''Swagger'' is the third album by the Scottish rock band

Gun A gun is a ranged weapon designed to use a shooting tube (gun barrel) to launch projectiles. The projectiles are typically solid, but can also be pressurized liquid (e.g. in water guns/cannons, spray guns for painting or pressure washing, pr ...

. It features their most successful single; their cover of " Word Up!", done in the group's melodic

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...

style, provided a commercial boost to its parent album. Their version earned the band the ''Best Cover'' trophy at the first international ''

MTV Europe Music Awards The MTV Europe Music Awards (originally named MTV European Music Awards, commonly abbreviated as MTV EMA) are awards presented by Paramount International Networks to honour artists and music in pop culture. It was originally conceived as an al ...

''. The track was originally recorded by American

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

group Cameo. The album produced a total of four U.K. Top 40 singles between July 1994 and April 1995: "Word Up!" (#8), "Don't Say It's Over" (#19), "The Only One" (#29), and "Something Worthwhile" (#39). The first track was on the official British singles chart for a total of seven weeks. ''Swagger'' has also received mixed to positive critical reviews from various publications such as

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

and the music magazine ''Rock Hard''.

Production and recording

The album's release took place after a notable change in the band's line-up, with the group becoming a quartet made up of Mark Rankin (vocalist), Giuliano Gizzi (guitarist), Dante Gizzi (bassist), and Mark Kerr (drummer). ''Swagger'' was produced and engineered by

Chris Sheldon Chris Sheldon (born 25 September 1962) is an English record producer, particularly of rock music based in London, England. He has produced or mixed records for the Foo Fighters, Garbage, Big Country, Feeder, Therapy?, Biffy Clyro, Oceansize, Pix ...

. He had previously worked with other English, Irish, and Scottish artists such as the singer-songwriters

Hugh Cornwell Hugh Alan Cornwell (born 28 August 1949) is an English musician, singer-songwriter and writer, best known for being the lead vocalist and lead guitarist for the punk rock and new wave band the Stranglers from 1974 to 1990. Since leaving the ...

Gary Numan Gary Anthony James Webb (born 8 March 1958), known professionally as Gary Numan, is an English musician. He entered the music industry as frontman of the new wave band Tubeway Army. After releasing two albums with the band, he released his d ...

, and

Roger Waters George Roger Waters (born 6 September 1943) is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. In 1965, he co-founded the progressive rock band Pink Floyd. Waters initially served as the bassist, but following the departure of singer-so ...

in the 1980s and 1990s. Nina Schultz took the photographs of the group from which the album's cover was picked.

Reception and legacy

In 2005, the album was ranked No. 465 in the German-language book ''The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time'', which was published by the music magazine ''

Rock Hard "Rock Hard" is a single by the Beastie Boys, released by Def Jam Records on 12" in 1984. The track contains samples from the AC/DC song "Back in Black", which was used without obtaining legal permission, causing the record to be withdraw ...

''. An online article from the publication stated that each and every track on the album could potentially serve as a hit single. A supportive yet mixed review by music critic Tim DiGravina of Allmusic stated that the group "finds it hard to settle on any one style throughout" ''Swagger'' while noting the band's "large cult following". The critic also remarked on the similarity of style in some respects to

Simple Minds Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band formed in Glasgow in 1977. They have released a string of hit singles, becoming best known internationally for "Don't You (Forget About Me)" (1985), which topped the '' Billboard'' Hot 100 in the United St ...

, mentioning how Gun's then drummer, Mark Kerr, is the brother of that other group's vocalist,

Jim Kerr James Kerr (born 9 July 1959) is a Scottish singer and the lead singer of the rock band Simple Minds, becoming best known internationally for "Don't You (Forget About Me)" (1985), which topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the United States. O ...

. Gun's version of "Word Up!" won the ''Best Cover'' trophy at the first international ''

'', with that inaugural event being held on 24 November 1994 at

Brandenburg Gate The Brandenburg Gate (german: Brandenburger Tor ) is an 18th-century neoclassical monument in Berlin, built on the orders of Prussian king Frederick William II after restoring the Orangist power by suppressing the Dutch popular unrest. One ...

in Berlin, Germany. Said event was hosted by notable singer-songwriter Tom Jones. Gun edged out

Wet Wet Wet Wet Wet Wet are a Scottish soft rock band formed in 1982. They scored a number of hits in the UK charts and around the world in the 1980s and 1990s. They are best known for their 1994 cover of The Troggs' 1960s hit "Love Is All Around", which w ...

's take on "

Love Is All Around "Love Is All Around" is a song recorded by English rock band the Troggs, featuring a string quartet and a 'tick tock' sound on percussion, in D-major. Released as a single in October 1967, it was a top-ten hit in both the UK and US. "Love I ...

" and the

Pet Shop Boys The Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of primary vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 50 million records worldwide, and were listed as the most successful duo i ...

' cover of " Go West" among other songs. ''Swagger'' reached the peak of No. 5 on the official British albums chart, and its release is viewed by many Gun fans as the pinnacle of the band's recording career.

Track listing

# "Stand in Line" # "Find My Way" # " Word Up!" (originally by Cameo) # "Don't Say It's Over" # "The Only One" # "Something Worthwhile" # "Seems Like I'm Losing You" # "Crying Over You" # "One Reason" # "Vicious Heart"

Charts

Certifications

References

External links

Gun – Official Website
{{Authority control 1994 albums A&M Records albums

Swagger A swagger or swagga is a swaggering gait. Swagger also may refer to: * Swagger or swagman, a transient labourer in Australia and New Zealand * Swagger (software), a specification for defining the interface of a REST web service now known as Open ...