Michael Geoffrey Ralphs (born 31 March 1944,

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthsh ...

) is an English musician, vocalist and songwriter, who was a founding member of rock bands

Mott the Hoople Mott the Hoople were an English rock band formed in Herefordshire. Originally known as the Doc Thomas Group, the group changed their name after signing with Island Records in 1969. The band released albums throughout the early 1970s but fai ...

and

Bad Company Bad Company are an English rock supergroup that was formed in 1973 by singer Paul Rodgers, guitarist Mick Ralphs, drummer Simon Kirke and bassist Boz Burrell. Bad Company ''AllMusic'' Peter Grant, who managed the rock band Led Zeppelin, a ...

Career

Ralphs began his career as a teenager, playing with blues-rock band the Buddies. He released a single with that group in 1964 before joining the Mod Doc Thomas Group in 1966. After an eponymous Italian album debut, the band changed its name twice, first to Silence in 1968 and then, in 1969, to Mott the Hoople. Ralphs remained with Mott until 1973. In 1973, he founded

along with vocalist Paul Rodgers from Free. The band's debut album in 1974 included the Ralphs'-penned

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

" Can't Get Enough", for which Ralphs tuned his guitar in the open-C tuning C-G-C-G-C-E, stating, "It never really sounds right in standard tuning. It needs the open C to have that ring." The debut album reached number one in the United States. Ralphs continued to record and

tour Tour or Tours may refer to: Travel * Tourism, travel for pleasure * Tour of duty, a period of time spent in military service * Campus tour, a journey through a college or university's campus * Guided tour, a journey through a location, directed ...

with Bad Company until the original band folded in 1982. In 1984 he toured with Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour on Gilmour's About Face tour, although he did not play on the album. In 1985, he released a solo album, ''Take This'', which included Free's and Bad Company's drummer

Simon Kirke Simon Frederick St George Kirke (born 28 July 1949) is an English rock drummer best known as a member of Free and Bad Company. He has been the only continuous member of Bad Company since their inception. Life and career Kirke was born in L ...

.rockdetector.com
He teamed up with future Bad Company guitarist

Dave Colwell David "Dave Bucket" Colwell (born 1 August 1964) is a rock guitarist from the United Kingdom and has been a member of Bad Company, Samson, ASAP, The Eastenders, The Entire Population of Hackney, 720, The Torpedos, Angel Street, Roger Chapman's ...

for a limited four-run live support of the album, which also featured drummer

Chris Slade Chris Slade (born Christopher Slade Rees; 30 October 1946) is a Welsh musician, best known for playing for the Australian rock band AC/DC. He drummed for the band from 1989 to 1994, performing on their 1990 album '' The Razors Edge'' along wit ...

Manfred Mann's Earth Band Manfred Mann's Earth Band are an English rock band formed by South African musician Manfred Mann. Their hits include covers of Bruce Springsteen's " For You", "Blinded by the Light" and "Spirit in the Night". After forming in 1971 and with a ...

and keyboard player Lindsay Bridgewater, who performed with

Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...

. He did one performance with a band called Cold Turkey. Bad Company reformed with different line-ups between 1986 and 1998. But after a reunion tour with the original foursome in 1999, Ralphs announced that he was giving up touring, something he was never comfortable with in either band, since he has an extreme

fear of flying Fear of flying is a fear of being on an airplane, or other flying vehicle, such as a helicopter, while in flight. It is also referred to as flying anxiety, flying phobia, flight phobia, aviophobia, aerophobia, or pteromechanophobia (although a ...

. Ralphs second solo album ''It's All Good'', an

instrumental An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to inst ...

, came out in 2001. Two years later his ''That's Life – Can't Get Enough'' album was released, including a demo version of "Can't Get Enough". In 2004, he once again teamed up with former Mott colleague Ian Hunter, playing second lead guitar (along with Andy York) on Hunter's UK tour. Ralphs performed at Hunter's 2005 concert at the

London Astoria The London Astoria was a music venue at 157 Charing Cross Road, in London, England. Originally a warehouse during the 1920s, the building became a cinema and ballroom. It was converted for use as a theatre in the 1970s. After further develop ...

, with Ralphs performing a guitar solo to "

All the Way from Memphis "All the Way from Memphis" is a single released by Mott the Hoople as the lead track from the album ''Mott'' in 1973. The song tells a story about a rock and roller whose guitar is shipped to Oriole, Kentucky, instead of Memphis, Tennessee. T ...

