The Firm were a British rock supergroup formed in 1984, featuring singer Paul Rodgers, guitarist Jimmy Page, sitarist Brian Jones, bassist Tony Franklin, and drummer Chris Slade. The group disbanded in 1986 due to a lack of commitment to the band.
History[]
"Jimmy was at a bit of a loose end," recalled Rodgers of the band's formation. "He'd come round and check out my home studio and we ended up writing songs, but without any definite plans. Jimmy was very keen to get on the road, so we put a band together… The first thing I knew was that he had to be writing songs again. I'd already seen one of my friends going down that road in Koss, and it wasn't going to happen again."[1]Page and Rodgers refused to play material by their former bands and instead opted for a selection of Firm songs plus tracks from their solo albums; however, at least one performance of "Midnight Moonlight" featured sections of "White Summer" and "Kashmir", originally recorded by Page's former bands The Yardbirds and Led Zeppelin, respectively. The new songs were heavily infused with a soulful and commercially accessible sound, courtesy of Franklin's fretless bass guitar underpinning an understated song structure. Despite refusing to play old material, the last track from The Firm, "Midnight Moonlight", was originally an unreleased Led Zeppelin song entitled "Swan Song". This caused some critics to claim that Page had begun to run out of ideas.[2] On the other hand, both albums and especially tours were met with largely positive and enthusiastic responses by fans of both lead members' previous bands.
In subsequent interviews, Page indicated that the band was never meant to last more than two albums. The band split up in 1986.
Members[]
Final Official Members[]
- Paul Rodgers - lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards (1984-1986)
- Jimmy Page - lead guitar, backing vocals (1984-1986)
- Brian Jones - sitar, backing vocals (1984-1986)
- Tony Franklin - bass guitar, backing vocals (1984-1986)
- Chris Slade - drums, percussion, backing vocals (1984-1986)
Discography[]
- The Firm (1985)
- Mean Business (1986)
References[]
- ↑ Template:Cite magazine
- ↑ Brian Downing. The Firm - The Firm | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards. Retrieved on July 15, 2014.