Published on Jun 16, 2006
This is another one of those albums that works like a
time machine for me. Four chords in and it’s 1979 again and oh God
is that really *all* my hair?
But I digress. The Scorpions were formed in Hannover,
Germany in 1969 by guitarist/vocalist Rudolf Schenker, who shed the
band’s entire first lineup before they ever recorded, forming a new
band around the core of lead singer Klaus Meine and, on lead
guitar, Rudolf’s brother Michael. After the Scorpions’ debut album
Lonesome Crow, Michael Schenker departed to gain fame as
lead axeman for UFO, and was replaced by Uli Jon Roth.
The Scorpions’ early sound took its cues from hard
rock contemporaries like Deep Purple and Black Sabbath, using their
twin-guitar attack to construct a barrage of monster riffs and
screechy vocals that was full of energy, if a little short on
finesse. They experienced moderate success through four albums, but
never seemed to hit on all cylinders.
That all changed with Lovedrive. As fate would
have it, Roth departed the Scorpions at almost the same time
Michael Schenker left UFO, leading to Michael being recruited back
into the fold on a temporary basis. Lovedrive features
Michael sharing guitar duties with brother Rudolf and the band’s
new lead guitarist — still with them today — Matthias Jabs. At
the same time, the band elected to go in a more melodic direction,
taking the hint from the successful arena rock bands of the day
that The Killer Riff goes down easier paired with a singalong
chorus and slicker production. They were still a lot closer to
AC/DC than Journey, but on Lovedrive, the Scorpions
delivered heavy music that dares to be hummable.
Nowhere is that truer than on the title track, whose
brilliant chorus melody and sizzling solos put it up there among
the era’s neglected classics. “Loving You Sunday Morning” is nearly
its equal, a rocker full of stellar riffs that convey a kind of
languid intensity that’s perfect for the lyric. “Can’t Get Enough,”
as obvious as it is, explodes with undeniable energy. “Another
Piece Of Meat” is maybe the one place where the boys go right on
over the top into Bon Scott territory with the lyric, but Michael’s
leads are muscular, fiery and damn near unstoppable.
Of note here also is the inclusion of one of the
band’s best ballads, the stately, often soaring “Holiday.” The
Scorps would go on to have several hits in the same power-ballad
vein, but none with the creative atmospherics of this one’s
extended outro. A final highlight is the instrumental “Coast To
Coast,” a pure showcase for the Schenker brothers that stands among
the best of its genre.
Two mid-tempo cuts (“Always Somewhere” and “Is There
Anybody There?”) don’t quite live up to the rest of the album, and
there are places where the band’s sometimes-tenuous grasp on the
English language leaves the lyrics feeling slightly off-kilter. But
these are minor quibbles on a superb album.
(Sidebar: The cover seen here was banned in the US
and replaced with one featuring a drawing of a steely-looking
Scorpion perched on top of the band’s logo. What can I say, I live
in a country where SUVs are a birthright and breasts are dirty.
It’s a mad, mad, mad, mad world.)
Lovedrive was the album that pointed the
Scorpions in the musical direction they’ve successfully pursued
ever since, and a highlight of a career that’s been successful in
many more ways than simply outlasting my hairstyle.