Nazareth: Hair of the Dog

Dave · 2025-10-27T08:45:30+00:00

Title: Hair of the Dog Artist: Nazareth Genre: Hard Rock Released: 1975 Tracks: 1 - Hair of the Dog - 2 - Miss Misery - 3 - Love Hurts - 4 - Changin' Times - 5 - Beggar's Day - 6 - Rose in the Heather - 7 - Whiskey Drinkin' Woman - 8 - Please Don't Judas Me - Overview: The Cerberus-like beast on the cover might symbolize the bite that lies within but the devil's in the detail, and the heinous creature distracts the eye from other significant element of the artwork, namely heather. This, the most Scottish of all plants, is what the titular dog seems to be guarding and this is what entwines the fantastic, YES-esque corals on the backside - an antidote to the progressive elements of "Rampant", perhaps? But then, there's a small matter of giving the fans what they want, what with them seeing the band as a genuine hard rock piece, which NAZ have never been: hence the "cure like with like" homeopathy principle in the heart of the "hair of the dog" expression, even though the band meant "heir" for the album title to mean "Son Of A Bitch". It's that humorously spiky! ...and heavy, too. The quartet were always ready to admit their influences, so the stop-and-go sway of "Changing Times" is a tongue-in-cheek playing the LED ZEP game with a Scottish tune emerging out of it, while the opener "Hair Of The Dog" heavily mangles the "Ticket To Ride" riff for the next decade, Yet there's a catchy zip in the compositions and the delivery to blow any purist off their feet and pull them into the witches' brew that this record is. Everything about it is exemplary: Darrel Sweet's imaginative percussion which starts the proceedings, the memorable lyrics spliced with Dan McCafferty's all-encompassing warble, Pete Agnew's bottom-end depth, the clever mix observed by Manny Charlton - just notice how his spacey guitar flight goes underneath the strum on the single "Love Hurts", the ensemble's biggest hit. In truly Highlanders' way, the space between the notes is as important as the notes themselves here; thus, the tension builds on and on from the title track's chopped phrases and the vocoder solo, performed live with a bagpipe, to the bewitching, slow vortex of "Please Don't Judas Me" where the base raga drone insensibly transmutes into the clear Celtic sound and soars skywards. It fills also "Rose In The Heather", an airy instrumental tagged to the marching take on the CRAZY HORSE's "Beggar's Day" that NAZARETH, as usual, make their own. Fathom such a drift with the country-cum-gospel, Uncle Ray-styled reading of Randy Newman's "Guilty" that offsets the overall weight most compelling on the "Miss Misery" killer threat, an adorable Jack The Ripper of a song with the irresistible chorus and a slide slyness which hastens its pace and feeds, later on, into the charmingly bopping blues "Whiskey Drinkin' Woman", and you have the essence of the Dunfermline squad. Now, the erstwhile American excursion, its vestiges evident on single cuts "Railroad Boy" and "Holy Roller", is brought down to the glen alongside the English psych of TOMORROW's "My White Bicycle", turned by NAZ into another chart-biter. With a handful of live BBC recordings to round it all off, this is the reissue to grace even the most demanding collection.

Topic starter Dave
Start date Oct 27, 2025

Oct 27, 2025

Title: Hair of the Dog
Artist: Nazareth
Released: 1975

Tracks:
1 - Hair of the Dog - 4:09
2 - Miss Misery - 4:40
3 - Love Hurts - 3:53 -

4 - Changin' Times - 6:03
5 - Beggar's Day - 3:45
6 - Rose in the Heather - 2:44
7 - Whiskey Drinkin' Woman - 5:29
8 - Please Don't Judas Me - 9:47

Click to expand...

Music information in first post provided by The AudioDB

You must log in or register to reply here.

Facebook X Reddit Pinterest WhatsApp

We value your privacy

We use essential cookies to make this site work, and optional cookies to enhance your experience.

See further information and configure your preferences

Accept all cookies Reject optional cookies
Essential cookies

These cookies are required to enable core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility. You may not reject these.

Optional cookies

We deliver enhanced functionality for your browsing experience by setting these cookies. If you reject them, enhanced functionality will be unavailable.

Third-party cookies

Cookies set by third parties may be required to power functionality in conjunction with various service providers for security, analytics, performance or advertising purposes.

Detailed cookie usage

Privacy policy

Back

Top

Nazareth: Hair of the Dog

We value your privacy