Ballad of Hollis Brown? OUCH!!

Nazareth in the mid-70's was as ballsy and blusey as Grand Funk, the Rolling Stones and Bad Company, but with more "attitude". Loud 'n' Proud starts off with 5 "in your face" rockers with Dan McCafferty belting out the lyrics in his most distinctive voice. His voice is very high pitched and extremely rough, but I like it. The cover of Joni Mitchell's "This Flight Tonight" is good. "Child in the Sun" is a decent ballad but nothing extraordinary. Then comes "Ballad of Hollis Brown", Bob Dylan cover. What were they thinking? This creepy thing is about a guy who lives on a farm with his wife and five kids and is down on his luck. He kills all of them before killing himself. It's not the story that's bad. This thing drones on for over 9 minutes with nary a change in tempo or chording. It's like listening to someone drag their fingernails across a blackboard. The band themselves admit it was a poor choice for the album. And to top it off, the remastered edition gives us another shortened version of this 'song'. It's easy to program around but my complaint is that it takes up space that two good songs could have used. Except for this one blemish, this is a ballsy, gritty rock album.

Great Nazareth Album

If you like Nazareth, you must have this album! Not Fakin It, Go down Fightin, this albums great!

Killer Album From My Favorite Hard Rock Band

LOUD 'N PROUD was their fourth album, following the success of the devastating RAZAMANAZ. You gotta love that peacock on the cover, too.



The title of the album says it all. Nazareth were indeed loud and proud. The hit single "This Flight Tonight" (authorized by one Joni Mitchell) helped launch the album's success. But that's far from the best song on here.



"Not Fakin' It" explodes out of the speakers with such raw power that it's almost indescribable. Hands down the best song on the album. AC/DC liked to copy Nazareth (especially on the vocals), but once you hear this song, you'll realize that Nazareth makes them sound like a bunch of pansies. The opener "Go Down Fighting" is also a killer ass-whoopin' anthem full of angst and attitude. "Turn On Your Receiver", "Free Wheeler" and "Teenage Nervous Breakdown" are all down-'n-dirty rockers a la Stones or Zep. But these guys just do it better, I'm tellin' ya. "Child In The Sun" is an unbelievable gorgeous ballad, where Dan shows the stunning diversity of his voice. Listen to him sing in the beginning, and then listen to the rest of it. You'd almost SWEAR it was two completely different singers! I love the way he changes his voice so radically. Haven't heard any other rock vocalist do it like him. "Ballad Of Hollis Brown" is the very DEFINITION of a slow, moody hard rock song. Gotta love that pounding drum beat, and listen to the tone of Manny Charlton's guitar on this one. Just listen. Sounds like a friggin' earthquake.

"This Flight Tonight" is a good song. But, like most hit singles, it's just not the best on the album.



Awesome album. Awesome band.



The bonus tracks are pretty much pointless, but they don't detract anything from this wonderful album.