Foghat -

Foghat is an English hard-rock/blues band that formed in London in 1971 and built its main recording career in the United States after signing with Bearsville.

The founding lineup paired singer-guitarist “Lonesome” Dave Peverett, slide guitarist Rod Price, bassist Tony Stevens, and drummer Roger Earl. Across twelve studio albums and one live set between 1972 and 1983, the band cut a long Bearsville run that stretched from the self-titled debut through Zig-Zag Walk.

Its core FM and chart titles include “I Just Want to Make Love to You,” “Slow Ride,” “Drivin’ Wheel,” “Stone Blue,” and “Third Time Lucky (First Time I Was a Fool).” The commercial peak came with Fool for the City and the double-platinum Foghat Live, which turned the group’s road-seasoned stage attack into a major U.S. draw.

Across lineup changes and stylistic shifts, Foghat kept its center on Peverett’s lead vocal, Price’s slide guitar, and a hard boogie frame shaped for radio and the highway.

Members: Roger Earl (drums), Lonesome Dave Peverett (vocals, guitar, 1971-84, 1993-2000), Rod Price (guitar, 1971-80, 1990-99), Tony Stevens (bass, 1971-75, 1993-2005), Nick Jameson (bass, keyboards, 1975-76, 1982-83), Craig MacGregor (bass, 1975-83, 1984-86, 2005-present), Erik Cartwright (guitar, 1980-93), Kenny Aaronson (bass, 1983), Rob Alter (bass, 1983-84), Jason Bakken (guitar, keyboards, 1984)

Background

Foghat formed in 1971 when three-fourths of Savoy Brown — guitarist/singer “Lonesome” Dave Peverett, bassist Tony Stevens, and drummer Roger Earl — teamed with Black Cat Bones slide guitarist Rod “The Bottle” Price.

Foghat grew out of two late-1960s British blues lines. Dave Peverett, Roger Earl, and Tony Stevens came out of Savoy Brown, where they helped build a strong Anglo-American touring base at the end of the decade and into 1970. Peverett carried the vocal front, Earl brought the band’s heaviest rhythmic push, and Stevens added bass and songwriting to Savoy Brown’s later Decca-era run. Rod Price arrived from Black Cat Bones, a London heavy-blues group whose late-1968/69 lineup cut the 1970 album Barbed Wire Sandwich, giving Foghat its future slide specialist and its strongest link to the heavier edge of the post-blues circuit.

By the end of 1970, Peverett, Earl, and Stevens had left Savoy Brown and started building a new band around a harder, looser stage frame. Price joined on lead and slide guitar, the four settled on the name Foghat in January 1971, and the lineup drew quick attention in rehearsal from Albert Grossman, whose Bearsville operation gave the group a label and management base. The band soon shifted its career center to the United States, where FM radio and relentless touring would become the foundation of its first decade.

Grossman’s camp paired Foghat with Dave Edmunds for its first album. The band cut the debut at Rockfield Studios in Wales in 1972, opened the record with Willie Dixon’s “I Just Want to Make Love to You,” and turned that performance into its first major FM calling card. Bearsville issued Foghat on July 1, 1972, setting the template for the band’s first five-album run.

Foghat

Foghat released their self-titled debut album in July 1972 on Bearsville.

Dave Edmunds produced the record at Rockfield and gave the new band a hard, close, guitar-heavy studio sound from the outset. The album contains six originals and covers of Chuck Berry (“Maybelline”), Bobby Bland (“Gotta Get to Know You”), and Etta James (“I Just Want to Make Love to You”).

Singer-guitarist Peverett and slide guitarist Rod Price lock the album’s twin-guitar front, bassist Tony Stevens keeps the low center in firm motion, and drummer Roger Earl pushes the set with a direct, live-room attack; piano from Todd Rundgren and Colin Earl colors selected cuts, and the closing track adds Nick Jameson’s Mellotron.

The album sets its method at once with “I Just Want to Make Love to You,” which begins from a quieter bass pulse before the guitars and full rhythm section surge in under Peverett’s vocal. “Trouble, Trouble” sharpens the front line through Rundgren’s piano and alternating guitar leads from Price and Peverett, “Leavin’ Again (Again!)” carries the travel-worn writing that would recur through the early catalog, “Highway (Killing Me)” slows the pace into a heavy stomp, “Maybelline” races by in a near-live blur, and “Gotta Get to Know You” stretches the close through a slower build with buried Mellotron rising into the arrangement.

