Burnin' Sky is the fourth studio album by the English rock band Bad Company. It was released on 3 March 1977. Burnin' Sky was recorded in France at Château d'Hérouville in July and August 1976 with future Rolling Stones engineer Chris Kimsey. Its release was delayed until March 1977 so as not to compete with the band's then-current album Run with the Pack.

The song "Like Water" was originally recorded by lead singer Paul Rodgers' short-lived group Peace, which he formed while Free were on hiatus from 1971 to 1972. While the Peace recording was not released at the time, it did eventually see the light of day in the Free rarities box set Songs of Yesterday from 2000.

The album peaked at No. 15 on the Billboard 200 and No. 17 in the UK Albums Chart. The album was remastered and re-released in 1994. The cover is similar to the poster for the 1969 Sam Peckinpah film The Wild Bunch. In the 2000 movie Almost Famous, the fictitious band Stillwater's first T-shirt is strikingly similar to the Burnin' Sky album cover.

Critical reception

The New York Times noted the "subtler, quieter approach," writing that "the results sounded oddly somnolent."

Track listing

All songs by Paul Rodgers unless otherwise noted.

Personnel

;Bad Company

  • Paul Rodgers – vocals, guitar, piano, accordion
  • Mick Ralphs – guitar, keyboards
  • Simon Kirke – drums
  • Boz Burrell – bass

with:

  • Mel Collins – saxophone, flute
  • Tim Hinkley – keyboards

;Technical

  • Chris Kimsey – engineer

Charts

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! Chart (1977)

! Peak<br/>position

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! scope="row"| Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)

| align="center"| 15

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Certifications

References

  • Bad Company - Burnin' Sky (1977) album releases & credits at Discogs