Manuel “Manny” Charlton (25 July 1941 – 5 July 2022) was a Scottish musician and producer best known as a founding member and lead guitarist of the legendary hard rock band Nazareth, a role he held from 1968 to 1990. He also produced several of the band’s most iconic albums, including the 1975 classic Hair of the Dog.

Charlton’s production work caught the attention of Axl Rose, who requested “the guy who produced Hair of the Dog” to work on what would become Guns N’ Roses’ breakthrough album. In 1986, Charlton recorded 25 songs with the band at Sound City Studios in Los Angeles — including early versions of “Paradise City,” “Welcome to the Jungle,” and “November Rain.” Though he later returned to Europe to rejoin Nazareth, and Mike Clink took over production duties, Charlton’s recordings were eventually released as bonus tracks on the 2018 reissue of Appetite for Destruction.

Over the following decades, Charlton pursued a rich solo career, releasing albums such as Say the Word (2004), Sharp and Sharp Re-Loaded (2005), and Americana Deluxe. In 2013, he released Hellacious, recorded in California with guest musicians like Tim Bogert and Steven Adler. A 2018 compilation, Créme De La Créme, celebrated the best of his solo work.

Manny relocated to Córdoba, Spain in 2015 and remained musically active until his passing in Texas on 5 July 2022 at age 80.

I worked with Manny as his guitar technician on what is now known to be his final UK tour. After the tour ended, I finally worked up the courage to ask him a few questions — a conversation that would become his last recorded interview.

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Liam : You began with Nazareth in 1968 and had a very distinct voice.With your playing style similar to soulful blues but with a rock and roll twist. Were there any guitarists who influenced you to develop your own style?

Manny : Yeah, I started playing around 1958, listening to all the early 1st generation rockers like Buddy Holly. Chuck Berry, Eddie Cochran then into the 60s where I developed my style, trying to emulate all my favourite blues players like Lonnie Mack, Clapton, Beck, Page, etc.

Liam : Listening to the transitions between Nazareth’s self-titled album and Hair of the Dog’s 1975 masterpiece, how do you feel the transition in your songwriting improved throughout the exercise, razamanaz, loud n’ proud, and rampant albums? Do you think there was a subcontious effort to make it more rock and roll than soulful and melodic? Did you find you had to tame any of your playing to compensate for the compositions?

Manny : We learned a lot on our Roger Glover-produced records, and we became a much better band through the endless touring and gigging. I was always responsible for doing all our early demos, so it was natural that I became the band’s producer. By the time we did HOD, we knew what we wanted, and that was to become heavier and bluesier… We had a great set of songs for that album, and the band was on fire …

Liam : You’re best known for using a black Les Paul with three humbuckers and a Bigsby vibrato in Nazareth.Having worked with you in the past briefly on your last UK solo tour, you still primarily use humbucker pickups. Is there a reason why you always preferred Les Pauls over stratocasters, telecasters, and other models that were available?

Manny : For live work, I prefer humbuckers…nothing beats a Les Paul into a Marshall stack, especially for hard rock.

Liam : I was quoting your old technician, Tam Sinclair, when he was talking about the various amplifiers you used in the dressing room to rehearse with.On stage, I recall always having Marshall Valve Amps with the full 4×12 stack setup. Is there a reason why you didn’t use your signature sound when rehearsing? Was it to try and steer off into other genres of music, or just simply to try and develop different sounds?

Manny : No, using a full stack for rehearsal or in a tune-up room is overkill. Generally, in a rehearsal situation with the full band, I’d use a half stack.

Liam : Continuing with some Nazareth days on the records and live albums that were released over your career, one can assume that you used a basic setup of just a delay and some chorus. Do you recall what pedals you used? Is there anything that is no longer in production that you would like to continue using?

Manny : I always used a distortion pedal in the early days. It was a Solasound Tone Bender… Later, I added a Univibe, an Echoplex, and sometimes an MXR Phaser. I wish I still had them all. Especially the Univibe. I still can’t find anything close.

Liam : On your last UK solo tour, I remember you using a plimsoul due to the richness in harmonics. Do you still get a buzz off of finding and experimenting with new tones? I remember you telling me about using Dussenberg guitars instead of the Les Pauls you were favoured with, so one can assume that you are still trying to define your legendary and distinctable signature sound all these years later.

Manny : I’m a hands-down total gearslut. I’m always looking for another colour to inspire me.

Liam : Having gone from a hugely successful career with Nazareth to then releasing 13 solo records, do you find it hard to compose without the input of other people? Do you feel like you have to press your musical senses more in order to create the groove for the tracks you are writing?

Manny : Nope I’m used to working solo… but I like having someone to help out with drums, bass and vocals when I need them.

Liam : Can you tell me a bit about the amplifiers and pedals that you are using in your studio?

Manny : At the moment in my studio I have a couple of great amps from Stewart Denny…a Roland Jazz chorus For super clean stuff & a Marshall JCM 900 also when I get lazy, I use a Kemper Profiling Amp that is just ridiculously good. Pedals: FullTone Pllmsoul. & Tremolo… Keeley Compressor (The Best) a Boss Chorus and a Rat Distortion but really, when I’m recording I use software plug-ins. They are getting better all the time.

Liam : You always said to me whenever we talked about songwriting that the music should be kept as simple as possible within the chord progressions. The simpler, the better. I think I recall your words. How do you seem to create new melodies with chords that are so commonly used by nearly every musician in the world and still manage to find something that nobody else has done?

Manny : The thing I learned a long time ago was to stop analysing what I write and let other people be the judge… & Lennon said, “If I could write a song on one chord, I’d be happy.” My difficulty is coming up with lyrics that I’m happy with. I miss Dan McCafferty for that.

Liam : You seemed to switch between guitar tunings on tour; is this something you do to experiment with different emotions, or is it an accident that resulted in more dramatic and ear-catching melodies?

Manny : I like different tunings because they get me to a place where I don’t know what I’m doing and I like that. LOL

Liam : For some people like myself who love to play along to your classic repertoire, what would you say to someone who wants to get that pure, solid, unprocessed rock and roll Manny Charlton guitar tone?

Manny : Les Paul, Marshall, crank it up to 11 and wail. But remember, in the end, it’s all in your fingers and soul.

Liam : In the studio, you have extensive knowledge of producing and using various plugins. Back in the 70s and 80s, things were not digital and were mostly analogue consoles with a mountain of outboard gear… I myself can hear a lot of the difference. Sometimes things sound wider with the frequency bands but do not necessarily have the same clarity. What is your stance on this? For me personally, I think something has gotten lost in the art of recording. Many people, such as yourself, used to go into a room, hit record, and just play. Now artists and musicians seem to spend 3 or 4 years with all these tools just to get a certain drum sound.Do you miss working with older technology?

Manny : On engineering and production, I have a straightforward philosophy. If it sounds good, it is good…… There is too much voodoo nonsense associated with recording, so ignore it.

Liam : you’re well-known for producing Guns N’ Roses’ first demo…Having heard these sessions, the guitar tone seems to be more defined and rawer and less saturated in reverb and high treble frequencies. Did you advise the band or have to tame the tones back?

Manny : Nope, I just set them up in the studio and told them to pretend that they were in a packed club and gimme your full set. Axel I wedged between the two studio doors and recorded them straight to stereo with no overdubs or multi-tracking.

I hope this works for you.
Manny