A1. “I Just Want to Make Love to You” (4:21) – Willie Dixon
A2. “Trouble, Trouble” (3:20) – Peverett
A3. “Leavin’ Again (Again!)” (3:36) – Peverett, Stevens
A4. “Fool’s Hall of Fame” (2:58) – Peverett
A5. “Sarah Lee” (4:36) – Peverett, Price

B1. “Highway (Killing Me)” (3:51) – Peverett, Price
B2. “Maybelline” (3:33) – Berry
B3. “A Hole to Hide In” (4:06) – Peverett, Price, Earl
B4. “Gotta Get to Know You” (7:44) – Deadric Malone, Andre Williams

Foghat recorded most of the album at Rockfield Studios in Monmouth, Wales, with Ralph Downs and Kingsley Ward as engineers. “Trouble, Trouble” came from a separate AIR Studios session in London that Rundgren handled, and the closing stages of the album also brought in Jameson for mixing and Mellotron work on “Gotta Get to Know You.” Earl later said the band largely played and sang together through the sessions, with Edmunds shaping the final sonics around that live core.

Foghat issued the album in a sleeve photographed by Somerled MacDonald. The back cover places a hand-drawn “Luther Foghat” figure beside the script-style track listing, and Earl identified that drawing as Peverett’s work.

In July 1972, Bearsville lifted “I Just Want to Make Love to You” (b/w “A Hole to Hide In”) as the album’s lead single. The song became Foghat’s first U.S. chart entry at No. 83 on the Billboard Hot 100 and also reached No. 31 in Australia.

The album reached No. 127 on the Billboard 200 and later received Gold certification in the United States.

Foghat (Rock ‘n’ Roll)

Foghat released their eponymous second album on March 1, 1973, on Bearsville. The album is colloquially known as Rock ‘n’ Roll due to its cover photo of a rock and a bread roll.

Dave Peverett wrote or co-wrote seven of the nine tracks, Rod Price wrote “What a Shame,” and Chuck Willis supplied “I Feel So Bad.” Singer-guitarist Peverett and slide guitarist Price again lock the front line, bassist Tony Stevens holds the center, and drummer Roger Earl pushes the record through a harder road-tested frame; “What a Shame” adds an uncredited sax part, and several tracks pull in extra players from sessions spread across New York, Los Angeles, London, and Wales.

The album tightens the debut’s live-room pressure and turns more of its writing toward distance, motion, and separation. “Ride, Ride, Ride” opens with train imagery and a fast forward pull, “Long Way to Go” widens through Price’s Leslie-toned guitar and a brief drum break, “It’s Too Late” and “She’s Gone” keep the center on loss and withdrawal, “What a Shame” pushes side two with a horn-led lift, and “Couldn’t Make Her Stay” closes the album in a quieter frame without drums.

A1. “Ride, Ride, Ride” (4:24) – Peverett, Price
A2. “I Feel So Bad” (5:09) – Willis
A3. “Long Way to Go” (5:07) – Peverett, Price, Stevens, Earl
A4. “It’s Too Late” (5:45) – Peverett, Price

B1. “What a Shame” (3:52) – Price
B2. “Helpin’ Hand” (4:41) – Peverett, Price, Stevens, Earl
B3. “Road Fever” (4:23) – Peverett, Price
B4. “She’s Gone” (3:12) – Peverett, Price
B5. “Couldn’t Make Her Stay” (1:57) – Peverett

Foghat recorded Rock ’n’ Roll across multiple 1973 sessions in the U.S. and the U.K. with Tom Dawes at the production center, though parts of the album retain Dave Edmunds’ earlier sonic stamp. “Long Way to Go” came out of Los Angeles sessions, “What a Shame” was cut at Rockfield and later dressed with horns, “Helpin’ Hand” came from New York with Bernard Purdie, and “Road Fever” also picked up a horn arrangement during the London work.

Foghat issued the album with the now-standard Rock ’n’ Roll nickname because the cover shows a rock and a bread roll. Robert Downey Sr. conceived the image, Tony Outeda pushed a sparse white-space layout, and Jimmy Outeda sourced the physical rock used for the color photo after the original black-and-white concept was rejected.

In 1973, Bearsville lifted “What a Shame” (b/w “Helpin’ Hand”) as the album’s lead single. The track grew from a Price composition first attempted during the debut period, added uncredited horns by Jim Price and Bobby Keys, and reached No. 82 on the Billboard singles chart.

