Boston, Massachusetts, October 10, 1974. It was the final night of Bad Company’s inaugural American tour and despite an uninterrupted string of unqualified successes, the exultant mood among the musicians had chilled with the news that their manager, the Herculean Peter Grant, wanted to see them, pronto. Among the four musicians – vocalist Paul Rodgers, guitarist Mick Ralphs, bassist Boz Burrell and drummer Simon Kirke – none could fathom what transgression they might have committed to find themselves called onto the carpet of arguably the most menacing figure in the music industry.
Their concerns were well founded. Grant, a notoriously hot-headed former wrestler, had been known to administer savage beatings to promoters, bootleggers and anyone else who might threaten his interests. As the hottest band in the United States, Bad Company ranked among the highest of Peter Grant’s interests.
