Slaughter & the Dogs were an English punk rock band, formed in 1975 in Wythenshawe, Manchester. They were one of the first English punk bands to sign with a major label. Their original line-up consisted of singer Wayne Barrett, guitarist Mick Rossi, drummer Brian "Mad Muffet" Grantham and bassist Howard "Zip" Bates. Barrett and Rossi have led the band through various reformations with different lineups.

History

The name "Slaughter & the Dogs" came about by the band members combining the names of Diamond Dogs and Slaughter on 10th Avenue, two of their 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. This concert, more than any other single event, spawned Manchester's punk scene, which was concentrated around the Electric Circus Club.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. 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. 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.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. 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. 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 left the band for the first time after the March 1979 four-song EP "It’s Alright".

Morrissey briefly replaced Barrett and recorded four songs with the band and they auditioned for a record deal in London. After the audition fell through, Slaughter & the Dogs became Studio Sweethearts, without Morrissey.A single, "I Believe", was released in June 1979 under the name Studio Sweethearts.

A reformed Slaughter & The Dogs (including Mick Rossi and new drummer Phil Rowland, formerly of Eater), 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, Barrett left the band for a second time, and Ed Garrity (of the Nosebleeds) replaced Barrett as frontman, and Slaughter And The Dogs released the album “Bite Back” in 1980, as well as several singles from that album, and did a successful U.K. tour.

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 continued to record and tour as Slaughter & the Dogs until 2014.

Slaughter And The Dogs released the Beware Of..." studio album in October 2001 on Captain Oi! Records.

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.In 2016, the band recorded the 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 February and 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. Cleopatra issued a live album, Tokyo Dogs, in 2017.On 9 February 2017, Slaughter & the Dogs embarked on a 7-week European tour, playing 33 shows in 10 countries.On 5 August 2018, Slaughter & the Dogs headlined the Rebellion Festival in Blackpool, England. and then embarked on a successful two-week U.K. tour surrounding the festival date.On 26 June 2019, Barrett and Rossi decided to part ways and the band is now defunct.

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".

"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."

"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."

"Cranked Up Really High, Where Have All the Bootboys Gone? and You’re Ready Now ... [are] their enduring punk classics."

"Slaughter played with a rare conviction and power, soul-stirring napalm guitars that laid the groundwork for an entire generation of future punk minimalists."