The rise of rock music supergroups

Martin Claytor charts the rise of rock music supergroups.

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young; Cream; Emerson, Lake & Palmer; and the Traveling Wilburys – examples of hugely popular rock bands formed between the late 1960s and the next 20 years. Their musical styles might have been different but there is a connection – they became known as “supergroups”, consisting of members who had already achieved success with other prominent groups or as solo artists.

As the 1970s drew near, a growing trend towards rock supergroups started to emerge on the music scene – the next two decades saw many more start up, with varying degrees of success and stability. They ranged from musicians combining on a temporary basis to make an album or to help raise money for a charity, such as Bob Geldof and Midge Ure’s Band Aid, to others staying together to form more permanent bands.

Cream, which lasted for two years from 1966, are often regarded as the first supergroup – Eric Clapton (ex-Yardbirds), Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker (both ex-Graham Bond Organisation) linked their previously successful rock and blues musical careers to become an influential force in British music. Other combinations followed in the next couple of years, with Led Zeppelin (ex-Yardbirds, Band of Joy) and Blind Faith (ex-Yardbirds, Cream, Family, Traffic, Bluesbreakers) gathering large followings, along with the various artists who had joined to form Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, and Humble Pie. It can be argued that few subsequent supergroups had the impact of those initial bands, despite the term being applied increasingly in the following years.

While the supergroup concept was a great idea in theory, the reality of successful musicians from varying backgrounds working together often led to clashes of opinions that would eventually lead to break ups. There were notable exceptions, however, with two of the most successful and longer-lasting rock supergroups formed during this time being Bad Company, and Mike + the Mechanics – both achieving huge sales of singles and albums but starting originally from a different premise.

Simon Kirke, the drummer with Free, explains how he and fellow band member Paul Rodgers came to set up Bad Company in 1973: “It was very easy as Free had been languishing for the last two years of its existence. Ditto with Mott the Hoople as Mick Ralphs had been finding it increasingly frustrating… and Boz Burrell had left King Crimson – so really this was a wonderful meeting of four soon-to-be-happy individuals.”

Guitarist and keyboard player Adrian Lee recounts how Mike + the Mechanics, with members including Mike Rutherford (Genesis), Paul Young (Sad Café) and Paul Carrack (Ace, Squeeze) came about differently in 1985: “The group was not formed as such – the project started life with Mike, Peter Van Hooke and myself as the core musicians for a Mike Rutherford solo album. It was only when the album was near completion and the singing duties had been passed primarily to Paul Carrack and Paul Young that Mike suggested that it no longer looked like a solo project and that the five of us could put the album out under the name Mike + the Mechanics.”

While finding the right mix of musicians to form a new band has always been important, it was even more so when working with people who had already achieved success in their own right – factors other than pure talent needed to be considered. Bad Company’s lineup took a little time to set up, as Simon Kirke remembers: “Paul Rodgers had developed a friendship with Mick during the time that Paul’s band Peace had opened up for Mott the Hoople on their British tour. I had always got on well with Paul and so it was an easy fit. It took a few months to get the right bass player and Boz was at the bottom of our list because we were not crazy about King Crimson, not our musical cup of tea at all, but he turned out just fine.”

Adrian Lee had met future members of Mike + the Mechanics at various points in the past and continues: “It was some luck and the good judgement of producer Chris Neil that ensured the material written by Mike and co-writers was arranged, played and recorded so that people enjoyed it enough to give the releases commercial success. All other contributors put their stamp on it.”

While the number of new, and often short-lived, supergroup formations continued to increase in the 1970s and 80s, success was often hard to judge – depending on whether the aim included aspects such as commercial success, audience popularity or just the enjoyment of playing music together.

Bad Company seem to have achieved all three, as Simon Kirke recalls: “It was kind of a perfect storm really. The success came quickly through several elements. We were signed to Led Zeppelin’s Swan Song label [they were the biggest band in the world at the time] and Peter Grant was one of the greatest managers ever in rock and roll… we were from three bands in the UK that were extremely popular… we were all still very young and therefore pretty good-looking. We had one of the greatest singers in rock who also wrote amazing songs… and Mick Ralphs had three killer songs on the first album – Can’t Get Enough, Movin’ On, and Rock Steady.”

For Adrian Lee it was fortunate that, despite a lack of support from the record label: “The first single Silent Running seemed to catch the ear of some US radio stations and charted.” The second single All I Need Is a Miracle was even more popular and led to a US tour and an established fanbase. He also recognises that being a Genesis spin-off meant that: “We had real management steering things.”

Bad Company’s early success was followed by three consecutive UK and US top five albums in the 1970s and worldwide sales of more than 40 million before temporarily disbanding in the early 80s. Further singles, such as Feel Like Makin’ Love and Shooting Star, had led to even further popularity. Mike + the Mechanics also had multi-million album sales but are perhaps even better known for building upon initial hit singles with songs including The Living Years, Taken In, and Over My Shoulder. The band’s original lineup split in the mid-1990s, although later reformed with some different members alongside Mike Rutherford.

While loosely titled “supergroups” have continued to be formed, the heyday was undoubtedly during the 70s and 80s – heralding a significant step in rock music history. As the period ended, it is fitting the formation of one such band provided a classic example of the term. The Traveling Wilburys – consisting of George Harrison, Tom Petty, Roy Orbison, Jeff Lynne and Bob Dylan – lasted for three successful years from 1988 and is probably the most star-studded combination of all supergroups.

The term “supergroup” is sometimes criticised as being just a convenient term – Bad Company’s Simon Kirke calls it a “dreaded phrase” and contends that such a labelling must be earned, arguing: “While being from different prominent bands is a publicist’s dream, it is really up to the band to musically attain and exceed those expectations… we did. We would celebrate 50 years in 2024 and would still be touring if it were not for Paul’s health problems.”

Adrian Lee, of Mike + the Mechanics, perhaps sums up the whole “supergroup” situation when he reflects: “All music made by ensembles is a cooperative of sorts and it’s not unusual for musicians who are sympathetic to each other to enjoy making music together. The people who hear and maybe buy the records or not are the final arbiters. There was plenty of choice at that time.”

Mike + the Mechanics will be on the road in the UK, South Africa and Europe from January 2025. For more information on Looking Back – Living the Years 2025 Tour, go to mikeandthemechanics.com