NAZARETH - s/t, 1971 (SCOTLAND, Dunfermline, hard-rock)(Pegasus PEG 10)

The hard rocker "Witchdoctor Woman" is a devastating opener, full of killer fuzz guitar and McCafferty's overwhelming vocal power (especially at the end). The solo part is awesome too, listen to the way the guitar scorches while the bass is thumping away like a mastodon. Obviously, they had been listening to what Deep Purple, Black Sabbath and Uriah Heep did the previous year."Dear John" is pure piano boogie rock. Awesome song. "Empty Arms, Empty Heart" has a phenomenal riff that should definitely be on any list of greatest guitar riffs. But few people know about this album so I guess that will never happen."I Had A Dream" is beautiful. Dan McCafferty can adapt his voice to practically any style of music, and this proves it. Listen to this song and you'll be thinking "this can't be the same guy who sang 'Hair Of The Dog' and 'Razamanaz'". But it is! What a lovely vocal melody and soothing harmonium. "Red Light Lady" is interesting. Starts out simple enough as a kick-ass rock tune, then slows down and goes into a weird orchestral part. Unique, definitely.Speaking of unique, how about "Fat Man" ? Killer riff with some weird, distorted vocals. Man, these guys just had a plethora of ideas. Chronicling a day in the life of an unpopular fat guy."Country Girl" is a marvelous country ballad with great slide guitar from Manny. Dan sings beautifully. "Morning Dew" is THE masterpiece on this album, and in my book, one of the top 5 greatest songs the band ever did. Yeah, you can keep your radio tunes and hit singles, but this song is Nazareth's Mona Lisa. Definitely the best version of this song ever made, it even blows away the Jeff Beck Group's version. The intro is priceless, with a pounding bass line being driven into your brain, before some brilliant, spooky guitar effects come into play (love the way Manny uses echo here). And here's Dan adapting his voice once again, starting out peaceful and smooth before exploding into full-fledged rock 'n roll as the rest of the band explodes with him. Simply priceless. "The King Is Dead" is a chilling tale of anarchy, complete with string accompaniment. This one can really haunt you to death, with Dan's whispery vocals and Manny's beautiful acoustic guitar. The b-side "Friends" is included here and it's a real treat. Yet another country-styled acoustic ballad that really is wonderful. This is about as far from 'Hair Of The Dog' as you can get! Anyway, it's a nice, relaxing little ditty about relaxation. Has funny lyrics too ("Roll yourself a joint, friend...Empty your head, friend"). Great stuff. The alternate versions of the original songs are pretty pointless, but they take nothing away from the musical mastery of this great, forgotten album.

Line-up

Dan McCafferty (vocals)
Pete Agnew (bass, vocals)
Darrell Sweet (drums, percussion, vocals, 1968-99)
Manny Charlton (guitar, banjo, synthesizer, vocals, 1968-90)
Zal Cleminson (guitar, synthesizer, 1978-80)
Billy Rankin (guitar, keyboards, 1980-83, 1990-94)
John Locke (keyboards, 1980-82)
Jimmy Murrison (guitar, 1994-present)
Ronnie Leahy (keyboards, 1994-2002)
Lee Agnew (drums, 1999-present)


Tracklisting

01. Witchdoctor Woman 4:06

02. Dear John 3:45

03. Empty Arms, Empty Heart 3:17

04. I Had a Dream 3:22

05. Red Light Lady 5:56

06. Fat Man 3:23

07. Country Girl 4:03

08. Morning Dew 7:05

09. The King is Dead 5:42

10. Friends (B Side)* 3:25

11. Dear John (Single Edit)* 2:44

12. Morning Dew (Alternate Edited Version)* 4:51

13. Friends (Alternate of B Side)* 3:25

14. Morning Dew (Extended Single Version)*

15. Witchdoctor Woman (Previously Unreleased)*

* Bonus Tracks

NEW YARDBIRDS - London Blues, 2005 (live performances, 1968) (Led Zeppelin)(ENGLAND, hard rock blues)

While founding members Relf and McCarty wanted nothing more to do with the Yardbirds name, Jimmy Page felt otherwise. With a touring commitment slated for the fall in Scandinavia, the lead guitarist saw the break-up as an opportunity to put a new lineup together, a heavier band that would feature Page as producer and Grant as manager. Procol Harum's B.J. Wilson, Paul Francis, and noted session man Clem Cattini, who'd guested on more than a few Yardbirds tracks under Most's supervision, were considered for the vacant drummer's throne. Young vocalist and composer Terry Reid was asked to replace Relf, but he turned down the offer because of a new recording contract with Most. He did, however, enthusiastically recommend to Page and Grant a then-unknown singer from the Midlands by the name of Robert Plant.Plant, in turn, recommended his childhood friend John Bonham on drums.Dreja bowed out to pursue a career as a rock photographer; enter bassist/keyboardist/arranger John Paul Jones, who, like Cattini, had worked with Page on countless sessions, including several with the Yardbirds. Rehearsals began in August; in early September, Page's revised Yardbirds hit the road. Fans at the Scandinavian shows were confused by new members, expecting to see Relf up front, but the band quickly found themselves clicking. After this brief tour, Page and his new bandmates returned to England to produce, in a very short time, a landmark debut album. Interestingly, what was to become Led Zeppelin was still being billed as "Yard Birds" or "The Yardbirds Featuring Jimmy Page" as late as October 1968 ; indeed, some early studio tapes from the Led Zeppelin album sessions were originally marked as being performed by "The Yardbirds." One song from the album, "Communication Breakdown", was a re-tooled version of a Yardbirds song, "Nervous Breakdown". However, a very different band was soon working under a very different identity — a change reportedly hastened, in part, by a cease-and-desist order from Dreja, who claimed that he still maintained legal rights to the "Yardbirds" name. The moniker 'Led Zeppelin' was an old inside joke among Page and his closest musical friends, several of whom would later take credit for the idea. Coined as early as 1966 , "Lead Zeppelin" was The Who's Keith Moon's tongue-in-cheek description of the prospective "supergroup" that would have comprised himself, John Entwistle, Steve Marriott, Beck and Page, because he felt they would go over "like a lead balloon." Once the idea was revived, the band elected to change the spelling of "lead" so that the name wouldn't be mispronounced, effectively closing the books on the Yardbirds for the rest of the century.

Line-up

Robert Plant - vocals, tambourin
Jimmy Page - guitar
John Bonham - drums
John-Paul Jones - bass


Tracklisting

1. I Can’t Quit You
2. I Gotta Move
3. Communication Breakdown
4. I Can’t Quit You
5. Killing Floor
6. Fought My Way Out Of The Darkness – Hush Little Baby
7. She Wants You – London Blues
8. Dazed And Confused
9. White Summer / Black Mountain Side

Tracks 1-2 : Tivoli Gardens, Stockholm, September 20, 1968
Tracks 3-9 : The Marquee, London, October 16, 1968