Free were an English rock band formed in London in 1968, best known for their hit songs "All Right Now” and "Wishing Well".[1] They disbanded in 1973; lead singer Paul Rodgers went on to become the frontman of the more successful rock band Bad Company, which also featured his Free bandmate Simon Kirke on drums.[2] Lead guitarist Paul Kossoff formed Back Street Crawler in 1973, but died from a pulmonary embolism at the age of 25 in 1976.[3] Bassist Andy Fraser formed Sharks.[4]
Free became renowned for their live shows and non-stop touring. However, their studio albums did not sell very well until their third, Fire and Water, featured the massive hit "All Right Now". The song helped secure them a place at the Isle of Wight Festival 1970, where they played to 600,000 people.[5] In the early 1970s Free became one of the biggest-selling British blues rock[6][7][8] groups; by the time they disbanded, they had sold more than 20 million albums around the world and had played more than 700 arena and festival concerts. "All Right Now" remains a R&B staple, and has been entered in ASCAP's "One Million" airplay singles club.[9][10]
Rolling Stone has referred to the band as "British hard rock pioneers".[11] The magazine ranked Rodgers No. 55 in its list of the "100 Greatest Singers of All Time",[12] and Paul Kossoff at Number 51 in its "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".[11] Free were signed to Island Records in the UK and A&M Records in North America.
