Ελληνικά
Last Updated on 03:52 AM by Giorgos Tsekas
Genre: Hard Rock/Heavy Metal
Country: Germany
Label: SPV/Steamhammer
Scorpions are a great love of mine. You see, you cannot forget your first love. Scorpions have been loved by the Greek crowd like no one else and at the same time have received loads of derision, just because they visit our country oftenly for live performances. However, I don’t get that last thing, to be frank. So, we’re not grateful for their often gigs? If somebody told us in the ‘80s that there will be a time when we would see Scorpions frequently, we would jump frantically. In the end of the day, they’ve always been excellent in their gigs, professionals and a pleasure guaranty. On the other hand, those masculine metalheads who mock Scorpions for their ballads, all I have to say is that those who haven’t ever felt a burning in their heart, cried and drunk themselves to sleep for a lady cannot realize the greatness of tracks like “Still Loving You”. So, they’d better go charge themselves, since they seem to be robots. Since Scorpions have been active for 50 years now, they’ve chosen to re – release a huge part of their catalog in both vinyl and CD formats with bonus material.
“Taken By Force” (the band’s last album with Roth) is a brilliant record and a necessary possession for the enthusiasts of good music, whatever your genre preference is. In this release it’s the first time that the rejected artwork of the past will be used as a cover. Moreover, “Sails of Sharon” in its full recording has been added, along with its psychedelic intro that was left out from every edition except for the Japanese.
“Lovedrive” was the first record that allowed the band to conquer the universal stage and reach success. At last, they’d managed to conquer the U.S. and Great Britain, countries necessary to achieve worldwide success. Even if they had changed their musical preferences comparing this era to the Roth-era, they maintained the good quality of the compositions, while Jobs did a great work of guitars. Furthermore, in some tracks the leads were recorded by Michael Schenker, who even though was supposed to return as a permanent member, once more he thought otherwise. It’s a record full of hymns, with no mediocre tracks and a record that was loved by the band’s fans like no other. In this re – release two bonus demos are included and a bonus DVD from their second tour in Japan (plus interviews, etc).
When “Animal Magnetism” includes “Lady Starlight”, “The Zoo” and “Make it Real”, they you know it’s a classic. I’m not fond of it like I am for the previous records, but it’s a signature Scorpions product. This re – release has six bonus tracks, one of which being “Hey You”, sung by Rudolph Schenker.
“Blackout” was Scorpions’ most difficult record. Meine suffered by polyp in his vocal strings, lost his voice and needed surgery. It was not clear if he would ever sing again that the band decided to use the assistance of Don Dokken to record the demos, since they didn’t know when Meine would recover. Meine managed to cope with all the adversities and returned recording one of their most successful albums (Dokken was subsided with a few backing vocals). There are no fillers here. Every song is a delight and in this re-release there are five bonus songs, making this release a must have. As if that wasn’t enough, a bonus DVD from their live performance on ZDF channel in 1983 is also included.
For me, you’re not a real fan of Scorpions if you haven’t got “Love at First Sting” in your collection. It’s that simple. Huge success and the proof that you can release something commercially – friendly but keep the quality at high levels. The CD edition is full of bonus tracks, even bonus DVD material. I don’t have to speak any longer, those who don’t have it, make a gift to yourself!
“Savage Amusement” is the weakest of all the re – releases. It was a time when Scorpions had turned to the American market and their compositions are plain. But, for this significant genre it easily wipes out many American records of the same field. I wouldn’t say it’s a necessary buy, though the addition of so many bonus tracks and a DVD with live performances in Russia is tempting.
In addition, two of their best live albums are going to be re – released as well (“Tokyo Tapes” and “World Wide Live”). They both are the masterful reflections of their tour (with and without Roth). And that’s coming from someone who isn’t a fan of live LPs (I’ve always wanted the full package, live video or DVD). These are two of the best live records of our time.
Overall, the re – releases are good and well – crafted with dynamic sound and good packaging (at least from what I’ve seen). The LPs will include CDs as bonuses in paper folds. Also, there’s a limited box set including all of the vinyls. Got to save some money for that, I’m drooling over this release!
5/6
