Original vocalist Danny Joe Brown returned for this recording, with a new rhythm section composed of bassist Riff West (ex-White Witch) and drummer Barry Borden (ex-Mother's Finest).

Mark Mehler of Record summarized the album as "mainly a routine blend of hard-core southern rock ("Sweet Dixie", "Ain't Even Close") and mainstream pop/rock ("What Does it Matter?

"[3] In a retrospective review, AllMusic's Michael B. Smith praised Molly Hatchet for the "return to the powerful sound that was so prevalent on its debut effort" and compared it to "the best Lynyrd Skynyrd record" and to a "hard rock vein reminiscent of Mountain or early Grand Funk Railroad".

[1] Canadian journalist Martin Popoff noticed how the sound of No Guts...No Glory is "remarkably consistent" with the preceding album, although cleaner and "a little less metal".

He praised the "dark epic ballad 'Fall of the Peacemakers'" and scorned "Kinda Like Love", the band's "first pop country rock song.