Slaughter & the Dogs

Slaughter and the Dogs
Background information
Origin Wythenshawe, Manchester, England
Genres Punk rock, oi!, glam punk, hard rock
Years active 1975–1979, 1979–1981, 1996–present
Labels Rabid Records, Decca, TJM Records, DJM, Thrush Records, Damaged Goods, Link Records, Receiver Records, Captain Oi! Records, Taang!, Dodgy Items, Castle Music, TKO Records, Amsterdamned, Cleopatra Records
Associated acts Eater, the Nosebleeds
Website Official site
Members Wayne Barrett-McGrath
Mick Rossi
Mark Reback
Dan Graziano
Past members Brian "Mad Muffet" Grantham
Howard "Zip" Bates
Phil Rowland
Nigel Mead
Noel Kay
Jean Pierre Thollet

Slaughter & the Dogs are an English punk rock band that formed in 1975 in Wythenshawe, Manchester, England. They were one of the first UK punk bands to sign with a major label, Decca Records. Their original line-up consisted of Wayne Barrett (vocals), Mick Rossi (guitar), Brian "Mad Muffet" Grantham (drums) and Howard "Zip" Bates (bass).

History

The name "Slaughter & the Dogs" was created by singer Barrett in 1975 by combining the names of Diamond Dogs and Slaughter on 10th Avenue, two of his favourite albums. They were one of the first punk rock bands in North West England. They supported the Sex Pistols at their gig at Manchester Lesser Free Trade Hall on 20 July 1976.[1] This concert, more than any other single event, spawned Manchester's punk scene,[2] which was concentrated around the Electric Circus Club.[3]

The band befriended Rob Gretton, later to manage Joy Division, and with his financial help, became the first band to release a single on Manchester’s independent record label Rabid Records.[4] In 2001, This debut single, "Cranked Up Really High", was released in June 1977, is considered a punk rock classic, appearing in Mojo’s list of the top 100 punk rock singles of all time.[5] It was also included on Streets, which was cited as an "essential" compilation album of early UK punk bands from a variety of independent record labels.[6]

The band were frequent visitors to London, and became one of the pioneering punk bands that played live in the first few months of the Roxy. They played their first concert in January of the same year, supported by the Adverts.[7] They headlined twice in February and once in March of the same year, supported by Johnny Moped. In April, they were supported by the Lurkers.[7] Their live renditions of "Runaway" and "Boston Babies" were included on the Harvest Records compilation album Live at the Roxy WC2.

After signing to Decca, the band released the popular "Where Have All the Boot Boys Gone?" single in late 1977, followed by "Dame to Blame" and "Quick Joey Small". Their debut album, Do It Dog Style, was issued in May 1978.

Barrett dismantled the band after the March 1979 four-song EP "It’s Alright". A single, "I Believe", was released in June 1979 under the name Studio Sweethearts.

A reformed Slaughter & the Dogs (including new drummer Phil Rowland, formerly of Eater),[8] was rejoined by Barrett later in 1979 for one more single, the band's first on DJM Records. "You're Ready Now" was a cover version of Frankie Valli's 1966 solo single.

At the end of 1979, Ed Garrity (of the Nosebleeds) replaced Barrett as frontman, and the band changed their name to Slaughter (not to be confused with other bands with the same name).

Barrett and Rossi reformed the band to headline the Holidays in the Sun Festival in 1996 with the addition of bass player Nigel Mead and drummer Noel Kay. Bassist Jean Pierre Thollet later replaced Mead. Barrett and Rossi continue to record and tour as Slaughter & the Dogs.

In 2006, "Cranked Up Really High" was featured on North by North West: Liverpool & Manchester from Punk to Post-punk and Beyond (Korova), a three-disc box set compiled by Paul Morley that served as an overview of the punk, new wave and post-punk scene in those two cities.

In 2015, the band announced a one-off 40th anniversary show, "Back to the Start", featuring the original line-up of Barrett, Rossi, Bates and Grantham. Held at the Ruby Lounge in Manchester on 9 October 2015, it was filmed for later DVD release.[9]

In 2016, the band recorded the full-length album Vicious in Los Angeles with a new rhythm section of Mark Reback (drums) and Dan Graziano (bass) and subsequently toured Japan in May 2016 and Europe in Feb/March 2017. It was released by Cleopatra Records on September 16, 2016 to rave reviews, including a 9 out of 10 rating by Vive Le Rock magazine.[10][11] Cleopatra issued a live album, Tokyo Dogs, in 2017.[12]

On 5 August 2018, Slaughter & the Dogs will headline the Rebellion Festival in Blackpool, England.[13] and will embark on a two-week U.K. tour surrounding the festival date.[14]

Reviews

  • "A more consistent songwriting approach might have lengthened the Dogs' run, though their lack of airs ensured a winning team for a time. Any band cited by the disparate likes of New Order, the Stone Roses and Smiths' frontman Morrissey surely deserves another look".[15]
  • "More often mentioned for the big name connections rather than their actual music, Slaughter & the Dogs nevertheless remain one of the key players in the early punk scene."[16]
  • "Opinion on Slaughter is divided; glam chancers or punk? Who cares! What can't be denied is their songs are full of style, speed and tunes which coincided with punk and the Pistols. They deserved more but that's music for you ... . Check 'em out on Don Letts 'Punk Movie' doing Cranked Up Really High."[17]
  • "Cranked Up Really High, Where Have All the Bootboys Gone? and You’re Ready Now ... [are] their enduring punk classics."[18]
  • "Slaughter played with a rare conviction and power, soul-stirring napalm guitars that laid the groundwork for an entire generation of future punk minimalists."[19]

