NAZARETH

The second full-length studio album legendary the Scottish Hard Rock.
Although their music is most accurately described as "Blues-tinged Hard Rock" (CD liner notes), this record is quite far from the band's more standard fare, featuring, quite surprisingly, a number of acoustic arrangements, several songs with orchestral strings, and traditional Scottish airs. The band was known for being a pure, powerful Hard Rock band in concert and on later releases, but on this album they decided to abandon the riff-heavy guitar assault they showcased as a live act. "Exercises" is a collection of mostly acoustic tracks with lush harmonies and little sign of the driving in-your-face Rock that they showcased on their debut, "Nazareth". On tracks like "Madelaine" and "In My Time", the band comes across more like laid-back English Pop balladeers Badfinger than their real contemporaries like Deep Purple and Thin Lizzy.
There are a few strong moments on the album. "Woke Up This Morning" is a strong track that provides a Bluesy vocal performance by Dan McCafferty, driving rhythm, and some great slide guitar work by Manny Charlton. "Called Her Name" is another song where the listener will find the band hitting full stride and sounding much more comfortable. The album's "1692 (Glen Coe Massacre)" is about a real incident in Scottish history, namely, the massacre of Glencoe. The album is also significant for its Roy Thomas Baker production—only his third project, and well before his breakthrough works with Queen in the mid-seventies—and its oddly 'new wave' cover-art. An early version of the "Razamanaz" song, "Woke Up This Morning", also makes an appearance on Side 1.
Fortunately, with the help of Deep Purple bassist/producer Roger Glover, the band managed to return to their Hard Rock style and finally captured their live sound on their follow-up album, 1973's "Razamanaz", which cemented their reputation as an upper-echelon Hard Rock act of the '70s.
Remaster 2009, Blue Translucent Vinyl in gatefold cover.
USM Copyrights (Nazareth) Limited, a BMG company/Salvo/Plastic Head Distribution, 1972/2019 (SALVO388LP). Made in UK. Pressed in the E.U.


Tracklist:

Side 1
1. I Will Not Be Led 3:03
2. Cat's Eye, Apple Pie 3:10
3. In My Time 3:30
4. Woke Up This Morning 3:14
5. Called Her Name 4:22

Side 2
6. Fool About You 2:47
7. Love, Now You're Gone 2:25
8. Madelaine 5:56
9. Sad Song 2:12
10. 1692 (Glen Coe Massacre) 3:56

Total playing time: 34:35 min.

The fourth re-release of the eighth full-length studio album by legendary Scottish Hard Rock band.
"Play 'N' The Game" found Nazareth continuing in the AOR direction they established with "Close Enough For Rock 'N' Roll". Like that album, it trades the driving Rock that made the group famous for an experimental sound that toys with several musical genres.
For instance, "Down Home Girl" is a stab at Southern Rock, and the band's cover of the Beach Boys classic "Wild Honey" slows down that song's tempo to create an effects-laden Psychedelic atmosphere. Elsewhere, the group covers the Hard Rock bases with "Someone to Roll" and "Born to Love", a pair of energetic, guitar-driven Rockers that would have fit in fine on "Razamanaz" or "Loud & Proud". They also cross-breed the energy of these tracks with Pop hooks on "L.A. Girls", a nimble bit of Pop/Rock fusion where speedy guitar riffs duke it out a with handclap-driven Pop song beat. However, the undeniable highlights of "Play 'N' The Game" are its ballads: "I Want to Do Everything for You" is a promise of eternal love built on a swinging and pleasingly earthy bass groove and "I Don't Want to Go on Without You" is a moody tale of lost love that shows off Manny Charlton's ability to craft the soft but powerful guitar riffs necessary for a good power ballad.
This album benefits from a more consistent overall sound than "Close Enough For Rock 'n' Roll", but its shifts in tone are too abrupt for their own good, making the proceedings come off as a loose collection of songs instead of a fully conceived album. Despite this problem, "Play 'N' The Game" is an effective slice of AOR that will please the Nazareth fan base!
2010 remastered audio, Cream Vinyl.
BMG UK Limited/Salvo, 1976/2019 (SALVO390LP). Made in UK.


Tracklist:

Side 1
1. Somebody To Roll 3:50
2. Down Home Girl 5:01
3. Flying 4:25
4. Waiting For The Man 4:52

Side 2
1. Born To Love 3:55
2. I Want To Do Everything For You 4:14
3. I Don't Want To Go On Without You 3:47
4. Wild Honey 3:19
5. L.A. Girls 3:40