On 2 July 2008, it was announced that the original line-up of Bad Company (minus

Boz Burrell Raymond "Boz" Burrell (1 August 1946 – 21 September 2006) was an English musician. Originally a vocalist and guitarist, Burrell is best known for his singing with King Crimson (1971–1972) and bass playing in Bad Company (1973–1982, 1998� ...

who died in September 2006) would do a one-off gig at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida on 8 August 2008. According to Rodgers, they did this gig to "protect the legacy they have built and cement the rights to the trademark Bad Company for touring".

, including Ralphs, reunited for two shows at the Blake Theatre in Monmouth close to

Rockfield Studios Rockfield Studios is a residential recording studio located in the Wye Valley just outside the village of Rockfield, Monmouthshire, Wales. It was originally founded in 1963 by brothers Kingsley and Charles Ward. Facilities Rockfield is a two- ...

where they rehearsed before playing five concerts at the Hammersmith Apollo in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, during September and October 2009. All five of the original members participated in the reunion with

Martin Chambers Martin Dale Chambers (born 4 September 1951 in Hereford) is an English musician, who is best known as a founding member and drummer of the rock band the Pretenders. In addition to playing the drums with the group, Chambers sings backing vocals ...

assisting on drums. In 2011, Ralphs formed The Mick Ralphs Blues Band with musicians he met while guesting at a jam session at the Nag's Head pub in

High Wycombe High Wycombe, often referred to as Wycombe ( ), is a market town in Buckinghamshire, England. Lying in the valley of the River Wye, Buckinghamshire, River Wye surrounded by the Chiltern Hills, it is west-northwest of Charing Cross in London, ...

: Stuart Son Maxwell, harmonica/vocals; Jim Maving, guitar; Sam Kelly, drums; Dickey Baldwin, bass. The band's website stated that Ralphs sought to explore his blues and soul roots, playing covers of classic blues and R&B songs. The band made its debut as Mick Ralphs and Co at Jagz Club in

Ascot, Berkshire Ascot () is a town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. It is south of Windsor, east of Bracknell and west of London. It is most notable as the location of Ascot Racecourse, home of the Royal Ascot meeting, ...

in June 2011, changing the name to the Mick Ralphs Blues Band soon afterwards. More dates were announced for late 2011 and early 2012. In 2012, Bad Company performed a short run of European festival dates. In 2013 and 2014, Bad Company and Lynyrd Skynyrd jointly toured throughout the United States and Canada, initially commemorating the 40th anniversary of Skynyrd's first album release and Bad Company's formation. In 2016, Bad Company announced a US tour with

Joe Walsh Joseph Fidler Walsh (born November 20, 1947) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. In a career spanning over five decades, he has been a member of three successful rock bands: the James Gang, Eagles, and Ringo Starr & His All-Starr ...

. Ralphs initially announced that he would not be participating in this tour and that

Rich Robinson Richard Spencer Robinson (born May 24, 1969) is an American musician and founding member of the rock and roll band the Black Crowes. Along with older brother Chris Robinson, Rich formed the band in 1984 (originally called ''Mr. Crowes Garden'' ...

the Black Crowes The Black Crowes are an American rock band formed in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1984. Their discography includes eight studio albums, four live albums and several charting singles. The band was signed to Def American Recordings in 1989 by producer Ge ...

would be standing in for him. In June 2016, the group announced a UK arena tour with special guests Richie Sambora and

Orianthi Orianthi Penny Panagaris (born 22 January 1985), known mononymously as Orianthi, is an Australian guitarist, singer and songwriter who rehearsed in 2009 with Michael Jackson in preparation for his '' This Is It'' concert series, and performed wi ...

culminating in a show at London's

O2 Arena O2 Arena may refer to: *The O2 Arena (London) *O2 Arena (Prague) *The 3Arena The 3Arena (originally The O2) is an indoor amphitheatre located at North Wall Quay in the Dublin Docklands in Dublin, Ireland. The venue opened as The O2 on 16 Decem ...

on 29 October. Ralphs rejoined the band for the duration of the tour. Following the band's concluding performance in London, it was reported that Ralphs had been hospitalized, having suffered a stroke. He has not returned to the band since with his lead guitar parts being played by second guitarist,

Howard Leese Howard M. Leese (born June 13, 1951, in Hollywood, California, United States) is an American guitarist, record producer, and musical director who played with Heart as guitarist and keyboardist for 23 years (1975 through 1998). He continues to rec ...

and keyboard parts being played by Rogers.

Guitars

*Mott the Hoople –

Gibson Les Paul Junior The Gibson Les Paul Junior is a solid-body electric guitar introduced in 1954 as an affordable, entry-level Les Paul. It was first released with a single-cutaway body style; models with a double-cutaway body style were later introduced in 1958. Th ...