Bearsville also issued “Ride, Ride, Ride” (b/w “It’s Too Late”) in the United States later in 1973. In the UK, “Long Way to Go” appeared in February 1974 with “Ride, Ride, Ride” on the reverse.

Energized

Foghat released their third album, Energized, on January 6, 1974, on Bearsville. It was the first of seven straight Foghat albums to reach the U.S. Top 40.

Dave Peverett wrote or co-wrote five of the eight tracks, Rod Price shares four of those titles, Tony Stevens wrote “Fly by Night,” and the remaining songs draw from Big Joe Turner and the Buddy Holly team. Singer-guitarist Peverett and slide guitarist Price again lock the album’s twin-guitar front, bassist Stevens keeps the low center in firm motion, and drummer Roger Earl drives the set through a faster, tighter attack than the first two albums.

The record trims the second album’s road frame into a more compact, harder-running set. “Honey Hush” opens with a jump-blues base pushed into a quicker rock pulse, “Step Outside” and “Golden Arrow” keep the front line in brisk motion, “Home in My Hand” turns on a heavier riff spine, “Wild Cherry” bites harder at mid-pace, Stevens’ “Fly by Night” carries the album’s travel thread, and “Nothin’ I Won’t Do” stretches the close through a longer slide-led build.

A1. “Honey Hush” (4:19) – Turner
A2. “Step Outside” (6:18) – Peverett, Price, Earl, Stevens
A3. “Golden Arrow” (4:03) – Peverett, Price
A4. “Home in My Hand” (5:09) – Peverett, Price

B1. “Wild Cherry” (5:27) – Peverett, Price, Earl, Stevens, Dawes
B2. “That’ll Be the Day” (2:33) – Allison, Holly, Petty
B3. “Fly by Night” (4:47) – Stevens
B4. “Nothin’ I Won’t Do” (6:54) – Peverett, Price

Foghat recorded Energized in 1973 with Tom Dawes as producer. The sleeve credits only the four members for performance, with Tony Outeda in a coordination role and Pacific Eye and Ear on album design.

Foghat issued the album in a blue-and-green Pacific Eye and Ear package that introduced the spherical Foghat logo used across the band’s later sleeves and merchandise. Roger Earl later recalled that the group adopted that mark as soon as it saw the design.

In January 1974, Bearsville lifted “That’ll Be the Day” (b/w “Wild Cherry”) as the album’s first single. The record drew a Billboard review notice in its February 23 issue but did not reach the U.S. Hot 100.

In April 1974, Bearsville followed with the edited “Step Outside” (b/w “Maybelline”). That second single also missed the U.S. Hot 100.

Energized reached No. 34 on the Billboard 200 and earned Gold certification in the United States within a year of release.

Rock and Roll Outlaws

Foghat released their fourth album, Rock and Roll Outlaws, in October 1974 on Bearsville. It was the band’s second album of the year and the last studio record with the original lineup before Tony Stevens’ departure.

Dave Peverett wrote or co-wrote five of the eight tracks, Rod Price shares four of those titles, Felix Cavaliere and Carman Moore supplied the title song, Michael Gayle and Jerry Ragovoy supplied the opening cover, and David Anderson wrote “Blue Spruce Woman.” Singer-guitarist Peverett and slide guitarist Price again lock the front line, Tony Stevens keeps the bass center in place for his final full album with the band, Roger Earl drives the set with a harder road-tested push, and producer Nick Jameson steps in as guest pianist on “Shirley Jean.”

The album leans more heavily on touring momentum and open-road imagery than the earlier records. “Eight Days on the Road” opens the set in fast transit, “Hate to See You Go” and “Dreamer” stretch the first side into longer guitar-led movement, “Rock and Roll Outlaw” keeps the center on stage-life identity, and “Chateau Lafitte ’59 Boogie” closes the record in an extended barroom frame with a looser, late-night drag.

A1. “Eight Days on the Road” (6:08) – Michael Gayle, Jerry Ragovoy
A2. “Hate to See You Go” (4:39) – Dave Peverett, Rod Price
A3. “Dreamer” (6:39) – Peverett, Price
A4. “Trouble in My Way” (3:32) – Peverett

B1. “Rock and Roll Outlaw” (3:53) – Felix Cavaliere, Carman Moore
B2. “Shirley Jean” (3:46) – Peverett, Price
B3. “Blue Spruce Woman” (4:08) – David Anderson
B4. “Chateau Lafitte ’59 Boogie” (6:17) – Peverett, Price

Foghat recorded Rock and Roll Outlaws in 1974 with Nick Jameson as producer. Jameson’s arrival brought a new production voice to the catalog just before he moved into the group’s orbit as a player on the next phase of sessions.

