Nazareth are a Scottish hard rock band formed in Dunfermline in 1968 that had many hit singles and albums in Canada, the United Kingdom, and a number of other European countries beginning in the early 1970s. The breadth of their popularity expanded internationally, including in the United States, with their 1975 album Hair of the Dog, which featured their hits "Hair of the Dog" and a cover of the ballad "Love Hurts".[3][4][5] They have continued to record and tour internationally for more than 50 years.
Nazareth formed in December 1968 in Dunfermline, Scotland, from the remaining members of semi-professional local group the Shadettes (formed in 1961) by vocalist Dan McCafferty, guitarist Manny Charlton, bassist Pete Agnew, and drummer Darrell Sweet.[6] They were inspired by the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.[7] Nazareth took their name from Nazareth, Pennsylvania, which is cited in the first line of the Band's classic song "The Weight" ("I pulled into Nazareth, was feelin' about half past dead...").[6]
Hair of the Dog, released in April 1975, was produced by Manny Charlton, ending Roger Glover's association with the band.[4] The title track – popularly, though incorrectly, known as "Son of a Bitch" due to its hook lyric – became a staple of 1970s rock radio. The American version of the album included a song originally recorded by the Everly Brothers: the melodic Boudleaux Bryant-penned ballad "Love Hurts". This became a hit in the UK and in the US, where it went platinum. The track became the band's only US Top Ten hit[8] and was also a top 10 hit in nine other countries, reaching number 1 in six of them. The song was on the Norwegian chart for 60 weeks.[8]
Various Nazareth line-ups continued to make studio albums and tour throughout the 1980s and 1990s, although their popularity had declined such that some albums no longer received either a UK or a US release. They remained popular in Europe, particularly Germany, where "Dream On" became a hit single. In 1991, Billy Rankin returned to replace Manny Charlton on the No Jive album, remaining with the band until 1994.[6]
A tribute came in 1993 when Guns N' Roses covered Nazareth's "Hair of the Dog" on "The Spaghetti Incident?"; consolation after they turned down Axl Rose's request for the group to play at his wedding.[6] "Axl really made me more aware of Nazareth…" recalled GNR guitarist Slash, "because he can sing like that McCafferty guy, and really dug his voice. And so I remember listening to Nazareth a lot at one point."[9]
Rankin departed again in 1994, but with Jimmy Murrison and keyboard player Ronnie Leahy, Nazareth maintained a live following in Europe and the US.[6]
Nazareth continued touring after Rankin's departure, with Jimmy Murrison and keyboard player Ronnie Leahy.[6] While on tour in 1999, original drummer Darrell Sweet died at age 51 of a heart attack. He was replaced by bassist Pete Agnew's son Lee for later editions of the band.
On 4 August 2006, John Locke, the former keyboardist of the band, died from cancer at the age of 62.[10]
In February 2008, The Newz was released on the Hamburg-based label, Edel Entertainment. The release of the album coincided with Nazareth's fortieth anniversary tour, which started on 25 January in Sweden and visited most of Europe, finished on 4 November 2008 in Norway. A follow-up album, Big Dogz, was released on 15 April 2011.
Jimmy Murrison and Linton Osborne at Picture On Festival, August 2014
Nazareth announced McCafferty's retirement from the band due to ill health on 28 August 2013,[11] leaving Pete Agnew as the last remaining original member of the band. On 22 February 2014, it was announced that Scottish singer Linton Osborne was chosen as McCafferty's replacement, with the former singer's blessing.[12] In December 2014, Nazareth announced the cancellation of several shows,[13] and later postponement of their UK tour,[14] due to Osborne contracting a virus that left him unable to perform. In a post on his Facebook page 16 January 2015, Osborne announced his departure from the band.[15][16]
In October 2018, the album Tattooed on My Brain, was released via Frontiers Records.[19] 'The 50th Anniversary Tour' followed, spanning 2018 and 2019, along with German hard rock band Formosa as support.[20][21] Original guitarist Manny Charlton died on 5 July 2022, aged 80.[22]
On 8 November 2022, Dan McCafferty died at the age of 76,[23] thus leaving bassist Pete Agnew as the last surviving original member.
Hair of the Dog is the sixth studio album by the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released on 3 April 1975. The album was recorded at Escape Studios, Kent, with additional recording and mixing at AIR Studios, London. It is the group's best-known and highest-selling release, with over two million copies sold worldwide.
Nazareth is the debut album by the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in 1971. The album featured the hit single "Dear John" and a cover of "Morning Dew."
BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert is a live album by the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, recorded for broadcast by the BBC at the Paris Theatre 8 June 1972 and 17 May 1973
Exercises is the second studio album by the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in 1972. Although their music is most accurately described as "blues-tinged hard rock", this record is quite far from the band's more standard fare, featuring, quite surprisingly, a number of acoustic arrangements, several songs with orchestral strings, and traditional Scottish airs. Indeed, the album's "1692 " is about a real incident in Scottish history, namely, the massacre of Glencoe. The album is also significant for its Roy Thomas Baker production—only his third project, and well before his breakthrough works with Queen in the mid-seventies—and its oddly 'new wave' cover-art. An early version of the Razamanaz song, "Woke Up This Morning", also makes an appearance on Side 1. There were no cover versions on the album: it wouldn't be until their 10th studio album, No Mean City, that there was another album totally written by the band members.