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

  • "Cranked Up Really High" / "The Bitch" (Rabid Records, June 1977)
  • "Where Have All the Boot Boys Gone?" / "You’re a Bore" (Decca Records, September 1977)
  • "Dame to Blame" / "Johnny T" (Decca Records, November 1977)
  • "Quick Joey Small" / "Come on Back" (Decca Records, February 1978)
  • "It’s Alright" / "Edgar Allan Poe" / "Twist and Turn" / "UFO" (TJM Records, March 1979)
  • "You're Ready Now" / "Runaway" (DJM Records, November 1979)
  • "I Believe" / "It Isn't Me" as Studio Sweethearts (DJM Records, June 1979)
  • "East Side of Town" / "One by One" as Slaughter (DJM Records, February 1980)
  • "I'm the One" / "What’s Wrong Boy?" (Live) / "Hell in New York" as Slaughter (DJM Records, June 1980)
  • Half Alive E.P. ("Twist and Turn" / "Cranked Up Really High" / "Where Have All the Boot Boys Gone?") (Thrush Records, February 1983)
  • "Where Have All the Boot Boys Gone?" / "You’re a Bore" / "Johnny T" (Damaged Goods, 1988)
  • "Saturday Night Till Sunday Morning" (TKO Records, 2001)
  • "Situations" / "Quick Joey Small" (Brass City Boss Sounds, 2015)

Live albums

  • Live Slaughter Rabid Dogs (Rabid Records, December 1978)
  • Live at the Factory (Thrush Records, 1981)
  • Where Have All the Boot Boys Gone? (Receiver Records, March 1994)
  • Live in Blackpool 1996 (Dodgy Items, 1997)
  • Barking Up the Right Tree (Amsterdamned, 1998)
  • Tokyo Dogs (Cleopatra Records, 2017)

Compilation albums

  • The Way We Were (Thrush Records, 1983)
  • The Slaughterhouse Tapes (Link Records, 1989) – Studio outtakes, demos, and live recordings
  • Cranked Up Really High (Captain Oi! Records, 1995)
  • The Punk Singles Collection (Captain Oi! Records, 2000)
  • We Don't Care: Anthology (Castle Music, 2002)
  • Best of Slaughter & the Dogs (Taang Records, 2002)
  • A Dog Day Afternoon (TKO Records, 2003)

Compilation appearances

  • "Runaway" and "Boston Babies" on Live at the Roxy WC2 (Harvest Records, June 1977) No. 24 UK Albums Chart
  • "Cranked Up Really High" on Streets (Beggars Banquet Records, 1977)
  • "Where Have All the Bootboys Gone?" ("Cranked Up Really High" on later CD pressings) on the Oi! The Album (EMI, 1980)
  • "Cranked Up Really High" on the limited-edition box set of North by North West: Liverpool & Manchester from Punk to Post-Punk & Beyond 1976-1984 (Korova, 2006)
  • "Run Rudolph Run" on "Punk Rock Christmas" (Cleopatra Records, 2015)

See also

References

  1. ↑ Joynson, V. (2001) Up Yours! A Guide to UK Punk, New Wave & Early Post Punk, Borderline Productions, Wolverhampton, p. 344;
  2. ↑ Paul Morley. "Paul Morley on how the Manchester music scene changed for ever | Music". The Guardian. Retrieved 2016-09-18.
  3. ↑ "the needle & the damage done". TrakMARX.com. Retrieved 2016-09-18.
  4. ↑ "Rob Gretton bio". IanCurtis.org. Archived from the original on 2008-04-20. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
  5. ↑ Mojo (October 2001). "100 Punk Scorchers", Issue 95, London;
  6. ↑ "Punk Rock... & Roll". TrakMARX.com. Retrieved 2016-09-18.
  7. 1 2 Thompson, D. (2000) Punk, Collector’s Guide Publication, Ontario, Canada, p. 61 - 62;
  8. ↑ "Phil Rowland Discography". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2016-09-18.
  9. ↑ "SLAUGHTER AND THE DOGS (40TH ANNIVERSARY ORIGINAL LINE UP) I THE RUBY LOUNGE I FRI 9 OCT". Facebook. 2015-10-09. Retrieved 2016-09-18.
  10. ↑ "Slaughter and the Dogs – Vicious (Vive Le Rock Review)". 2016-09-07. Retrieved 2017-02-12.
  11. ↑ Steve Huey "Slaughter & The Dogs - Discography" "AllMusic.com" Retrieved Oct. 30, 2017
  12. ↑ https://cleorecs.com/store/shop/slaughter-the-dogs-tokyo-dogs-cd/
  13. ↑ http://www.rebellionfestivals.com/line-up
  14. ↑ https://www.songkick.com/artists/285281-slaughter-and-the-dogs
  15. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 13 October 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  16. ↑ Strong, M.C. (2003) The Great Indie Discography, Canongate, Edinburgh, p. 147;
  17. ↑ "Slaughter And The Dogs - Early Manchester punk, A Punk Rock History with Pictures". Punk77.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-09-18.
  18. ↑ Larkin, C. (2002) 70s Music, Virgin Books, London, p. 404;
  19. ↑ Thompson, D. (2000) Punk, Collector’s Guide Publication, Ontario, Canada, p. 98;
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