Bad Company was certainly responsible for some of the ’70s most renowned rock tunes, including “Can’t Get Enough,” “Feel Like Makin’ Love,” and “Rock n’ Roll Fantasy,” as well as kicking off their recording career with two classic LP’s back-to-back with their 1974 self-titled debut and 1975’s “Straight Shooter.”

And in addition to the strength of the supergroup line-up, which featured ex-Free members Paul Rodgers and Simon Kirke, ex-Mott the Hoople’s Mick Ralphs, and ex-King Crimson’s Boz Burrell, they also had incredibly powerful allies on their side. Case in point, being managed by Led Zeppelin’s manager Peter Grant, and also signed to Zeppelin’s record label, Swan Song.

During a recent interview with 955KLOS, Rodgers expounded on how important Zeppelin was to Bad Company, particularly during their formative stage (transcribed by Ultimate Guitar).

“Led Zeppelin were very key to our success there. Because what they had set up was an old house in Headley Grange, right in the country. It’s an old mansion, and they had all their equipment set up there, and they were delayed. Peter Grant called me and said, ‘Look, if you guys get can get in there, you’ve got 10 days. You could put a couple of tracks down.’ So, we bombed in, and we put everything we had down. That’s how the first Bad Company album was created.”

The singer also recalled how the incomparable atmosphere surrounding the recording of their first two LPs was a major contributor.

“Not that we were rushing, but we were so keen, and here we are in this great big mansion with all the gear set up. We were sleeping there, so we’d get up and have breakfast and we’d make a fire, then we just start playing. We’d play all day, all night. It was a great atmosphere, and Led Zeppelin gave us that.”

“And that’s what we tried to recreate on the second album. We went to a castle. Clearwell Castle. And it was a pretty good simulation of whatever we had done. It was pretty magical.”

Lastly, Rodgers also remembered having to stick his guns concerning the band’s name.

“When Peter Grant connected to us… our road manager that used to work with Zeppelin told me, ‘Why don’t you call Peter Grant? He wants to talk to you.’ So, he gave me the number. It took me like a couple of weeks to work up the nerve, I’d heard all about Peter Grant. So, I called him up and he said, ‘I’m interested in you.’ And I said, ‘Well, I come with a band Peter, and it’s called Bad Company.’ He said, ‘I don’t know about the name.’ I know I struggled for the name. So, we stuck to our guns and it was Bad Company. It was a win-win situation, because we ended up with a name and a song… As a theme song.”