Foghat issued the album in a sleeve that places the band beside a Learjet in the Mojave Desert. The aircraft did not belong to the group; the band borrowed it and applied its logo for the photo shoot.

The LP reached No. 40 on the Billboard 200 and later earned Gold certification in the United States.

Fool for the City

Foghat released their fifth album, Fool for the City, on September 15, 1975, on Bearsville. It was the band’s first album after Tony Stevens’ departure and the record that pushed Foghat to its first platinum studio sales mark.

Dave Peverett wrote four of the seven tracks, Rod Price shares “Save Your Loving (For Me),” Nick Jameson shares “Take It or Leave It,” and the remaining cuts draw from Bobby Hatfield and Bill Medley plus Robert Johnson. Singer-guitarist Peverett and slide guitarist Price keep the frontal line intact, Roger Earl drives the album through a heavier, more settled pulse than the prior records, and producer-bassist Nick Jameson fills the vacant fourth slot with bass, keyboards, guitar, and backing vocals.

The album tightens the group’s road-built attack into a shorter, more controlled sequence. “Fool for the City” opens with a compact forward pull, “My Babe” and “Terraplane Blues” keep the center on blues-derived material recast in a harder frame, “Save Your Loving (For Me)” and “Drive Me Home” hold the middle in a leaner song form, and “Slow Ride” stretches side one through a long stop-start build that became the band’s defining single. Roger Earl later recalled that the basic shape of “Slow Ride” came out of taped rehearsal jams that Jameson helped cut into final form.

A1. “Fool for the City” (4:33) – Peverett
A2. “My Babe” (4:35) – Hatfield, Medley
A3. “Slow Ride” (8:14) – Peverett

B1. “Terraplane Blues” (5:44) – Johnson
B2. “Save Your Loving (For Me)” (3:31) – Peverett, Price
B3. “Drive Me Home” (3:54) – Peverett
B4. “Take It or Leave It” (4:49) – Peverett, Jameson

Foghat recorded Fool for the City at Suntreader Studios in Sharon, Vermont, with Nick Jameson producing, engineering, and playing bass and keyboards on the finished album.

Foghat issued the album in a Tony Loew photograph that shows Roger Earl seated on a soapbox and fishing into a manhole near East 11th Street in Manhattan, close to the band’s American office. The back cover widens the joke with onlookers and the rest of the band gathered around him. Earl later said the setup was Jameson’s idea and that New York police stopped to joke about whether he had a fishing license.

In December 1975, Bearsville lifted “Slow Ride” (b/w “Save Your Loving (For Me)”) as the album’s lead single. The edited 3:56 single cut took the song to No. 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 14 in Canada, making it Foghat’s highest-charting U.S. single.

In May 1976, Bearsville followed with “Fool for the City.” U.S. promo copies paired the album version with an edited version, and the song reached No. 58 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Fool for the City reached No. 23 on the Billboard 200 and No. 85 in Canada. It later received Platinum certification in the United States.

Night Shift

Foghat released their sixth album, Night Shift, on November 18, 1976, on Bearsville. It was the first album with bassist Craig MacGregor and the first Foghat studio record produced by Dan Hartman.

Dave Peverett wrote or co-wrote six of the seven original-period tracks, Rod Price shares “Drivin’ Wheel,” “Night Shift,” and “I’ll Be Standing By,” and Al Green with Mabon “Teenie” Hodges supplied “Take Me to the River.” Singer-guitarist Peverett and slide guitarist Price keep the frontal pair intact, MacGregor replaces Nick Jameson on bass and backing vocals, and Roger Earl drives a heavier four-man frame that carries more weight at the bottom than Fool for the City.

Night Shift extends the road-built attack of the prior album into a broader, more polished studio frame. “Drivin’ Wheel” opens the set with the strongest forward pull, “Don’t Run Me Down” and “Burnin’ the Midnight Oil” keep side one on hard travel and work-song motion, the title track holds the center on the band’s boogie frame, “Hot Shot Love” keeps the pace short and direct, “Take Me to the River” recasts Green’s soul hit in a tougher groove, and “I’ll Be Standing By” closes the album with a slower, string-backed ballad finish.

