Nature of the Beast
Recording Artist: The Law
Writers: Jim Vallance
Bryan Adams
Date Written: 1986?
Albums: The Law (1991)
Audio-1:
Studio version
 
Audio-2:
Live version
 
 
In 1993 Paul Rodgers appeared with Bryan Adams on the UK radio show "Johnny Walker Session", recorded live at the BBC’s Maida Vale studios.  Here's a snippet from that broadcast.
Comments:

With Kenny Jones on drums (Small Faces, The Who) and Paul Rodgers on vocals (Bad Company, Free) "The Law" was, in every way, a pedigree band. 

No-one can be faulted for expecting great things. Ultimately however, The Law did not deliver.

I'm a HUGE fan of Paul Rodgers, but I must confess I was a bit disappointed with his version of "Nature Of The Beast". In fact, I much prefer the home-studio recording I did with Bryan Adams.

We originally wrote "Nature Of The Beast" for Tina Turner. When we were working on lyrics for the song we tried to "climb inside Tina's head" and imagine what she'd say to her ex-husband Ike, if SHE were writing the song.  We'd applied exactly the same principle when writing "Back Where You Started", another song of our that Tina had recorded a few years before. Even though Tina had explicitly told us NOT to write about her life, we did anyway. It was cheeky of us, thinking we could sneak it past her.

It worked for "Back Where You Started", but perhaps the thinly veiled references to Ike were TOO obvious on "Nature Of The Beast" as she declined to record it.

A year or so later, the song found it's way to Paul Rogers.
Lyrics: I hear you 'bin up to your old tricks
It seems you're never gonna learn
If you keep puttin' your hand in the fire, babe
You're gonna get your fingers burned

Who'd believe you ever cared for me
The way you tried to run my life
Ahh - you ain't nothin' but a gutter rat sister
Crawlin' on the edge of a knife

You come on like a fever
You say "I'm never gonna leave ya"

The lines are drawn but baby, somethin' ain't right
You steal my lovin' like a thief in the night
Now you're caught between the famine and the feast
Ahh - that's the nature of the beast

You 'bin sneakin' around like an alley cat
Tell me, is it money or love?
And all those things you've 'bin sayin' to me
Are 'bout as clear as Mississippi mud

I wouldn't take a million dollars
No, I wouldn't take a diamond ring
If you think there's a way you can get me back
Well, babe you better think again

You came on like a princess
But now you're losin' my interest

The lines are drawn between the black and the white
You steal my lovin' like a thief in the night
You're movin' in closer but I'm still outa reach
Ahh - but that's the nature of the beast

Solo

The lines are drawn but baby, somethin' ain't right
You steal my lovin' like a thief in the night
Now you're caught between the famine and the feast
Uh-huh, oh ya

The time has come and now you better see the light
I'd stand up to ya but it ain't worth the fight
You're movin' in closer but I'm still outa reach
Ahh - but that's the nature of the beast

Uh-huh, the nature of the beast