42 Facts About Paul Rodgers

Paul Rodgers was born on 17 December 1949 and is a British-Canadian singer, songwriter and musician.

Paul Rodgers was the lead vocalist of numerous rock bands, including Free, Bad Company, The Firm, and The Law.

Paul Rodgers has performed as a solo artist, and collaborated with the remaining active members of Queen under the moniker Queen + Paul Rodgers.

In 2011 Rodgers received the British Academy's Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music.

Paul Rodgers has been cited as a significant influence on various rock singers.

Paul Rodgers played bass for a band named The Roadrunners.

Colin Bradley originally had the lead vocal slot, but convinced Paul Rodgers to sing and front the band as he was primarily interested in playing rhythm guitar and his oldest brother Joe supported the idea.

In 1968, Paul Rodgers joined bluesy rockers Free as singer and songwriter.

In 1970, they shot up the international radio charts with "All Right Now", which Paul Rodgers wrote with the group's bassist Andy Fraser.

Alongside bassist Stewart McDonald and drummer Mick Underwood, Paul Rodgers played guitar and sang lead vocals.

Two songs by Peace were eventually included on the fifth disc of the 2000 Free compilation Songs of Yesterday, along with a song that Paul Rodgers recorded with the Maytals.

Paul Rodgers formed his next band, Bad Company, with Mick Ralphs, former guitarist of Mott the Hoople.

Bad Company earned six platinum albums until Paul Rodgers left in 1982, stating that he wanted to spend time with his young family.

However, Paul Rodgers has said that he was off the grid in a very rural area at the time, and the moment passed.

In late 1973, Paul Rodgers was asked to become the singer of Deep Purple when Ian Gillan had left the band.

Paul Rodgers rejected their offer in order to start Bad Company.

In October 1983, Paul Rodgers released his first solo LP Cut Loose.

Paul Rodgers composed all of the music and played all of the instruments.

Paul Rodgers acknowledged the influence of Jimi Hendrix by collaborating with Steve Vai, Hendrix's Band of Gypsys and the London Metropolitan Orchestra and recorded the track "Bold As Love", on the Hendrix tribute album In From The Storm.

Paul Rodgers focused on his solo career in 2000 and released Electric, his sixth solo CD.

In spring 2001, Paul Rodgers returned to Australia, England and Scotland for the second run of sold-out shows.

Paul Rodgers was invited by long-time fan Tony Blair to perform at the Labour Party Conference.

Twice in 2002, Paul Rodgers performed on Britain's TV show Top of the Pops 2.

In 2003, Paul Rodgers toured as a solo artist for the first time in two years playing 25 US dates.

Paul Rodgers appeared with Jeff Beck, performing some songs from Beck's back catalogue for part of a week-long series of charity concerts put on by Jeff Beck at the Royal Festival Hall in London.

Early in 2004, Paul Rodgers joined Mitch Mitchell and Billy Cox, Buddy Guy, Joe Satriani, Kid Rock's Kenny Olson, Alice in Chains' Jerry Cantrell, Double Trouble, Indigenous, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and blues legend Hubert Sumlin and performed three sold-out shows in Seattle, Portland and San Francisco as "Experience Hendrix".

Once again, Paul Rodgers only played 25 concerts in the US and Canada.

Paul Rodgers sang and played a custom designed Jaguar Fender Strat.

The summer of 2006 saw Paul Rodgers again focused on his solo career with a world tour, which commenced in Austin, Texas, US in June, then on to Japan, finishing in Glasgow, Scotland, in October 2006.

On 15 August 2006, Brian May confirmed through his website that "Queen + Paul Rodgers" would begin producing a new studio album beginning in October, to be recorded at Roger Taylor's home.

Paul Rodgers dedicated "Gone, Gone, Gone" to original bassist Boz Burrell, who died in 2006.

On 14 May 2009, Paul Rodgers announced he was ending his five-year-long collaboration with Queen, although did not rule out the possibility of working with them again.

Paul Rodgers performed a solo UK tour in April 2011 with Joe Elliot's Down 'n' Outz.

In May 2011 Paul Rodgers received an Ivor Novello Award for "Outstanding contribution to British music".

Paul Rodgers' contribution is a cover of the Wings song "Let Me Roll It", originally from their 1973 album Band on the Run.

In 2014, Paul Rodgers was touring with Bad Company.

Paul Rodgers again performed with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra on their New Year's Eve show in Seattle, Washington.

In 2017 Paul Rodgers embarked on a 'Free Spirit' UK Tour in May 2017 to celebrate the music of Free by performing songs strictly from the Free catalogue.

Paul Rodgers has a child from an early relationship who resides in his hometown of Middlesbrough, England.

Paul Rodgers married Machiko Shimizu in 1971, and has two children from that marriage, Steve and Jasmine.

On 26 September 2007 in Canada's Okanagan Valley, Paul Rodgers married Cynthia Kereluk, a former Miss Canada, model, exercise physiologist and artist.

Paul Rodgers became a Canadian citizen on 21 October 2011 and resides in British Columbia, with homes in Surrey and Summerland.