5 Wild Nazareth Stories That Still Blow My Mind (Beyond the Hair of the Dog Title Switch)

Hey everyone, PJ Pat here. So I dropped a quick Short the other day on how Nazareth's "Hair of the Dog" was originally titled "Son of a [you know what]" before the label very wisely swapped it out for something radio could actually play. That title switch is fun, but it is one rabbit hole in a band whose whole story is loaded with weird connections, full circle moments, and one of the greatest hero worship arcs in rock and roll. The Scottish lads from Dunfermline have fingerprints all over Guns N' Roses, the Everly Brothers, Deep Purple, and a Pennsylvania guitar factory. Crack open a cold one. Here are five Nazareth stories that go way beyond that title swap.

1. They Got Their Name From a Look Inside a Martin Guitar

The Scottish lads were originally a covers outfit called The Shadettes. When they relaunched as a hard rock band in 1968, they grabbed the name Nazareth from the opening line of "The Weight" by The Band. "I pulled into Nazareth, was feelin' bout half past dead." But here is the twist most people miss. Robbie Robertson did not pull that name from biblical Nazareth. He pulled it from inside his guitar. Robertson sat down with his Martin acoustic, looked into the sound hole, and clocked the maker's label that read Nazareth, Pennsylvania. That is the small Pennsylvania Dutch town where C. F. Martin and Company has been building guitars since the 1830s. He wrote the first line of "The Weight" in about 45 minutes flat. So a Scottish hard rock band ended up named after a sticker inside a Pennsylvania built acoustic guitar. That is the kind of weird chain reaction rock and roll runs on.

2. Hair of the Dog Was the First Album Nazareth Produced Themselves

By 1975 Nazareth was already three albums deep with a producer most rock fans know by name. Roger Glover. Yeah, that Roger Glover. The bassist of Deep Purple, fresh off Machine Head and the In Rock era. Glover produced Razamanaz, Loud 'n' Proud, and Rampant back to back, the run that turned Nazareth from a regional Scottish act into a global touring monster. Then for Hair of the Dog the band decided they wanted the wheel. Guitarist Manny Charlton stepped into the producer's chair and ran the sessions himself. The result was their commercial peak. Hair of the Dog the title track. "Love Hurts" the worldwide smash. A sound that was 100 percent the band's own vision with no co-pilot. That self produced confidence shows up in every cowbell hit on "Hair of the Dog." Hard not to hear it once you know.

3. The Same Manny Charlton Almost Produced Appetite for Destruction

Fast forward to 1986. Geffen Records has signed a wild new band called Guns N' Roses and needs a producer who can wrangle them in the studio. They reach out to Manny Charlton. Yeah. Hair of the Dog Manny Charlton. The same guy. Charlton flew to Los Angeles and tracked pre production demos with the band at Sound City Studios, the room that birthed Nirvana's Nevermind and a stack of Tom Petty records. The sessions included early versions of Appetite cuts plus covers of Elvis's "Heartbreak Hotel" and the Stones' "Jumpin' Jack Flash." Then Charlton had to fly back to Europe for Nazareth tour duty. Geffen pivoted to Mike Clink, who finished the album we all know. The Charlton sessions sat in a vault for 32 years before they finally surfaced as bonus tracks on the 2018 Locked N' Loaded box set. Wild parallel universe stuff.

4. Axl Rose Locked Himself in the Bathroom Trying to Sing Like Dan McCafferty

Dan McCafferty had one of the dirtiest, most paint peeling voices in rock. Listen to 30 seconds of "Hair of the Dog" or "This Flight Tonight" and you can hear where every snarling rock vocalist of the next 40 years got their cues. Including Axl Rose. In 1988, on stage with Guns N' Roses, Axl said it out loud. "If it wasn't for Dan McCafferty and Nazareth, I wouldn't be singing. I used to lock myself in the bathroom and try to hit those notes in 'Love Hurts'." That is not casual fandom. That is a rock and roll hall of famer naming his vocal coach in front of a stadium. McCafferty passed in November 2022 at 76 years old. Axl's tribute that week was short and gutted. Called it a tough pill to swallow. Heroes hit different when they are the reason your voice exists.

5. The Love Hurts Wedding Loop That Closes the Whole Story

"Love Hurts" was written by Boudleaux Bryant in 1960 and first cut by the Everly Brothers as a deep album track on A Date with the Everly Brothers. They never released it as a single. A manager dispute kept it buried. Roy Orbison snuck it out as a B side in 1961. Then in 1975 Nazareth turned it into a power ballad and took it to number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100, plus number one in Canada, the Netherlands, Belgium, South Africa, and Norway. Now here is the wild part. In 1990 Axl Rose married Erin Everly. As in, Don Everly's daughter. As in, the daughter of the guy who first sang "Love Hurts." And who did Axl invite to perform "Love Hurts" at the wedding? Dan McCafferty himself. The hero, the song, the bloodline, all in one room. Rock and roll loves a full circle, but this one is all the way cosmic.

Wear It Loud

If Nazareth has been on heavy rotation in your house lately, fly the flag a little louder. Our Volume Knob Rock Cap is the low key Spinal Tap nod that real rock fans clock instantly. The Rock Hand Sign tee is the universal flag for anyone who knows rock history runs deeper than the hits.

Anyway

Anyway, that is five Nazareth rabbit holes beyond the title swap on "Hair of the Dog." A band named after a guitar sticker, a producer who almost made Appetite for Destruction, a singer who taught Axl how to scream, and a wedding song with a bloodline. The Scottish lads earned every chapter. For more rock deep cuts, subscribe to It's 1 Louder on YouTube, follow along on Facebook, and hit me up at hello@its1louder.com if there is a band you want me to dig into next.

Crank it up 1 louder.

PJ Pat