Scorpions
Fly To The Rainbow

THE REVIEW

In 1972, the Scorpions released the not-so-great "Lonesome Crow," their first album. The revered Michael Schenker appeared on guitar, in one of his worst performances. In the same year, the alcohol-inclined guitarist left the Scorpions to join a respectable band, UFO. The German group disbanded until Rudolf Schenker, the real driving force of the band, asked a certain Ulrich Roth to join them as lead guitarist. Roth accepted, but the original lineup of the Scorpions changed: besides the renowned guitarist, they added Francis Bucholz on bass and Jurgen Rosenthal from Dawn Road, the band Roth came from, on drums. Of course, the remarkable Klaus Meine remained on vocals. With this excellent lineup, the real first masterpiece of the old-style Scorpions came to light: "Fly To The Rainbow."

The album differs from the previous one not only due to the better guitar performances by Uli Jon Roth but also due to a definite change in direction, from the psychedelic rock of the debut to a hard rock — always contaminated — that is decidedly more visceral. The opening track is proof of this, starting with its name: "Speedy's Coming." It's the shortest track on the album but encapsulates what the Scorpions would be all about: plenty of good hard rock and intense solos. "Drifting Sun," sung by Roth himself, allows the guitarist to present himself as a great admirer of Jimi Hendrix, drawing on the heavy use of the vibrato bar and effected sounds. The long instrumental outro exemplifies the band's technical prowess. The obligatory ballad, "Fly People Fly", is also very interesting, with simple and repetitive lyrics and many guitar solos. This structure is something our beloved group would revisit in their future works. In "This Is My Song," we find one of the first examples of cross-guitar (later picked up by Thin Lizzy and Judas Priest, just to name the most famous) by Schenker and Roth. The lyrics resemble a nursery rhyme, with two single phrases repeated throughout the track, sung flawlessly by Klaus Meine with truly exceptional melody. Closing the album is the best track: "Fly To The Rainbow." After an acoustic guitar intro where Roth's neoclassical character is already evident, it continues alternating the sound of a ballad with razor-sharp dual guitars and a psychedelic five-to-six-minute outro which is a tribute to Hendrix's acid improvisations.

Even though this album may still seem rather raw compared to the later masterpieces ("In Trance," "Virgin Killer," and "Taken By Force"), it contains all the potential of the great German band. The sounds are already defined, as are the roles of the individual members within the group. It's also true that Roth would take more space in the future, Schenker would execute more engaging rhythms, and Meine would thrill us even more with his delicate and expressive vocal timbre; however, in 1974, the Scorpions had already understood everything. And it was just the beginning.

Ps: As they aged, they managed to produce better covers... this one is truly hideous.