I. General Questions
1. Who are Pantera?
2. Where did they get their name from?
3. Are there any former members of Pantera?
4. Were Pantera glam-metal?

II. Official Releases
1. How many albums have Pantera released?
2. But I've only heard of six albums
3. Have Pantera had any number one albums?
4. How many singles have Pantera released?
5. Have Pantera had any number one songs?
6. How many videos have Pantera released?
7. How many video clips do Pantera have?
8. Are Pantera on any compilation albums?
9. Where can I get bootlegged Pantera concerts?

 III. Side Projects
1. How many side projects does Phil have?
2. Where can I find releases by these bands?
3. Do the other members of Pantera have side projects?
4. I heard Pantera were recording with a country music artist

 IV. Phil Anselmo
1. What does Phil's "ATR" tattoo stand for?
2. Is Phil gay?
3. Did Phil overdose on heroin?
4. Does Phil have throat cancer?
5. What is Phil's association with Trent Reznor?

 V. Other Questions
1. Do Pantera have their own recording studio?
2. When will the new Down album be released?
3. Are there any Pantera tribute albums?
4. Are any members of Pantera married?
5. What was the guitar contest that no one could beat Dimebag in for 3 years?

 Phil Anselmo - vocals
Dimebag Darrell - guitar
Rex Brown - bass
Vinnie Paul - drums

For a more in-depth look at the members of Pantera, check out the Biography section of this page.

2. Where did they get their name from?
I've heard a lot of different stories about how they got their name, but I'm sure this one is correct. Pantera were originally called Pantego, which is a place in Texas. They thought that didn't sound like a good name, so they changed it to Pantera, which is Spanish for "Panther".

3. Are there any former members of Pantera?
Yes, from 1982 to 1986, Terrence Lee was on vocals.
Between Terrence leaving the band and Phil joining at the end of 1986, there were three singers - David Peacock, Matt Lamour and Donny Hart.

4. Were Pantera glam-metal?
Yes, Pantera used to be glam-metal. Pantera released four albums which could be classed under the glam-metal genre. Three of these albums were recorded with the original singer, Terrence Lee. Pantera became noticably heavier when Phil joined the band. Phil recorded one glam metal album, Power Metal with Pantera, although he didn't write any of the lyrics to the album. Yet he brought a new hardcore edge to Pantera, which came out in the album Cowboys From Hell, which Phil wrote the lyrics for.

 Metal Magic - 1983
Projects In The Jungle - 1984
I Am The Night - 1986
Power Metal - 1988
Cowboys From Hell - 1990
Vulgar Display Of Power - 1992
Far Beyond Driven - 1994
The Great Southern Trendkill - 1996
Official Live: 101 Proof - 1997
Reinventing The Steel - 2000

For tracklisting of the albums, check out the album section in the Discography section of this page.

2. But I've only heard of six albums
Most people have only heard of six Pantera albums from Cowboys From Hell to Reinventing The Steel. That's because these albums were released on a major record label. Pantera had actually released four more albums before Cowboys From Hell on an independant record label. The albums before Cowboys From Hell are often referred to as the "glam era albums".

3. Have Pantera had any number one albums?
Yes, Far Beyond Driven actually debuted at number one on the American Billboard Charts, and The Australia Record Industry Charts.

4. How many singles have Pantera released?
Pantera have released five songs as singles: Mouth For War, Walk, I'm Broken, 5 Minutes Alone and Planet Caravan.

5. Have Pantera had any number one songs?
Yes, "Mouth For War", off Vulgar Display Of Power, debuted at number one - the first ever metal single to do that.

6. How many videos have Pantera released?
Pantera have released three home videos:

 Cowboys From Hell: The Videos - 1991
The Vulgar Video - 1993
3: Watch it Go - 1997

 Pantera also released a DVD collection in 1999 of all three home videos plus extra footage from the Monsters Of Rock festival.

7. How many video clips do Pantera have?
Eleven: Cowboys From Hell, Cemetery Gates, Psycho Holiday, Mouth For War, Walk, This Love, I'm Broken, 5 Minutes Alone, Planet Caravan, Drag The Waters and Revolution Is My Name.

8. Are Pantera on any compilation albums?
Yes, Pantera are on a ton of compilation albums. Pantera are featured on the Heavy Metal 2000 soundtrack, Nativity In Black II: Black Sabbath Tribute Album, The Crow soundtrack, and the Detroit Rock City soundtrack, just to name a few.

9. Where can I find bootlegged Pantera concerts?
The best way is to trade or buy bootlegs off Pantera fans. One place to find Pantera fans advertising bootlegs is on the alt.music.pantera newsgroup.
Other places to find Pantera bootlegs are Kiss The Stone and EBay.com.

Down
Necrophagia
Viking Crown
Superjoint Ritual
Body And Blood
Eibon
Christ Inversion
Both Legs Broken

Phil has also appeared on various albums of other bands as a special guest.

2. Where can I find releases by these bands?
Most of these bands haven't released anything official, so you would have to ask Pantera fans if they have any copies. Down's album, NOLA is not too hard to find, and you might be able to find releases by Necrophagia in import or metal music stores.

3. Do the other members of Pantera have side projects?
Dimebag, Vinnie and Rex are currently working with David Allen Coe on a country-metal album. Rex is a part of Down. Dimebag will be contributing a track to the upcoming Randy Rhodes tribute album. Rex, Vinnie and Dimebag are also Tres Diablos.

4. I heard Pantera were recording with a country music artist
Yes, that would be Dimebag, Vinnie and Rex recording with David Allen Coe. This is what Dimebag had to say about the collaboration: "We started cutting shit, putting together this crossover project called 'David Allen Coe and the Cowboys From Hell'. It's a rebel-meets-rebel kind of thing. We've finished eight songs and we have two more to record." [Guitar World, Issue 5, 2000].

2. Is Phil gay?
No, Phil is not gay.

3. Did Phil overdoes on heroin?
Yes, on the 13th of July, 1996, after a show at the Coca-Cola Starplex in Dallas, Texas, Phil overdosed on heroin and died for four for five minutes. He posted a statement to the alt.music.pantera newsgroup. You can read the full message in the Biography section.

4. Does Phil have throat cancer?
No, Phil does not have throat cancer, and he never had throat cancer. It was just a rumor someone posted on the internet, and a lot of people believed it to be true. So everyone can stop worrying - Phil's voice is fine.

5. What is Phil's association with Trent Reznor?
Trent Reznor lives in New Orleans (Phil's home town), and he also owns a recording studio there called "Nothing Studios". This is where the lyrics for The Great Southern Trendkill were recorded. Phil also guest stars on the upcoming Tapeworm album, which is one of Trent Reznor's side projects.

2. When will the new Down album be released?
There's no set date, but what I read was that Down will start recording in the summer this year (that's American summer).

3. Are there any Pantera tribute albums?
Yes two have been released: Southern Death: A Tribute To Pantera, and Panther: A Tribute To Pantera. Panther is supposed to be alright, but I've been told not to waste your money buying Southern Death.

4. Are any members of Pantera married?
Rex is the only member of Pantera who is married.

5. What was the guitar contest that no one could beat Dimebag in for 3 years?
Before Dimebag Darrell joined Pantera, he used to enter a guitar contest held by the Texas radio station, Q102. They used to hold a guitar contest every year, and Dimebag won it three years in a row. Nobody could beat him, so they had to ban him from entering the competition.