A1. “Drivin’ Wheel” (5:11) – Peverett, Price
A2. “Don’t Run Me Down” (6:32) – Peverett
A3. “Burnin’ the Midnight Oil” (5:38) – Peverett

B1. “Night Shift” (5:32) – Peverett, Price
B2. “Hot Shot Love” (4:00) – Peverett
B3. “Take Me to the River” (4:40) – Green, Hodges
B4. “I’ll Be Standing By” (5:53) – Peverett, Price

Foghat began the album with Jimmy Iovine, then replaced him after the early sessions stalled and moved the project to Hartman’s Schoolhouse studio in Connecticut. Hartman produced the final album, Dave Still engineered it, Dave Still and Hartman handled the mix at the Hit Factory in New York, and Greg Calbi mastered the record at Sterling Sound.

Foghat issued the album in a package with art direction by Ed Thrasher, photography by Sherman Weisburd, and graphics by Gribbill!

In November 1976, Bearsville lifted “Drivin’ Wheel” (b/w “Night Shift”) as the lead single. The song reached No. 34 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 41 in Canada, giving the album its biggest chart title.

In March 1977, Bearsville followed with the edited “I’ll Be Standing By” (b/w the edited “Take Me to the River”). The single reached No. 67 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Night Shift reached No. 36 on the Billboard 200 and No. 77 in Canada. It later received Gold certification in the United States.

The original sessions also left “New Place to Call Home,” an unfinished Peverett-Price song that appeared on the sleeve but not on the original label and later surfaced on the 2006 CD reissue.

Live

Foghat released Live on August 19, 1977, on Bearsville. Recorded at the Dome Arena in Henrietta, New York, the album became the band’s biggest seller and its highest-charting LP.

The album keeps the Night Shift lineup of singer-guitarist Dave Peverett, slide guitarist Rod Price, bassist Craig MacGregor, and drummer Roger Earl. The live frame strips the band back to its road core, then adds percussion from Dan Craig, Dave Lang, and producer Nick Jameson across the set.

Live condenses six albums of touring into six long performances and leans hard on the band’s strongest stage pieces. “Fool for the City” and “Road Fever” keep the set in fast forward motion, “Home in My Hand” and “Honey Hush” stretch the middle through heavier blues attack, “I Just Want to Make Love to You” expands far beyond the debut version, and “Slow Ride” closes the record in the drawn-out stop-start form that would become the band’s best-known concert showcase. Rhino’s retrospective notes that the live “Slow Ride” became the album’s signature performance and helped turn the record into the band’s commercial breakthrough.

A1. “Fool for the City” (5:31) – from Fool for the City (1975)
A2. “Home in My Hand” (4:56) – from Energized (1974)
A3. “I Just Want to Make Love to You” (8:36) – from Foghat (1972)

B1. “Road Fever” (5:29) – from Foghat (Rock and Roll) (1973)
B2. “Honey Hush” (5:38) – from Energized (1974)
B3. “Slow Ride” (8:21) – from Fool for the City (1975)

Foghat recorded Live with the RCA mobile unit on May 10, 1977, then mixed the album at Suntreader Studios in Sharon, Vermont. Nick Jameson produced and engineered the record.

Foghat issued the album in a Peter Corriston design with photography by Alen MacWeeney. Original copies included a four-page insert with photos and credits.

In August 1977, Bearsville lifted the edited live “I Just Want to Make Love to You” as the album’s lead single, backed with “Fool for the City.” Cut from the album’s eight-and-a-half-minute performance to 3:56 for 7-inch release, the single reached No. 33 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 28 in Canada.

Live reached No. 11 on the Billboard 200 and No. 5 in Canada. It later received 2× Platinum certification in the United States.

Stone Blue

Foghat released Stone Blue on April 28, 1978, on Bearsville. It was the band’s seventh studio album and the first to pair the group with producer Eddie Kramer.

Dave Peverett wrote four songs alone, shared two with Rod Price, and the remaining cuts draw from Robert Johnson, the “It Hurts Me Too” standard, and Earl McDaniel’s “Chevrolet.” Singer-guitarist Peverett and slide guitarist Price keep the frontal pair intact, Craig MacGregor holds the bass center, and Roger Earl drives a drier, harder four-man attack than the one heard on Night Shift.

