Badfinger: Current Obsession

-Written by Jackson Skam-

I am a huge fan of The Beatles, so much so that I have attempted to consume all forms of media that feature the Fab Four, including their retrospective documentary The Beatles Anthology. This collection of interviews of Paul, George and Ringo as well as archive footage of John was extremely insightful into the massive career that The Beatles experienced. However, one of my biggest takeaways from it wasn’t even about The Beatles themselves, but about a band called Badfinger, who they chose to sign to their Apple Records Label. 

 

Introduced as a band that was taken under the wing of The Beatles but eventually became famous in their own right, a performance of their song “Maybe Tomorrow” piqued my intrigue in Badfinger. If I had my eyes closed, I would have thought that this track was written by Lennon-McCartney and omitted from Abbey Road or Let It Be. But instead, I saw a group consisting of the heavenly harmonizing voices of guitarists Tom Evans and Pete Ham along with guitarist Joey Molland and drummer Mike Gibbins. To make them even more interesting, each had these crazy but awesome hairstyles reminiscent of the British mod scene. It was at this point that I knew I had to delve further into this band.     

 

Beginning their career in Wales as The Iveys, the group was first noticed by The Beatles’ roadie Mal Evans who was adamant that the Fab Four sign them to their newly formed Apple Records label. Evans’ persistence led to all four Beatles’ approval to bring The Iveys into the Apple Records family as the first band besides The Beatles in 1968. With their new association with the biggest rock band, the execs at Apple Records thought a brand change was for The Iveys, considering the name didn’t quite fit the rock scene of the time. They instead opted for Badfinger, inspired by the working title for The Beatles’ song “With A Little Help From My Friends”. They would release their debut album Magic Christian Music in 1969, inspired by the titular movie that featured Ringo Starr. This album would see considerable success, especially the song “Come And Get It” which was written and produced by Paul McCartney. Badfinger would continue to find success, especially under the mentorship of George Harrison who helped produce their third album Straight Up which was another commercial success for the band. 

 

Unfortunately, not long after they were signed, the Fab Four would split up, leading to new management at Apple Records and eventually the label’s capitulation in 1973. So, they would find new management under Stan Polley, who would prove to be the single worst person to affect Badfinger and its band members. Polley was an extremely inept and fraudulent manager leading to some bad financial problems for the band. Eventually, this came to affect the personal livelihoods of each member as they quickly learned that Polley had been taking money from them. This would lead to lead guitarist Pete Ham taking his own life in 1975, writing in a suicide note that all of the difficulties in his life had been caused by this evil person as a manager. The other band members would dissolve the band after this traumatic event even stepping away from music altogether but would come back together in 1978 to try out Badfinger again. Unfortunately, this would again end in devastation as in 1983, amid arguments about the band’s finances resulted in bassist Tom Evans taking his life. After a second band member had died by suicide, the other members chose not to continue to make music.         

 

Despite the profound personal and professional tragedies that marred their journey, Badfinger’s unique evolution from their Beatlesque beginnings into a distinctive blend of late 60s pop and 70s rock remains a testament to their enduring musical legacy. Coming into the British popular rock scene right as The Beatles were heading towards dissolution, Badfinger evolved past their Beatles influence. To me, Badfinger’s sound stands as its own continuation of the late 60s pop, rock, and bluesy feel from albums like Abbey Road, but also a perfect blend with the rock trends of the 70s, with some more heavy and earthy tracks that are closer to the hard and folk rock of Led Zeppelin. 

 

The best way to get into Badfinger’s stellar discography is to start with their 1971 masterpiece of an album, Straight Up. This album is a great way to understand Badfinger’s position as a transitionary band between the 60s and 70s movements in rock music. “It’s Over” is a great prog rock track that sounds like it could have it perfectly into the Abbey Road Medley, while “Suitcase” is an awesome bluesy song that really hits you in the soul. “Day After Day” could have easily been featured on George Harrison’s album All Things Must Pass, especially its inclusion of a great slide guitar melody (which isn’t a surprise as Harrison produced this one!). “Sometimes” stands out as a classic hard rock tune, and “Sweet Tuesday Morning” is a wonderful folk-rock ballad which spiked my interest with its rootsy production including some accordion and classical guitar. Finally, “Baby Blue” might be the band’s most recognizable song, with it being featured during the final episode of Breaking Bad, but nonetheless, it stands as one of the group’s best tracks with its catchy guitar riffs and bittersweet lyrics that keep making me want to listen over and over again. 

 

From a small band whose potential was seen by none other than The Beatles, to a stand-out rock group that came to a tragic end, Badfinger is a band that I was delighted to discover and will surely become a staple in my music rotation going forward!