Simon Kirke (ex Bad Company) - Filling the Void (2011)

By Barry Walters
September 27, 2011
While drumming in British bands Free and Bad Company, Simon Kirke racked up songwriting credits on several smash albums, but few have heard him sing his own songs. Having undergone rehab, Kirke turns his recovery into a heartfelt disc that evokes eminent West Coast singer-songwriters – particularly Jackson Browne and Don Henley. "This crazy obsession with booze, it took control of my life," he admits on the title track. When he strays from his Laurel Canyon-by-way-of-Manhattan comfort zone on "Jaunty Sarcasm," Kirke suggests Rupert Holmes without the pina colada or punch lines. But that rarely happens: Filling the Void’s strength is its fatherly sincerity.