The album tightens the band’s boogie frame and pushes more of the set back toward electric blues. “Stone Blue” opens with a fast, hard shove, “Sweet Home Chicago” reasserts the group’s blues line in compressed form, “Midnight Madness” and “High on Love” stretch the middle through longer guitar-led movement, and “It Hurts Me Too” with “Chevrolet” keeps side two close to older source material before “Stay with Me” closes the record in a slower pull.

A1. “Stone Blue” (5:35) – Peverett
A2. “Sweet Home Chicago” (3:56) – Robert Johnson
A3. “Easy Money” (3:54) – Peverett
A4. “Midnight Madness” (6:50) – Peverett, Price

B1. “It Hurts Me Too” (5:28) – unknown, additional lyrics by Elmore James or Mel London
B2. “High on Love” (5:17) – Peverett, Price
B3. “Chevrolet” (3:18) – Earl McDaniel
B4. “Stay with Me” (4:22) – Peverett, Price

Foghat recorded Stone Blue with Eddie Kramer and the band in the production chairs. The pairing marked a change from the Hartman setup on Night Shift and gave the album a tougher studio edge.

Foghat issued the album in a package with art direction and design by Peter Corriston and cover concept and photography by Alen MacWeeney.

In May 1978, Bearsville lifted “Stone Blue” (b/w “Chevrolet”) as the lead single. The song reached No. 36 on the Billboard Hot 100, giving the band its highest-charting studio single since “Slow Ride.”

Bearsville also issued “High on Love” later in 1978 with “Sweet Home Chicago” on the reverse.

Stone Blue reached No. 25 on the Billboard 200, No. 21 in Canada, and No. 82 in Australia. It later received Gold certification in the United States.

Boogie Motel

Foghat released their eighth album, Boogie Motel, on September 21, 1979, on Bearsville. The record followed Stone Blue, kept the Peverett-Price-MacGregor-Earl lineup intact, and became the band’s first album recorded at its own Boogie Motel Studios in Port Jefferson, New York.

Dave Peverett wrote six of the seven tracks, while Rod Price shares the title song and the opening cut comes from the General Johnson–Greg Perry–Angelo Bond team. Singer-guitarist Peverett and slide guitarist Price remain the frontal pair, Craig MacGregor holds the bass center, Roger Earl drives the four-man frame, and Colin Earl, Jimmy Ambrosio, and Alto Reed widen selected tracks with keyboards, accordion, and saxophone.

The album trims the harder edge of Stone Blue into a cleaner late-1970s studio shape. “Somebody’s Been Sleepin’ in My Bed” opens the record with a tighter radio-facing pull, “Third Time Lucky (First Time I Was a Fool)” keeps the center on concise song form, “Paradise Alley” and the seven-minute title track stretch the running time back toward a broader road-boogie frame, and “Nervous Release” closes the set in a longer, more restless push.

A1. “Somebody’s Been Sleepin’ in My Bed” (3:50) – General Johnson, Greg Perry, Angelo Bond
A2. “Third Time Lucky (First Time I Was a Fool)” (4:12) – Peverett
A3. “Comin’ Down with Love” (5:23) – Peverett
A4. “Paradise Alley” (5:37) – Peverett

B1. “Boogie Motel” (7:20) – Price, Peverett
B2. “Love in Motion” (4:30) – Peverett
B3. “Nervous Release” (5:53) – Peverett

Foghat recorded Boogie Motel in 1979 at Boogie Motel Studios in Port Jefferson with the band and Tony Outeda in the production chairs. David Berman and Tony Berman handled engineering, Bob Coffee assisted, and Bob Ludwig mastered the album.

Foghat issued the album in a sleeve built around Jim Baikie’s cover art.

Bearsville first lifted “Somebody’s Been Sleepin’ in My Bed,” with “Paradise Alley” on the reverse.

Bearsville followed with “Third Time Lucky (First Time I Was a Fool),” issued in the U.S. as an edit and in the UK with “Somebody’s Been Sleepin’ in My Bed” on the reverse. The song became the album’s clear breakout title and Foghat’s final U.S. Top 40 hit, reaching No. 23 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Boogie Motel reached No. 35 on the Billboard 200 and later received Gold certification in the United States.

Tight Shoes

Foghat released their ninth album, Tight Shoes, on May 28, 1980, on Bearsville. It was the band’s last studio album with Rod Price before his departure.

Dave Peverett wrote all eight tracks. Singer-guitarist Peverett and slide guitarist Price keep the frontal pair intact, Craig MacGregor holds the bass center, and Roger Earl drives the four-man frame without the guest keyboards, horns, or accordion touches that had widened the prior two records.