Razamanaz is the third studio album by the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in May 1973. It was the band's first LP record to break the charts and was produced by Roger Glover of Deep Purple, who the band was on tour with at the time. "Woke Up This Morning" was re-recorded for this album.
Rampant is the fifth studio album by the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in 1974. It was their third album to be produced by Roger Glover, and proved to be the last time they would work with him.
Greatest Hits is a compilation album by the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in 1975. By this time Nazareth had experienced considerable success with albums and singles. This compilation showcased tracks from the band's third album Razamanaz through their sixth album Hair of the Dog, as well as some non-album singles.
Close Enough for Rock 'n' Roll is the seventh studio album by the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in 1976.
Hot Tracks is a compilation album by the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in 1976. The album covers from 1973's Razamanaz album to 1976's Play 'n' the Game. The album also features a slightly longer version of "This Flight Tonight" and the single version of "I Want to Do Everything for You". A seven-inch EP featuring four tracks from the album reached Number 15 in the UK singles chart in the following year.
Play 'n' the Game is the eighth studio album by Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in November 1976.
Expect No Mercy is the ninth studio album by Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in 1977. The original version was rejected by the label and these versions were the bonus tracks on the Salvo CD. The originally released version saw the reintroduction of a heaviness after the two previously more laid back albums and the tracks were noticeably shorter with only the final track clocking in at over four minutes.
No Mean City is the tenth studio album by the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in 1979. The album title comes from the 1935 novel No Mean City and features artwork illustrated by Rodney Matthews. With this record the band's sound was heavier, considering the addition of guitarist Zal Cleminson of The Sensational Alex Harvey Band. It sold very well at the time, with the main single "Star", preceded by "Whatever You Want Babe". The popularity of the album allowed the band to play with several big names such as Thin Lizzy, on their 1978/79 tour. It was their first album since their second release, Exercises in 1972, not to contain at least one cover version.
Malice in Wonderland is the eleventh studio album by Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in January 1980. After the heavy lurch of the previous album, the band chose to follow a more commercial path and the album produced the hit singles "Holiday" and "Heart's Grown Cold". This is the second and last studio album to feature guitarist Zal Cleminson of the Sensational Alex Harvey Band as a member of the band.
Manuel Charlton was a Spanish-born Scottish musician and record producer, best known as a founding member of the influential Scottish hard rock band Nazareth; he was the band's lead guitarist from 1968 to 1990. He also produced a string of successful Nazareth albums in the 1970s, including Hair of the Dog.
Homecoming is the second official live album by the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in 2002. Recorded in Glasgow, Scotland in 2001, it may be regarded as the soundtrack to the DVD of the same name, with stage talk edited to allow the tracks to fit onto a single CD.
"Sexy! No No No..." is a song by British-Irish girl group Girls Aloud from their fourth studio album, Tangled Up (2007). In April 2007, the group announced that they would release a new album, due in November of that year. In July 2007, it was announced that "Sexy! No No No...", due to be released in September, would be as the first single from Tangled Up, with a radio premiere scheduled for 20 July. The track leaked a few hours prior to the premiere. "Sexy! No No No..." was written by Girls Aloud and Xenomania, and is an electropunk song that incorporates a sample of Nazareth's 1975 song "Hair of the Dog", for which they received a writing credit. Composed of three songs welded together, the song avoids the verse-chorus form present in most contemporary pop music, similar to their previous single "Biology" (2005).
Maximum XS is a greatest hits album by the Scottish hard rock group Nazareth, released in 2004. Most of the songs are alternate or live versions that do not appear on other albums. Such as "Razamanaz" an alternate edit of the song. "Shapes of Things" a song originally by the English rock group the Yardbirds. "Hair of the Dog" is a and one of Nazareth's biggest hits, as well as Love Hurts an Everly Brothers cover, rock orchestra version.
William Rankin is a Scottish guitarist and singer active in the 1980s and 1990s. Best known for his work with Nazareth, he also had a successful solo career, including a US hit single "Baby Come Back". Rankin was part of multimedia group "Team Rock" prior to it going into administration in 2016.
"This Flight Tonight" is a song originally by Joni Mitchell, from her 1971 album Blue. Scottish hard rock band Nazareth released the song as a single in 1973 that charted internationally.
Back to the Trenches is a double live album by the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in 2001. A collection of thirty-one live tracks taken from the soundboards of six concerts, on both sides of the Atlantic, between 1972 and 1984, only nine of these tunes are featured on the band's acclaimed 1981 double live album 'Snaz. A line on the CD sleeve says, "This brings you Nazareth in their element - up there doing it".
↑ Brewster, David M. (2003). Introduction to guitar tone & effects: an essential manual for getting the best sounds from electric guitars, amplifiers, effect pedals, and digital processors. Hal Leonard Corporation. p.60. ISBN978-0-634-06046-5.
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