Top 10 Free Songs

Photo:By Jim Summaria (Contact us/Photo submission) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Free was one of the original bands of the late sixties who took the American sensibilities of the blues and ingrained it with a razor-sharp, English-bred attitude, along with bands like Led Zeppelin, early Fleetwood Mac, and Cream. It wasn’t until the early seventies that they truly found their niche and became one of the most popular bands of that period. They were together for only a few years, yet in that short span, their music left an everlasting impression on the rock landscape.

Each member bounces off of one another in more ways than one. Paul Rodgers, who later went on to front Bad Company and The Firm, brings more of a soulful punch in contrast to the following gruff noise. Guitarist Paul Kossoff is the leading energizer, smashing through the speakers with the dirtiest riffs and intense guitar solos that are a tonal representation of himself; he set himself apart from other guitarists in his category with his distinctive harmony and string bends.

Bassist and pianist Andy Fraser also adds the proper depth to each composition, an excellent counterpoint to Kossoff’s unkempt technique. Then there’s drummer Simon Kirke, whose subtle percussion cruised in the background without much restraint; he didn’t have to be overly virtuosic or theatrical like most of the day’s drum titans, but he sure made those rhythms pop.

They were a small group of young lads who came together in early 1968 to play their first gig, only to begin their journey of blowing minds across the pond; these cats weren’t even twenty years old when they dropped their debut album, Tons of Sobs, and they were already leaving quite the impression on the British blues scene. And even though they only had a short-lived career, losing Paul Kossoff at the untimely age of twenty-five years old, Free still left behind a trail of blazing-hot influence; the mold of hard rock was soon in the making thanks to bands like them. Here’s a top-ten list to celebrate a criminally overlooked band with a diverse collection of songs.

# 10 – Wishing Well

In 1973, Free recorded what would be their final album, Heartbreaker. It was quite an enervating period for the band because that was when bassist Andy Fraser left the band, and Kossoff was in rehab for his drug addiction; they recruited Tetsu Yamauchi to replace Fraser, as well as keyboardist John “Rabbit” Bundrick to even everything out. The album let the band go out with quite the bang, with the incomparable single, Wishing Well, carrying their infelicitous exit with quiet dignity and grace. This is also one of the album’s songs where Paul Rodgers plays lead guitar.

# 9 – Soon I Will be Gone

After the success of their classic record, Fire and Water, the band recorded perhaps their most musically alluring album, Highway. It doesn’t share the same grit and rudiments as their previous efforts. Instead, the record offers a more diverse and intimate sound. “Soon I Will Be Gone” closes out the album with a woeful piano progression and an overlapping acoustic guitar, as Paul Rodgers muses on the things he’s lost, the love of his life among them. Songs like these complement a band’s heavier temperament with something more delicate.

# 8 – The Hunter

Now, here’s where Free shone as a blues-based group. They took this Albert King classic and revitalized its sexual energy into an annex of their visceral style. Paul Rodgers makes no bones about tapping into the raunchy wordplay with the kind of screams and howls of your typical bluesmen. Kossoff also pays the right sort of homage to Albert King by incorporating the same conglomerate of wickedly cool licks and that same bouncing progression. Everybody plays their part here; there is no need to single out any individual because all four members bring the right kind of mojo to this killer rendition.

# 7 – Sunny Day

With this Free songs list, we wanted to focus on their discography, showcasing their melange of work, which means highlighting both their rock-oriented tunes and their more mellow ones. Sunny Day is a smooth cup of easy vibrations with more of the same subject matter as Soon I Will Be Gone, but with more optimism thrown in. There’s no showmanship here, just a couple of guys expressing themselves in more cultivated ways than their primitive procedure.

# 6 – Oh I Wept

Their third studio album, Fire and Water, helped establish them as a band to be taken seriously. It charted well in their home country and the States, reaching number two in the UK and number seventeen in the US. Of course, it was all due to a particular little rock tune of mammoth predominance, which will be mentioned later on this list. But the album generally has so many distinctive qualities that it defined rock in the early seventies, so it’s unfair to focus only on some aspects.

With a track like Oh I Wept, though, the carefree catharsis of the counterculture manifests itself in this four-minute song. It should be noted that this song is also perfect after a long night; dim the lights and vibe out.

# 5 – Seven Angels

This song’s haunting aroma is simply spectacular and quite befitting of the band, since it was technically the last track on their previous studio album before breaking up. It has a nice Zeppelin crunch, played in a minor key that blankets the mythical poetics; one can almost feel the chariots’ horses trampling in their imagination as they hear this song. And if there’s one song that displays Paul Rodgers as a one-in-a-million singer, this one should be duly noted.

# 4 – Mourning Sad Morning

More love songs on this list! I’m sure some of you are a little surprised by this, but it has to be said that these compositions aren’t the quintessential mechanics of a ballad that most people know of: those sappy heartache songs of annoying plasticity. No, songs like Mourning Sad Morning are prime examples of thought-provoking recollections of depression and a lovelorn quality. This acoustic-based composition from their self-titled record is a true standout.

# 3 – I’m a Mover

Guitarist Joe Bonamassa stated in an interview that the riff from “I’m a Mover” inspired him to take up the electric guitar; it’s also no revelation that Paul Kossoff is one of his main influences, too. This riff is widely overlooked, and it’s on the same pedestal as the riffs of Black Sabbath, Zeppelin, Cream, and the Jimi Hendrix Experience. It’s a big, burly, badass punch in the jaw that makes “I’m A Mover” one of Free’s best.

# 2 – Be My Friend

This is a great, feel-good song to lift someone’s spirits. It’s quite the little gem released from their Highway record, accompanying the musical departure from their blues-rock albums. It’s a piano-based song, with little to no emphasis on any of the band members’ technical chops, but that doesn’t stop it from being just as impactful as their rock and roll repertoire.

# 1 – All Right Now

As we close out our Top 10 Free Songs list, I’m sure all of you were anticipating this stone-cold classic to appear at the top eventually; we had to save the best and obvious choice to close out our Top 10 Free Songs list. It’s the very tune that has become the true face of hard rock. Its explosive riff is what gives “All Right Now” the lasting aftermath it’s become synonymous with.

It’s one of those overrated, overplayed, and instantly recognizable tunes, and deservedly so; even if you’ve never known of this band’s existence, you’ve heard this song at least a dozen times on your local rock station. You’ve probably heard it in movies, commercials, and television shows. It’s the song that closed out Fire and Water and turned it into the band’s biggest seller, but most importantly, it turned Free into one of the founding fathers of hard rock.