Pete Agnew (born 14 September 1946) is a Scottish bassist and backing vocalist for the
hard rock band
Nazareth. Born in
Dunfermline, he is the sole continuous member who still is performing with the band, which released its first album ''
Nazareth'' in 1971, and the last founding member who remains alive.
Agnew formed a rock combo called the Shadettes in 1961, performing for eight years as the band's rhythm guitarist. In 1969 the band needed a new bassist. He once quipped, "I never even wanted to play the bass (laughter). The only reason why I started playing the bass was because there was nobody in Dunfermline who could do it (laughter)." The band became known as Nazareth in 1970.
He is the last surviving member of the best-known lineup of Nazareth, predeceased by vocalist
Dan McCafferty
William Daniel McCafferty (14 October 1946 – 8 November 2022) was a vocalist and songwriter best known as the lead singer for the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth from its founding in 1968 to his retirement from touring with the band in 2013.
...
, guitarist
Manny Charlton
Manuel Charlton (25 July 1941 – 5 July 2022) was a Scottish musician, who was known as a founding member of the influential Scottish hard rock band Nazareth and was their lead guitarist from 1968 to 1990. He also produced a string of succe ...
, and drummer
Darrell Sweet.
Agnew is the father of
Lee Agnew, drummer for Nazareth since the death of
Darrell Sweet who died in 1999. Two other sons, Stevie and Chris, are musicians.
References
1946 births
Living people
Scottish heavy metal bass guitarists
Scottish bass guitarists
People from Dunfermline
Nazareth (band) members
Blues rock musicians
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