zeppelin.
Murreh 1 year ago
@Murreh I could do without the Robert Plant, his whiny voice and poor Steve Marriott impersonation gets on my nerves after awhile
paintedship 1 year ago
@paintedship Dude everyone rips people off in blues rock. have you ever noticed how every blues song uses the same chord progression? and the same licks? every single song just pay attention. it's all just the minor pentatonic scale.
sniperkneupper 9 months ago
@sniperkneupper that's not what I was referring to at all- look up Jake Holmes Dazed and Confused. Zep totally stole the song and gave him no credit and they've done stuff like that their whole career. Taurus by Spirit, rehashing old yardbirds lyrics and guitar riffs, blantantly stealing blues songs and claiming that them as theirs. I don't really need to go into it all- it's posted on very detailed articles all over the internet already.
paintedship 9 months ago
@paintedship All the old blues guys borrowed form each other
TheMullerFan 8 months ago
@TheMullerFan it's not the same thing
paintedship 8 months ago
Free, Humble Pie, Robin Trower these bands understood what music was all about. Now you get nothing but growlers who sound like pigs in heat. Yes that means you little deathmetal punks who think you know it all but you have no ear for tasty music.
karlforston 2 years ago 18
Im with you 100%
acdeucee 2 years ago
only rory came close in the seventies, yep i'm 55, soooo lucky to have seen these quality bands live. good old days
pjh1554 2 years ago 5
Me too. pjh1554. Luck of the draw...we were born at just the right time to see some of the greatest rock blues bands there will ever be.
fuxgood 2 years ago
Hey old guys, i`m 60 and i love them all 5 years more.
Joking- but you all are so right- we old f........ boys have seen the best what was live on stage- it ws the best music-periode! Long life the blues-rock-jojo
rentner66 2 years ago 3
Thanks for sharing!!!
fdeepf 2 years ago 2
Back in 1970 i never appreciated that i was watching the BEST that would ever appear on Earth. Free, Hendrix, Mountain,..i'm ashamed to say i took 'em all for granted. Today none come close in terms of pure soulfulness/raw energy.
taildragger51 2 years ago 4
saw free three times in 70/71 and almost 40 years later never seen anyone come close to them.
lovatt51 2 years ago 2
Same here man ....I'm 56 next birthday!!
muckybird69 2 years ago 2
Im 18 next month but at heart im the same age as you man 56 inside .
mistabiggz16 2 years ago
LOL ...my son is 20 and he has a real appreciation for bands like Free as well as his own tastes!
muckybird69 2 years ago
you`re lucky mucky, my son has a very strange musical taste, ah well maybe one day eh.
lovatt51 2 years ago
wait until my band show up. muahahahah :b
mranimusic 2 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
if you like this check out SWAMPFREAKS...!!! great band real music
fromdusttogold 2 years ago
The riffs in this song are killing! Great intro-full of anticipation. The relentless funk has mucho tension. Koss' inversions on the chorus especially are really melodic for hard rock and the way they ring is majestic. Long Live Free!
impala327 2 years ago
Do I ever love this stuff. Paul R. still sings like no one else ever could. Kossoff was so full of feeling in his lines. Frazier and Kirke rock to high heaven. Only thing is...there is no such thing as a Stealer. It's actually a thief, not a stealer. LOL! But I get the point!
Sweeper5 2 years ago
the critics said they were slipping when they came out with song. i don't no, maybe because im only 59 but that has to be one of the best blues no's on the web. wow
300ultramag1 2 years ago
Nice beer drinking song
aNgELaMbERp 2 years ago 3
my mum used to play this when i was a baby. Love it <3
voodoozil 2 years ago
Good mum with an excellent taste!
rentner66 2 years ago
can i kiss your mum please
mistabiggz16 2 years ago