The album trims the band’s late-1970s road boogie into shorter, tighter song forms. “Stranger in My Home Town,” “Loose Ends,” and “Full Time Lover” push side one through compact structures, “Too Late the Hero” and “Dead End Street” hold the center in a harder mid-pace drag, and “Be My Woman” with “No Hard Feelings” closes the record in longer, slower stretches. Rhino’s later reissue notes also point to the sleeve’s bright day-glo look as a visual sign of the album’s cleaner, more pop-shaped studio turn.

A1. “Stranger in My Home Town” (4:24) – Peverett
A2. “Loose Ends” (4:38) – Peverett
A3. “Full Time Lover” (4:30) – Peverett
A4. “Baby Can I Change Your Mind” (4:56) – Peverett

B1. “Too Late the Hero” (5:01) – Peverett
B2. “Dead End Street” (5:00) – Peverett
B3. “Be My Woman” (5:57) – Peverett
B4. “No Hard Feelings” (6:15) – Peverett

Foghat recorded Tight Shoes in 1979 at Foghat Studios in Port Jefferson, New York, with Tony Outeda, Don Berman, and the band in the production chairs. Bob Coffee and Don Berman handled engineering, with Jorge Ripley assisting.

Foghat issued the album in a bright, fluorescent sleeve with a design concept credited to L.D. and cover-preparation credits to P.C., H.K., and P.B.

In July 1980, Bearsville lifted “Stranger in My Home Town” (b/w “Be My Woman”) as the album’s lead single. The song reached No. 81 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Tight Shoes reached No. 106 on the Billboard 200.

Girls to Chat & Boys to Bounce

Foghat released their tenth album, Girls to Chat & Boys to Bounce, in July 1981 on Bearsville. It was the band’s first album with guitarist Erik Cartwright after Rod Price’s departure.

Dave Peverett wrote six of the eight tracks, while producer-keyboardist Nick Jameson wrote “Let Me Get Close to You” and the closing live cut “Sing About Love.” Singer-guitarist Peverett remains the vocal center, Cartwright takes the lead-guitar slot, Craig MacGregor holds the bass center, Roger Earl drives the rhythm section, and Jameson adds keyboards and backing vocals across the album.

The album pares the set to eight tracks and leans on a cleaner modern studio frame. “Wide Boy,” “Love Zone,” “Second Childhood,” and “Weekend Driver” stay in the shorter four-to-five-minute range, “Live Now – Pay Later” and “Delayed Reaction” stretch past six minutes, and the closing live “Sing About Love” breaks the studio sequence.

A1. “Wide Boy” (2:44) – Peverett
A2. “Let Me Get Close to You” (5:36) – Jameson
A3. “Live Now – Pay Later” (6:08) – Peverett
A4. “Love Zone” (5:19) – Peverett

B1. “Delayed Reaction” (6:14) – Peverett
B2. “Second Childhood” (5:15) – Peverett
B3. “Weekend Driver” (4:13) – Peverett
B4. “Sing About Love” [Live] (3:36) – Jameson

Foghat recorded Girls to Chat & Boys to Bounce in 1981 with Nick Jameson as producer and engineer. Bob Ludwig mastered the album.

In August 1981, Bearsville lifted “Live Now – Pay Later” (b/w “Love Zone”) as the album’s lead single. The record bubbled under the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 102 and reached No. 15 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart.

Bearsville also serviced “Wide Boy” as a mono/stereo U.S. promo single later in 1981.

Girls to Chat & Boys to Bounce reached No. 92 on the Billboard 200.

In the Mood for Something Rude

Foghat released their eleventh album, In the Mood for Something Rude, on October 18, 1982, on Bearsville. It was the band’s first all-outside-writer studio album and the last Bearsville release before Zig-Zag Walk.

The album drops Dave Peverett’s songwriting from the frame and rebuilds the set from eight outside compositions drawn from Southern soul, Motown, country, and James Brown’s repertoire. Singer-guitarist Peverett remains the vocal center, Erik Cartwright carries rhythm and lead guitar, Nick Jameson moves into the bass-and-keyboard slot, and Roger Earl drives the record with a direct four-man attack; Rich Oppenheim adds saxophone, and Barbara Nolan with Maris Hall supply extra vocals.

