Mr. Big

"Mr. Big" opens side two of Fire and Water, 5:55, credited to all four members; Toppermost says it was written by Fraser. It was recorded between January and June 1970 at Island and Trident, and the sources do not say which studio cut it. It was not a single. Albumism describes Fraser wrestling every ounce of soul one can from four strings, the band building tension and then collapsing back into the chorus; Toppermost's Neil Waite calls it haunting with a superb bass solo, Ultimate Classic Rock's Corbin Reiff a funky blues piece, and Classic Rock Review a slow jam with a more intense instrumental section in the middle. Nothing about its subject or from the band about it was found. In a 2005 Vintage Guitar interview, not about this song, Fraser said he never really considered himself a bass player and used a Gibson EB-3.

Live versions are on Free Live! (June 4, 1971), where the 2002 CD reissue adds an alternate take, and on Free Live at the BBC (2006), from the John Peel Sunday Concert of July 2, 1970 at 6:34, and film of it from the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival is on Free Forever. Setlist.fm lists it in 39 setlists, their fourth most played song. Gov't Mule covered it on their 1995 debut, and the American band Mr. Big, formed in Los Angeles in 1988, took its name from the song and covered it on Bump Ahead (1993). Paul Rodgers declined a request from Jason Bonham to play it on a blues-only tour. Whether our upload is the studio or a live version is not known.