Gibson Firebird The Gibson Firebird is a solid-body electric guitar manufactured by Gibson beginning in 1963. History The Gibson Guitar Corporation released several new styles during the 1950s to compete with Fender's solid-body instruments, such as the Telecas ...

(Single Pick-Up),

Gibson SG The Gibson SG is a solid-body electric guitar model introduced by Gibson in 1961 as the Gibson Les Paul SG. It remains in production today in many variations of the initial design. The SG (where "SG" refers to Solid-Body Guitar) Standard is Gi ...

Fender Telecaster The Fender Telecaster, colloquially known as the Tele , is an electric guitar produced by Fender. Together with its sister model the Esquire, it is the world's first mass-produced, commercially successful Les Paul had built a prototype solid bo ...

*Bad Company –

Fender Stratocaster The Fender Stratocaster, colloquially known as the Strat, is a model of electric guitar designed from 1952 into 1954 by Leo Fender, Bill Carson, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares. The Fender Musical Instruments Corporation has continuousl ...

Gibson Les Paul Standard The Gibson Les Paul is a solid body electric guitar that was first sold by the Gibson Guitar Corporation in 1952. The guitar was designed by factory manager John Huis and his team with input from and endorsement by guitarist Les Paul. Its typ ...

Fender Esquire The Fender Esquire is a solid-body electric guitar manufactured by Fender. The Esquire was the first solid-body guitar sold by Fender, debuting in 1950.. Shortly after its introduction, a two- pickup version was built. It was soon renamed the ''B ...

Gibson Flying V The Gibson Flying V is an electric guitar model introduced by Gibson in 1958. The Flying V offered a radical, "futuristic" body design, much like its siblings: the Explorer, which was released the same year, and the Moderne, which was designed ...

– "Feel Like Making Love"

video Video is an electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving visual media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, which were quickly replaced by cathode-ray tube (CRT) syst ...

*Recently – Gibson 1957/1959 Custom Shop re-issue Gibson Les Paul Standards *Fender Stratocaster fitted with a 2TEK bridge

Notable songwriting credits

*" Rock and Roll Queen" *" Ready For Love" *" Can't Get Enough" *" Good Lovin' Gone Bad" *" Movin' On" *"

One of the Boys ''One of the Boys'' is the second studio album by American singer Katy Perry. It was released on June 17, 2008, by Capitol Records. She collaborated with producers Greg Wells, Dr. Luke, Dave Stewart, Max Martin, and Ted Bruner among others, on ...

" with Ian Hunter *" Feel Like Makin' Love" with Paul Rodgers *"

Flying Hour ''Songs by George Harrison'' is a book of song lyrics and commentary by English musician George Harrison, with illustrations by New Zealand artist Keith West. It was published in February 1988, in a limited run of 2500 copies, by Genesis Publ ...

" with George Harrison *"Oh, Atlanta" (recorded originally by Bad Company on the album '' Desolation Angels''; later covered by

Alison Krauss Alison Maria Krauss (born July 23, 1971) is an American bluegrass-country singer and musician. She entered the music industry at an early age, competing in local contests by the age of 8 and recording for the first time at 14. She signed with ...

)

Discography

Solo

* 1984 - ''Take This'' - Re-edited on CD in 1996 * 2001 - ''It's All Good'' - Recorded live in 1999 with Simon Kirke and Boz Burrell * 2003 - ''That's Life''

Mott the Hoople

* 1969 - ''

'' * 1970 - '' Mad Shadows'' * 1971 - ''

Wildlife Wildlife refers to undomesticated animal species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wild in an area without being introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous to game: those birds and mammals that were hunted ...

'' * 1971 - ''

Brain Capers ''Brain Capers'' is the fourth album by the band Mott the Hoople. It was originally released in November 1971 in the UK by Island Records (catalogue number ILPS 9178) and on Island Records in Canada (cat. no. SW-9178), and was reissued in 20 ...

'' * 1972 - ''

All the Young Dudes "All the Young Dudes" is a song written by English singer-songwriter David Bowie, originally recorded and released as a single by the English rock band Mott the Hoople in 1972 by Columbia Records. Bowie produced the song, which he had given to ...

'' * 1972 - '' Rock and Roll Queen'' * 1973 - ''

Mott Mott is both an English surname and given name. Notable people with the name include: Surname B *Basil Mott (1859–1938), British civil engineer *Bitsy Mott (1918–2001), American baseball player C * Charles James Mott (1880–1918), British bar ...