The set keeps Foghat’s road-hardened boogie frame but redirects it through other writers’ material. “Slipped, Tripped, Fell in Love” opens with the album’s hardest shove, “Take This Heart of Mine” compresses the center into a shorter Motown-derived form, “Love Rustler” and “Ain’t Livin’ Long Like This” stretch side two through a broader pull, and “Back for a Taste of Your Love” with “And I Do Just What I Want” keeps the close tied to Southern R&B and funk source material.

A1. “Slipped, Tripped, Fell in Love” (4:18) – George Jackson
A2. “Bustin’ Up or Bustin’ Out” (3:43) – James Edward Fuller, Leroy Hodges Jr., Marshall Jones
A3. “Take This Heart of Mine” (3:08) – Pete Moore, Smokey Robinson, Marv Tarplin
A4. “Love Rustler” (5:48) – Dennis Linde, Thomas Cain

B1. “Ain’t Livin’ Long Like This” (4:55) – Rodney Crowell
B2. “Back for a Taste of Your Love” (4:35) – Syl Johnson, Darryl Carter, Brenda L. Thompson
B3. “There Ain’t No Man That Can’t Be Caught” (3:44) – Jimmy Lewis
B4. “And I Do Just What I Want” (3:22) – James Brown

Foghat arranged the album and recorded it in 1982 with Nick Jameson and Tony Outeda as producers. Jameson also handled the recording and mix, and Bob Ludwig mastered the finished album.

Foghat issued the album in a package with art direction by Peter Corriston and photography by Chris Callis.

In November 1982, Bearsville lifted “Slipped, Tripped, Fell in Love” (b/w “And I Do Just What I Want”) as the album’s lead single.

In the Mood for Something Rude reached No. 162 on the Billboard 200.

Zig-Zag Walk

Foghat released their twelfth album, Zig-Zag Walk, on May 11, 1983, on Bearsville. It was the band’s last studio album for more than a decade and the final release of its first Bearsville run.

Dave Peverett wrote five of the ten tracks, Erik Cartwright supplied “Jenny Don’t Mind,” and the remaining cuts draw from Denver Darling, Milt Gabler, Vaughn Horton, Jack Clement, Don Raye, and Jon Jelmer. Singer-guitarist Peverett remains the vocal center, Cartwright holds the lead-and-slide slot, Roger Earl drives the rhythm section, and Nick Jameson returns behind the scenes and on the record itself, producing under the name Franz Leipkin and playing bass, keyboards, and backing vocals under the alias Eli Jenkins. Paul Butterfield adds harmonica to “Seven Day Weekend.”

The album moves away from the all-covers frame of In the Mood for Something Rude and restores Peverett’s writing to the center, but it also pushes the band into a leaner early-1980s studio shape. “That’s What Love Can Do” and the title track open the record in short, direct form, “Choo Choo Ch’Boogie,” “It’ll Be Me,” and “Down the Road a Piece” pull in older rock-and-roll material, “Jenny Don’t Mind” gives Cartwright the only outside writing credit from within the band, and “Seven Day Weekend” with “Linda Lou” closes the album through a broader bar-band frame. Contemporary summaries of the record also note a stronger rockabilly tilt than on the prior Bearsville albums.

A1. “That’s What Love Can Do” (3:54) – Peverett
A2. “Zig-Zag Walk” (3:28) – Peverett
A3. “Choo Choo Ch’Boogie” (2:43) – Darling, Gabler, Horton
A4. “Jenny Don’t Mind” (4:37) – Cartwright
A5. “Three Wheel Cadillac” (3:55) – Peverett

B1. “It’ll Be Me” (3:29) – Clement
B2. “Silent Treatment” (3:17) – Peverett
B3. “Down the Road a Piece” (2:35) – Raye
B4. “Seven Day Weekend” (4:10) – Peverett
B5. “Linda Lou” (3:46) – Jelmer

Foghat recorded Zig-Zag Walk in 1983 with Nick Jameson producing under the Franz Leipkin name. The credited lineup on the finished album is Peverett, Cartwright, “Eli Jenkins,” and Earl, which effectively makes Jameson part of the studio core even though he was not the band’s regular touring bassist.

Foghat issued the album in a package designed by John Heiden with front-cover illustration credited to Lonesome Dave. Discogs credits also show Jameson on the back-cover photograph, which fits the album’s half-inside, half-outside lineup arrangement.

“That’s What Love Can Do” appeared as a US promo single in mono and stereo forms. Zig-Zag Walk reached No. 192 on the Billboard 200.

Discography: