Cat Scratch Fever is the third studio album by American rock musician Ted Nugent. It was released on May 13, 1977, by Epic Records. Vocalist Derek St. Holmes, who had left the band during the recording of the album Free-for-All, had come back for touring in 1976 and was again the principal lead singer on this album. It is the last studio album to feature bassist Rob Grange.

A commercial success, the album has been certified multi-platinum by the RIAA. Nugent released his next album, Double Live Gonzo!, the following year.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic
Classic Rock
Christgau's Record GuideB
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal8/10
Rolling Stone(favorable)

Cat Scratch Fever received a mostly positive review from Greg Prato of AllMusic, who remarked that it "matched the focused ferocity of Nugent's excellent 1975 debut", proclaiming it a "first-rate set of brash hard rockers".

Track listing

All songs written by Ted Nugent, except "Live It Up" (written by Nugent and Derek St. Holmes). All songs arranged by Nugent, Rob Grange, St. Holmes, and Cliff Davies.

Side one
No.TitleLead vocalsLength
1."Cat Scratch Fever"Ted Nugent3:41
2."Wang Dang Sweet Poontang"Nugent3:17
3."Death by Misadventure"Derek St. Holmes3:31
4."Live It Up"St. Holmes4:02
5."Home Bound" (instrumental)4:43
Side two
No.TitleLead vocalsLength
6."Workin' Hard, Playin' Hard"St. Holmes5:44
7."Sweet Sally"Nugent2:34
8."A Thousand Knives"St. Holmes4:48
9."Fist Fightin' Son of a Gun"St. Holmes2:51
10."Out of Control"St. Holmes3:27
1999 CD reissue bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
11."Cat Scratch Fever" (live)4:52
12."Wang Dang Sweet Poontang" (live)5:44

Personnel

Band members

  • Ted Nugent – lead guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals on tracks 1, 2, 7, percussion
  • Derek St. Holmes – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, arrangements
  • Rob Grange – bass, backing vocals, arrangements
  • Cliff Davies – drums, backing vocals, arrangements

Additional musicians

Production

  • Cliff Davies – production
  • Tom Werman – production
  • Lew Futterman – production
  • Tim Geelan, Wayne Tarnowski – engineering
  • Jim Houghton, Robert Alford, Ron Pownall – photography
  • Bruce Dickinson – 1999 reissue production
  • Vic Anesini – remastering
  • Howard Fritzson – 1999 reissue art direction
  • Gary Graff – 1999 reissue liner notes

Charts

Chart (1977)Peak position
Australia Albums (Kent Music Report)90
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)25
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)14
UK Albums (OCC)28
US Billboard 20017

Certifications

RegionCertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)Platinum100,000^
United States (RIAA)3× Platinum3,000,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.