Foghat

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Foghat are a British rock band who had their peak success in the mid- to late-1970s. Their style can be described as "blues-rock," dominated by electric and electric slide guitar. The band has achieved five gold records. The group remained popular during the disco era, but their popularity waned in the early 1980s.

[edit] History

The band initially featured Dave Peverett ("Lonesome Dave") on guitar and vocal, Tony Stevens on bass, and Roger Earl on drums. After leaving Savoy Brown in December 1970, they added Rod Price on guitar/slide guitar and formed Foghat in January 1971. Their 1972 album Foghat was produced by Dave Edmunds and had a cover of Willie Dixon's "I Just Want to Make Love to You" which received much airplay, especially on FM stations. The band's second self-titled album was also known as Rock and Roll for its cover photo of a rock and a bread roll, and it went gold. Energized came out in 1974, followed by Rock and Roll Outlaws and Fool for the City in 1975, the year that Stevens left the band after objecting to their endless touring schedule. Stevens was replaced temporarily by producer Nick Jameson in 1975 when the band recorded Fool For The City. In the next year, he was replaced by Craig MacGregor and the group produced Night Shift in 1976, a live album in 1977, and Stone Blue in 1978, each reaching "gold" record sales. Fool for the City spawned the hit single "Slow Ride" (which reached number 20 on the US charts), but the greatest sales figures were for Foghat Live, which sold over 2,000,000 copies. More hits followed: Drivin' Wheel, I Just Want to Make Love to You (from the live album), Stone Blue and Third Time Lucky (The First Time I Was a Fool). But Rod Price, unhappy with the group's still constant touring and the shift away from their hard boogie sound towards a more New Wave influenced Pop direction, left the band in November 1980. After months of auditions he was replaced by Erik Cartwright by February 1981.

After 1978, Foghat record sales began to slip, and their last album for the Bearsville label, Zig-Zag Walk in 1983, only briefly touched the charts at #192. MacGregor quit in 1982 and Nick Jameson returned to play on In the Mood For Something Rude and Zig Zag Walk before turning things over to Kenny Aaronson(1983) and then Rob Alter(1983-1984). MacGregor returned in 1984 bringing along multi instrumentalist Jason "Bakko" Bakken.

After Dave Peverett left in 1984 and went back to England, the group disbanded. But Earl, along with MacGregor and Cartwright reformed the group in 1986 with a new singer/guitarist Eric (E.J.) Burgeson and continued touring as Foghat into the early nineties. MacGregor (1986-1987, 1991), Eric's brother Brett Cartwright (1987, 1988-1989, 1992) and Jeff Howell (1987-1988, 1989-1991, 1992) alternated on bass during that time. And Phil Nudelman (1989-1990) and then Billy Davis (1990-1993) took over from Burgeson. Dave Crigger joined on bass in 1992-1993.

Lonesome Dave himself had returned to the U.S. by 1990 and formed his own Lonesome Dave's Foghat that featured Bryan Bassett (ex Wild Cherry), Stephen Dees (bass) and Eddie Zyne (drums). Dees and Zyne had played with Hall and Oates, among others. Former Molly Hatchet bassist Riff West succeeded Dees in 1991 and Rod Price even did the odd guest appearance.

In 1993, at the urging of producer Rick Rubin, the original lineup reunited. Though Rubin ultimately proved to be unavailable to produce their comeback project, the group went ahead anyway and released a studio album entitled Return of the Boogie Men in 1994 and a live album entitled Road Cases in 1998. The final album of the decade, King Biscuit Flower Hour from the syndicated radio show of the same name, was released in May of 1999, and consisted of live recordings from 1974 and 1976.

After being back together six years, the original lineup once again ended after Price decided to retire from touring for good. Bryan Bassett (who'd been playing with Molly Hatchet in the interim) was brought back on guitar.

Drummer Roger Earl and current lead singer, Charlie Huhn performing at their CD Release Party in NYC for their latest album "Live II".

The 2000s saw the death of founding members Dave Peverett and Rod Price. Peverett died on February 7, 2000 from cancer, and Price died on March 22, 2005 from a head injury sustained in a fall down a flight of stairs precipitated by a massive heart attack.

After Peverett's death, the band continued on with two of the founding members (drummer Roger Earl, and bass player Tony Stevens), plus Bryan Bassett, and Charlie Huhn, (a vocalist for Ted Nugent for a brief time), and released the studio album Family Joules in 2003 – the first without the late "Lonesome Dave" Peverett. As of 2005, Tony Stevens has been replaced again by Craig MacGregor. In 2006, a follow up to the best-selling Live album was released - Live II.

[edit] Personnel

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

• Foghat (1972)
• Foghat (aka Rock and Roll, 1973)
• Energized (1974)
• Rock & Roll Outlaws (1974)
• Fool for the City (1975)
• Night Shift (1976)
• Foghat Live (1977)
• Stone Blue (1978)
• Boogie Motel (1979)
• Tight Shoes (1980)
• Girls to Chat & Boys to Bounce (1981)
• In the Mood for Something Rude (1982)
• Zig-Zag Walk (1983)
• Return of the Boogie Men (1994)
• Road Cases (1998)
• Family Joules (2003)
• Live II (2006)

