Nazareth于1968年正式成立于苏格兰的Dunfermline小镇，原始成员是Darrell Sweet和Pete Agnew以及后来找到的Manuel Charlton。1971年的时候乐队得以与A&M公司签约并发行了第一张专辑《Nazareth》,开始了一段30年的摇滚历程。1975年，《Hair Of The Dog》的出版一举成功,这张经典的专辑一下子把乐队的地位提高到了足以和Led Zeppelin,Black Sabbath和Deep Purple相媲美的位置.这张专辑结合了重型节奏和苏格兰民谣,在主唱高亢而具有撕裂性的嗓音演绎下非常独特,这张专辑可能是70年代重金属乐坛最好的专辑之一.70年代后期是乐队的颠峰时期,他们始终站在硬摇滚的最前列,进入80年代风格渐渐软化,但在一连串事情发生后他们又回到原本的路线并一直保持到如今,也许现在没有多少唱片公司问津他们,但他们仍然坚持自己的音乐,可以说是老而弥坚的榜样乐队.by Stephen Thomas ErlewineThe Scottish hard rock quartet Nazareth had a handful of hard rock hits in the late 70s, including the proto-power ballad Love Hurts. Formed in 1968, the band featured vocalist Dan McCafferty, guitarist Manny Charlton, bassist Pete Agnew, and drummer Darrell Sweet. The band had relocated to London by 1970, and they released their self-titled debut album in 1971. Both Nazareth and 1972s Exercises received favorable attention by British hard rockers, but it was 1973s Razamanaz that moved them into the U.K. Top Ten (both Broken Down Angel and Bad Bad Boy were hit singles). Loud n Proud and Rampant (both 1974) followed the same formula, yet were slightly less successful.Released the following year, Hair of the Dog established Nazareth as an internationally popular hard rock band. Featuring their revamped version of the Everly Brothers Love Hurts, the album sold over a million copies in the U.S. Until the end of the 70s, the band continued successfully as a quartet, releasing a series of Top 100 albums. In 1979, they added former Sensational Alex Harvey Band guitarist Zal Cleminson to their lineup; he left after recording two albums — 1979s No Mean City and 1980s Malice in Wonderland — and was replaced by former Spirit keyboardist John Locke. Following the 1981 live album Snaz, guitarist Bill Rankin also joined the group; Locke left soon after his addition and Rankin switched to keyboards.By this time, their commercial appeal had dwindled across both the U.K. and the U.S. By the mid-80s, Nazareth was left without a record contract, so the band was put on hiatus for a few years. They returned in 1992 with No Jive, which failed to gain an audience in America and Europe. In 1999, Nazareth resurfaced yet again with Boogaloo.