Bad Company drummer Simon Kirke has spoken out about what he sees as a misstep in the band’s history — replacing original singer Paul Rodgers with Brian Howe. In a recent appearance on Billy Corgan’s The Magnificent Others podcast, Kirke said the decision “tarnished” what Bad Company stood for at their core.
Kirke explained that after Rodgers left the band in 1982 — amid internal disagreements — he, guitarist Mick Ralphs, and bassist Boz Burrell decided to continue Bad Company under a new lineup. At the suggestion of Foreigner’s Mick Jones, they brought in vocalist Brian Howe to front the group.
Though the reformed band sold “millions of albums,” Kirke believes the change shifted the band’s identity. “The whole direction of the band kind of skewed away from the blues … [and] became more heavy metal,” he said, calling their decision a “knee-jerk” move that he now regrets.
Kirke also pointed to personality clashes between Howe and the rest of the band. Drawing on a quote from B.B. King — “You have to like someone to live with them” — Kirke admitted he hoped Howe would fit in, but that “piece of the jigsaw” never quite came together.
Tensions didn’t just stay behind the scenes. According to Kirke, Howe began making politically charged speeches during their live show intros — particularly before performing the song “Bad Company.” That didn’t sit well with Kirke; on one occasion, he confronted Howe backstage and said, “Don’t you use this band as a political forum!”
Howe’s time with Bad Company lasted about a decade. He left in 1992 after releasing four albums with the band. Kirke was blunt about his exit: “We asked him to leave,” he said. While Howe claimed he left voluntarily, Kirke insisted otherwise — though he acknowledged that Howe’s heart was in the right place.
Looking back, Kirke wouldn’t make the same call again. “If I had to do it over, I wouldn’t do it again,” he said.