[edit] Singles

• What a Shame / Hole to Hide In (Jun 72)
• I Just Want To Make Love To You (POP #83) / Hole to Hide In (Sep 72)
• What A Shame (POP #82) / Helping Hand (Apr 73)
• Long Way To Go / Ride, Ride, Ride (Feb 74)
• That'll Be The Day / Wild Cherry (May 74)
• Step Outside / Maybellene (Jul 74)
• Slow Ride (POP #20) / Save Your Lovin' For Me (Dec 75)
• Fool For The City (POP #45) / Take It Or Leave It (Jun 76)
• Drivin' Wheel (POP #34) / Night Shift (Nov 76)
• I'll Be Standing By (POP #67) / Take Me To The River (Mar 77)
• I Just Want To Make Love To You (live) (POP #33) / Fool For The City (live) (Jan 78)
• Stone Blue (POP #36) / Chevrolet (May 78)
• Sweet Home Chicago / High On Love (Sep 78)
• Third Time Lucky (First Time I Was A Fool) (POP #23) / Love In Motion (Nov 79)
• Third Time Lucky (First Time I Was A Fool) / Somebody's Been Sleepin' In My Bed (Mar 80)
• Stranger In My Home Town (POP #81) / Be My Woman (Jul 80)
• Wide Boy / Love Zone (Jul 81)
• Live Now - Pay Later (POP #102) / Love Zone (Aug 81)
• Slipped, Tripped, Fell In Love (ROK #12) / And I Do Just What I Want (Oct 82)
• Seven Day Weekend / That's What Love Can Do (Jul 83)

[edit] Trivia

Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

• In the documentary film Spinal Tap Goes to 20, members of the band claimed that the plot and many of the incidents in This is Spinal Tap were based on Foghat.
• In the deleted scenes of the Scrubs episode "My Way Home", Ted the lawyer explains to J.D that he is changing the name of his band from "The Worthless Peons" to "Foghat" because a Danish metal band was suing them.
• Drummer Roger Earl sported one of the biggest mustaches among rock stars. To the dismay of many fans, he decided to shave it off before many of later reunion concerts.
• Carl Brutananadilewski, a character in the TV series Aqua Teen Hunger Force, expressed in a commercial that he was a fan of Roger Earl, saying "I like the drummer from Foghat. That's my drummer." [1]
• The TV show Still Standing has a character that plays in a Foghat tribute band.
• Their song "Slow Ride" was featured in the 1993 American movie Dazed and Confused. It has also been used in an episode of Malcolm in the Middle, an episode of Seinfeld, an episode of That '70s Show and an episode of Family Guy, where the "evil monkey" rolls and smokes a joint after Chris and the family leave. It was also featured in the TV series Dexter in 2006, in the episode "Father Knows Best", when Dexter and friends are cleaning the house he inherited. The song pulls station owner Jimmy James out of a coma in an episode of NewsRadio. It was featured in the K-DST classic rock radio station of the video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, and an advertisement for the Honda Odyssey, and also an ad for Carl's Jr. The song was also used in the movie Wild Hogs, released in 2007. It is also featured in Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock.
• Most if not all tracks from Foghat Live are featured as party music in the 1981 action-thriller film Nighthawks, starring Sylvester Stallone, Rutger Hauer, Billy Dee Williams and Lindsay Wagner - though the actual score is by Keith Emerson.
• Roger Earl's brother, Colin, was a founding member of Mungo Jerry, who had a hit of their own with "In the Summertime".
• In the music video for Yo La Tengo's "Sugarcube", the members of Yo La Tengo are sent to "The Academy of Rock" by their record company. There, one of the teachers informs them of the "Foghat Rule", which is that any fourth rock album must be double live. It was actually their 7th album that was their first live album.
• In March of 2005, a high school student located in Chula Vista, California, petitioned his school principal to have "Slow Ride" by Foghat played as the school lunch bell. After lengthy battles with the administration, threats of hunger strikes and anarchy, an agreement was reached. On March 18th, Bonita Vista High School played Foghat's "Slowride" as their lunch passing period bell. [2]
• In the Fox TV series King of the Hill, Bill Dauterive says, "I made most of my life decisions at a Foghat concert... I stand by them."
• Roger Earl had a famous but brief fling with Swedish actress and Bond girl Britt Eklund.
• On Larry the Cable Guy's CD A Very Larry Christmas, Foghat are mentioned in the track "The Christmas Story". The main character in that track, Bejesus, was special because he was conceived at a Foghat concert in the third row during the song "Slow Ride".
• In the 1996 comedy Kingpin, Claudia tells Roy Munson, "Your act is about as fresh as a Foghat concert. It really bites, Roy."
• In the Simpsons episode, "Like Father, Like Clown", the radio talk show host interviewing Krusty the Clown's father can be seen wearing a Foghat T-shirt.
• Back in the 70s, when they were popular, fans would commonly be found wearing hats with the word "Fog".
• In the video game Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude, there is a banner advertising the "Fools for the City", a Foghat tribute band (including former members of Foghat), whom Larry Lovage, the main character refers to as "The best Foghat tribute band in Walnut Log, bar none."
• The Estate of Lonesome Dave opened a store in late 2007 called 'Loentz's Emporium' as well as a Myspace site called Myspace.com/foghatmusic
• In an episode of the popular TV sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond, Robert's brother-in-law, Peter, gets upset when his parents decide to kick him out of the house and when he finds out that they are throwing away his music, he says "Mama, what are you doing with my Foghat records?", implying the fact that Peter listens to Foghat.

[edit] Notes and references

1. Moran, Chris. "Song replaced bell used to signal lunch", Union-Tribune, 2005-03-19. Retrieved on 2007-02-20. 

This article or section is missing citations or needs footnotes. Using inline citations helps guard against copyright violations and factual inaccuracies. (December 2006)

[edit] External links

• Official Website of original Foghat
• Official Website of current Foghat