There aren't too many bands willing or able to move forward after the lead singer decides to leave. Many people probably figured Bad Company was done with the departure of Paul Rodgers in 1982 after six albums, but the band experienced a rebirth with the addition of new vocalist, Brain Howe. Howe used to sing for Ted Nugent but joined forces with original Bad Company members Mike Ralphs and Simon Kirke in 1985. By then, Rodgers was busy singing with The Firm.
"Fame and Fortune" was the first record with Howe, which failed to generate any major action on the charts. Filled with keyboards to play to 80s trends, the sound was quite askew from the guitar-driven work that fans were expecting. But by the next album, "Dangerous Age", this new version of Bad Company was attracting a new fanbase comprised of melodic rockers falling in love with the remarkable range of Brian Howe.
"Holy Water" (1990) would be the watershed moment for the Brian Howe-era Bad Company. Howe wrote most of the album and it catered to the popular hairband arena rock of the day. "Holy Water" did a number on the charts and marked a huge comeback for the band.
The follow-up record, Howe's last with Bad Company, was released in 1992. While it didn't match the stunning success of "Holy Water", "Here Comes Trouble" did rather well given the dynamic music scene at the time.
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| "Here Comes Trouble" reached #40 on the Billboard Top 200 and went gold. |
The first single, the excellent "How About That", got to #38, but the power ballad follow-up, "This Could Be The One", died out at #87. "Little Angel" is a catchy mid-tempo rocker that probably would have done well if released a couple years earlier.
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