Scottish band Nazareth finally found international success with their sixth studio album, Hair of the Dog. This album featured the well known (but often mislabeled) title track as well as an unusual but highly popular cover of the Everly Brothers song “Love Hurts.”
Nazareth was originally formed in 1968 from the remaining members of a group called the Shadettes. They took the name Nazareth from the town of Nazareth, Pennsylvania. The classic rock song "The Weight" by The Band names this town in it's f...
Scottish band Nazareth finally found international success with their sixth studio album, Hair of the Dog. This album featured the well known (but often mislabeled) title track as well as an unusual but highly popular cover of the Everly Brothers song “Love Hurts.”
Nazareth was originally formed in 1968 from the remaining members of a group called the Shadettes. They took the name Nazareth from the town of Nazareth, Pennsylvania. The classic rock song "The Weight" by The Band names this town in it's first lines, "I pulled into Nazareth, was feelin' about half past dead..." The band members were Darrell Sweet on drums, Pete Agnew on bass, Manny Charlton on guitar and synthesizer, and Dan McCafferty on vocals. They moved to London in 1970 and slowly built success over their first five studio albums and opening on tour for acts like Deep Purple.
Although their success was building, Hair of the Dog was simply at a different level that gave the group the appearance of overnight success. The album has a raw feel and attitude. It was the first one produced by Manny Charlton, who would later produce the iconic album "Appetite for Destruction" for Guns N Roses.
Nazareth continues to tour today, though Peter Agnew is the remaining original member. Darrel Sweet died in 1999 of a heart attack while on tour. Manny Charlton left the group in the 80's to focus on producing. Front man Dan McCafferty retired in 2013 for health reasons.
Folks, this is straight up mid-70's rock. Enjoy!
Love Hurts
A surprising choice for a 70's rock band, this Everly Brothers cover was quite good, and was Nazareth's biggest hit, entering the top 10 in ten countries. Somehow Nazareth tapped a raw emotion in this song, and Dan McCafferty's choice to sing it an octave higher contributes to that. Perhaps it was a precursor to the hair ballads that were to come in the 80's.
Rose in the Heather
This deeper cut is a lower tempo instrumental that finishes off "Beggars Day" on side two, written by Nils Lofgren, a member of the E. Street Band.
Whiskey Drinkin' Woman
This is where this Scottish band takes inspiration from Southern Rock, and pulls it off well. The song tells a story of blues, where a man is in love with an alcoholic and doesn't know what to do. "That whiskey drinkin' woman is makin' a poor man out of me."
Hair of the Dog
An iconic track, complete with talking guitar and more cowbell! This song is often assumed to be entitled "Son of a B***h," but the record label knew that no song with that title would sell in Sears and other stores. The name chosen was a play on words, as it was originally spelled "Heir of the Dog."
ENTERTAINMENT TRACK:
The theme from the television series “Gunsmoke”
This long running western finished it's television run in March 1975. It began as a radio series in 1952 and the television series began in 1955, making it one of the longest running TV series in history.
STAFF PICKS:
How Long by Ace
Rob's staff pick has a distinctive bass opening, and is the debut single by Ace. It might seem like a story of infidelity in relationships, but Ace's bass player Terry "Tex" Comer was found to be secretly playing for two other bands. This is a favorite song for Phil Collins. Lead singer Paul Carrack would have a further connection with Genesis when he joined Genesis guitarist Mike Rutherford in the band Mike and the Mechanics.
Roll on Down the Highway by Bachman Turner Overdrive
Bruce's staff pick channels the popularity of truckers and trucking in the mid 70's. Fred Turner and Robbie Bachman wrote the song. Randy Bachman had been contracted by Ford to do music for a commercial, but they didn't take the jingle. The band worked it into a full song.
Fire by the Ohio Players
Brian cranks up the funk with this Billboard number 1 hit. Leroy "Sugarfoot" Bonner wrote the lyrics about a woman so hit she's starting a fire. Stevie Wonder heard an early demo of the song and predicted it would be a hit.
Long Tall Glasses by Leo Sayer
Wayne finishes off the staff picks with a song about a hobo looking for a meal in a fancy restaurant. When he sits down, "then somebody grabbed me, threw me out of my chair, said 'before you can eat, you gotta dance like Fred Astaire.'"
INSTRUMENTAL TRACK:
Constipated Duck by Jeff Beck
The guitar virtuoso Jeff Beck closes us out this week with an interestingly-named instrumental piece from his album Blow by Blow.
Thanks for listening to “What the Riff?!?”
NOTE: To adjust the loudness of the music or voices, you may adjust the balance on your device. VOICES are stronger in the LEFT channel, and MUSIC is stronger on the RIGHT channel.
Please follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/whattheriffpodcast/, and message or email us with what you'd like to hear, what you think of the show, and any rock-worthy memes we can share.
Of course we'd love for you to rate the show in your podcast platform!
**NOTE: What the Riff?!? does not own the rights to any of these songs and we neither sell, nor profit from them. We share them so you can learn about them and purchase them for your own collections.
