When the Scorpions announced that the "Get Your Sting and Blackout World Tour" was going to be their final tour ever and that they were calling it quits after almost forty years together, it was a no-brainer that I would be there. The band was a huge part of my Heavy Metal Arena Rock Show teenage years (dating back to 1983) and I just could not pass up the opportunity to see them live one last time. I have to admit that I went in wondering if they would still be able to deliver after all these years, but I walked out wondering how I could have ever doubted them.
As the lights dimmed and classic footage of the them on stage at 1983 US Festival played on the screen behind them, the Scorpions hit the stage with the title track of their latest record Sting In The Tail, and it was quickly apparent that the they were about to unleash the rock show that fans had come to see. Guitarist Rudolf Schenker was a sixty-year-old freak of energy from the first riff of his Flying V, and his on stage antics had me flashing back to seeing them on stage some twenty-five years earlier. And speaking of flashbacks, the next two songs – "Make It Real" and "Bad Boys Running Wild" were nothing short of classic Scorpions, with Rudolf and his guitar counterpart Matthias Jabs swinging their guitars in unison.
Although there were just a couple of noticeable (and regrettably missed) omissions from the set list, the 1-2-3 punch of “The Zoo,” “Coast To Coast” and “Loving You Sunday Morning” were more than enough to make up for what they didn't play. Vocalist Klaus Meine still sounds pretty damn good after all these years, and his shouts of "Caleeforniaaah…!" had the crowd roaring with approval. The bottom end of Paweł Mąciwoda on bass and James Kottak on drums did the job quite nicely, and even though Kottak's drum solo might have been just a bit over the top, it showed the right skills to man the kit for the mighty Germans, without a doubt.
Of course, no Scorpions show would even be a Scorpions show without a few of their signature power ballads, and the band didn't disappoint with “The Best Is Yet To Come,” “Winds Of Change” and my personal favorite “Holiday.” Although the air was filled with the flames from lighters for these songs the last time I saw The Scorpions live, tonight it was the warm glow of swaying iPhones that had the crowd singing in unison. It was a nice touch and sign of the time certainly, but as soon as Schenker hit the stage with bandages wrapped around his head and forks over his eyes (it was actually just a bald cap and fork-like sunglasses, but we all knew what it represented) the Scorps burned their way through “Blackout” and the rock was back on. “Six String Sting” and “Big City Nights” closed out the set, but we all knew there were a few more songs that needed to be played, and once again they brought the goods with their two biggest hits 'No One Like You' and 'Rock You Like Hurricane'. The show could not have ended on a higher note.
Looking back on the show now, I really can't say enough about just how good the Scorpions still are, and how much I will miss them. It looks like they are taking this tour well into 2012, so hopefully there will be one last Bay Area show. Don't miss them when they hit your city!
Artist:
www.the-scorpions.com/english/
www.myspace.com/officialscorpions
Albums:
Sting In The Tail is out now. Buy it here on Amazon .
