Without You-The Tragic Story of Badfinger: A Book Review Ba

Badfinger performs at the original Cavern Club 

Badfinger with George Harrison 

Harry Nilsson with Pete Ham and Tom Evans (writers of Without Out)

Mal Evans with Kathie Molland 

 

Many books are called "The Tragic Story," but I think the story of Badfinger truly deserves those words.   In reading the book Without You: The Tragic Story of Badfinger,  I really realized just how tragic it was for these Apple music recording artists.   It was a long book, and while I knew how the story ended, I kept waiting for things to get better.  It never did -- things just get worse and worse. 

Badfinger (originally called The Iveys) started out as a band during the height of The Beatles but never tried to be like them.   However, because they caught the attention of Mal Evans and got signed onto Apple Records, plus Paul McCartney wrote their first hit song, they were constantly compared to The Beatles.  They HATED it.  As much as they loved the Beatles and appreciated everything they did for them, they quickly were tired of answering questions about the Beatles and being treated as 2nd-rate Beatles. 

That didn't stop them from associating with the Fab 4.  George Harrison especially appreciated Badfinger and asked them to perform at Bangladesh and on All Things Must Pass.   It Don't Come Easy was first offered to Badfinger before it was given to Ringo (can you imagine anyone but Ringo singing that song?)

But even with hit songs for themselves, concert tours all over the world, and a #1 song for Harry Nilsson that they wrote -- Badfinger could never make it big.   They were always broke.  They were mismanaged and lost money.  Joey Molland's wife, Kathie, was the cause of a lot of issues for the group. The drummer, Mike, left the group for a while, and they had another drummer until they got Mike to come back.   Promises were made to them that never happened.  Egos seems to get in the way.  Badfinger should have been a lot bigger than they were.   And it all lead up to the sad death of Pete Ham and later Tom Evans.  

The book was very interesting, and I read a lot about the group that I never knew.  I didn't think it painted Joey Molland in a very good light, but then again, it didn't paint much of anyone in a good light.  The Badfinger story is messy, and the author did a good job of telling the story in spite of the difficult subject.   I thought the book was longer than it needed to be, but that might be because the chapters were long. I don't like to stop reading in the middle of a chapter, and that might be why it felt like such a long book.   This book was written in the early 2000s, and it is now outdated in some parts, but overall, it was an interesting book. 

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Badfinger Boogie with Mal

 

George and Badfinger at Apple 1971

September 30, 1971 -  Apple Studios 

No Matter What

 

Badfinger and Mal Evans  (I love this photo!)

The Bad Finger Boogie

Photo copyright 

Badfinger at the Cavern

Joey Molland and the Badfinger Band -- a concert review

This past Saturday, May 6, 2017 Joey Molland and the Badfinger Band came to my hometown of Alton, Illinois and performed outside of Mac's Timeout as part of a Kentucky Derby party.    My town is not a place that usually hosts bands (besides local ones) and I was pretty shocked that Joey from Badfinger was coming here.    The week before the concert Alton, which is located on the Mississippi River, flooded.  The concert was outdoors, just one street over from the flooded area, but thankfully the water didn't get closer!

Photo of some of the Flooding taken right before the concert 

I have heard Joey perform at the Fest for Beatle fans, but this is the first time I had ever seen just him on stage.     At the Fest, I thought Joey's voice sounded rough.   He couldn't hit all of the notes in the classic Badfinger songs, but then he also didn't originally sing them.

This time around, Joey's voice was still a little rough, but it didn't sound too bad.   The guys in his band helped with some of the singing, especially when it came to the higher notes.    Joey's played a great lead guitar on all of the songs.   He really seemed to be having a whole lot of fun on the stage and his energy spread out to the crowd on the streets of downtown Alton.

As expected, they performed most of the big songs that you would expect to hear if you went to a Badfinger show:  "Day after Day,"  "Baby Blue,"  "Money,"  "No Matter What,"  "Without You"
and "Come and Get it" plus other songs that I didn't recognize.     There was a very special treat at the encore of the show.    As you know, Chuck Berry recently passed away and he and his family lived 15 miles northeast of Alton in St. Louis, MO.  Berry's daughter came up on stage and joined Joey in singing "Johnny B. Good."    It was a great moment and Joey was extremely happy to share the stage with the daughter of rock royalty.

Joey Molland signing with Chuck Berry's daughter

I don't think the mid-west US folks there really understood the things Joey said between songs because of his Liverpool accent.   I heard some people saying, "What did he say?"   He mentioned before playing "Day After Day" that George Harrison had originally played the guitar on the song, but since he wasn't here, he (Joey) would have to do his best to play it.

After the show, there wasn't a formal meet and greet and none of the Badfinger t-shirts or music was sold.  However, Joey stood behind the stage and was happy to sign autographs and pose for photos with whoever came near him.    Joey is a really nice guy and does not come across as rude or stuck up.  He always is smiling and truly seems to enjoy playing music for people.

Joey and Sara your happy Beatles blogger

The price was right for this concert (free!), and I had a fun time.    I am not sure why Badfinger was playing in Illinois and why they were having an outdoor party for the Kentucky Derby in the first place, but everyone there seemed to be enjoying themselves by dancing and singing along.

Joey has several other dates planned throughout the summer.   He is worth checking out for a fun concert.

That other band at 3 Savile row