'' * 1974 - ''

The Hoople ''The Hoople'' is the seventh studio album by United Kingdom, British rock music, rock band Mott the Hoople. The album peaked in the UK Albums Chart at No. 11, whilst its highest chart rating in the US was No. 28. A remastered and expanded vers ...

'' - Ralphs sang backup vocals on "Pearl 'n' Roy (England)" and played rhythm guitar on "Roll Away the Stone".

Bad Company

* 1974 - ''

'' * 1975 - '' Straight Shooter'' * 1976 - ''

Run With The Pack ''Run with the Pack'' is the third studio album by English supergroup Bad Company. It was released on February 21, 1976, by Island Records. The album was recorded in France using the Rolling Stones Mobile Truck in September 1975 with engineer ...

'' * 1977 - '' Burnin' Sky'' * 1979 - '' Desolation Angels'' * 1982 - '' Rough Diamonds'' * 1985 - '' 10 from 6'' - Compilation * 1986 - '' Fame and Fortune'' - Brian Howe replaced Paul Rodgers * 1988 - ''

Dangerous Age ''Dangerous Age'' is the eighth studio album by hard rock band Bad Company. The album was released on August 23, 1988. It was their second album with Brian Howe as lead vocalist and first with Steve Price credited as bass guitarist. It was p ...

'' * 1990 - ''

Holy Water Holy water is water that has been blessed by a member of the clergy or a religious figure, or derived from a well or spring considered holy. The use for cleansing prior to a baptism and spiritual cleansing is common in several religions, from ...

'' * 1992 - '' Here Comes Trouble'' * 1993 - '' What You Hear Is What You Get: The Best of Bad Company'' - Live album with Howe as lead vocalist * 1995 - '' Company of Strangers'' - Robert Hart replaced Howe as lead vocalist * 1996 - '' Stories Told & Untold'' * 1999 - '' The 'Original' Bad Co. Anthology'' * 2006 - ''

Live in Albuquerque 1976 ''Live in Albuquerque 1976'' is a live album by the English hard rock band Bad Company featuring all four original members. The recordings were made by Mick Ralphs, who regularly taped the group's shows in the 1970s, so the band could use t ...

'' * 2010 - ''

Hard Rock Live The Hard Rock Live is an indoor amphitheater at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida. The theater opened on October 25, 2019, as part of a $1.5 billion property-wide expansion, which also included a new 450-foot guitar ...

'' - Rodgers was back in the lineup * 2011 - '' Live at Wembley'' * 2016 - ''

Live in Concert 1977 & 1979 ''Live in Concert 1977 & 1979'' is a double live album by the English hard rock band Bad Company, released on CD and as an mp3 download in 2016. It is an archival album with recordings taken from two concerts from their tours in 1977 and 1979. ...

Mick Ralphs Blues Band

* 2013 - ''I Should Know Better'' * 2016 - ''If It Ain't Broke''

Collaborations

* 1971 : ''Under Open Skies'' by

Luther Grosvenor Luther James Grosvenor (born 23 December 1946) is an English rock musician, who played guitar in Spooky Tooth, briefly in Stealers Wheel and, under the pseudonym Ariel Bender, in Mott the Hoople and Widowmaker. Grosvenor was born in Evesham ...

* 1984 : Ralphs toured with David Gilmour to support his second solo album '' About Face'', with Gregg Dechert on keyboards, Mickey Feat on bass,

Sue Evans Sue Evans (born July 7, 1951) is an American jazz, pop, classical, and studio percussionist and drummer. Career She was born in New York, New York, United States. Evans played piano, violin and clarinet as a young child before switching to drums ...

Jody Linscott Jody Linscott is an American session musician and percussionist who resides in England and maintains an extended discography. She has two daughters Kachina Dechert and Coco Linscott and has written two children's books which were published by D ...

on percussions,

Raphael Ravenscroft Raphael Ravenscroft (4 June 1954 – 19 October 2014) was a British musician, composer and author. He is best known for playing the saxophone on Gerry Rafferty's song " Baker Street". Early life While his place of birth is disputed, the E ...

on sax, flute and keyboards and

on drums. No live album has been released but a

of a performance at the Hammersmith Odeon was released in 1984 with special guests: Roy Harper (vocals, percussion) and Nick Mason (drums).

References

External links

Official Page for Mick Ralphs

Official Page for Mick Ralphs Blues Band

Official Page for Bad Company

Official Page for Mott The Hoople
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ralphs, Mick 1944 births Living people English rock guitarists English songwriters Bad Company members People from Hereford Lead guitarists Mott the Hoople members Glam rock musicians