Following their Farewell tour for the ‘Sting of the Tail’ album, the band decided to release one more album as sort of a comeback, but not. In all the reviews I read on this one, all the reviewers listed as the band’s final album. So, how can it be a comeback if it is the final. That might lie in the name of the album because it is called ‘Comeblack”. So a comeback album but the end at the same time…I don’t know. I’m confused. The band wasn’t confused. The excitement they felt after that tour and all the screaming fans, the success of ‘Sting of the Tail’, all led to the band wanting to do one more and do it for the fans. But as a fan, I don’t remember asking for this.

That wasn’t the only confusing thing about this album. It is sort of a compilation album with 7 songs that are Scorpions classics, but re-recorded and the final 5 songs are cover tunes. No new material here at all. The band wanted to re-record some classics giving them a modern sound with the new production capabilities and they did just that. The cover song choices are a celebration of some of their favorite songs/artists from the 60’s and I will say, they all have that Scorpions sound. But let’s be honest, this is a complete and utter waste of time and energy.

The album was released on November 4, 2011 and in the U.S on January 24, 2012 where the album only sold 5,000 physical copies in its first week and reached #90 on the Billboard 200 chart. Not very impressive. Klaus Meine, Rudolf Schenker, Mathias Jabs, James Kottak and Pawel Maciwoda all returned for this mess…or was it really that bad. I know the album cover was pretty decent which is not something that is normally the case. My copy is a gatefold, 2LP version and the packaging looks fantastic, but it is what is on the inside that matters

LP 1:

The first LP is all covers and the songs are all classic Scorpions tracks. All the re-recorded songs, sound bigger and fuller than the original’s. They are basically the same tracks with minor changes here and there, maybe in the intro or the outro but basically, the causal listener, won’t be able to tell the difference. The amazing thing to me about all these 80’s tracks being re-recorded in the 2010’s is that Klaus Meine’s vocals sound just as fresh as they did back in the day. He has one of the few voices in rock that has aged beautifully.

But here’s the thing, songs like “Rhythm of Love” lack the warmth of the original. The production was actually better as it took more effort to get the songs to sound good. Plus, a lot of it feels like they are going through the motions. “No One Like You” still rocks out, no denying that. A brilliant song. Here it sounds fuller, richer and exciting, but still missing the heart. This is one song that a very casual listener couldn’t tell them apart, but it is obvious to me. Especially in the chorus. Now, I do like the version of “The Zoo” as the modern production does make it pop a little more. Now, the groove in it isn’t as perfect as back in the day, but it still kicks ass no matter when it is recorded as for me, it is that good of a song.

The flip side kicks off with “Rock You Like a Hurricane” and this was the first one to show a slip in vocals. Klaus did the best he could, but it felt a little off. Otherwise, crank it baby, but this one is still the most obvious it is a re-recording. Will always be a fun track though. “Blackout” is fine but the modern production takes away from the power and heart of the original. The original felt a little rougher, rawer…not here though. And finally we get “Wind of Change”. I’m not a fan of this song…overplayed and never one of my favorites to begin with. I’m probably in the minority, but not a song I would chose to want to hear again. And the new recording doesn’t change that feeling…enough said.

LP 2:

The 2nd LP kicks off with one more cover and that is “Still Loving You” which is a personal favorite song of mine. Klaus sounds great, no denying that here, but the emotion he garnered on the original is lost here. The heart and passion is missing. And thankfully that is the last of the covers. To me, totally unnecessary. I would’ve rather had all covers. So, let’s get to the covers. First off we get a cover of Gloria Jones’s “Tainted Love”. She did it long before Soft Cell and this has no keyboards like theirs did. This is a pure metal, Scorpions flavored cover and they do a great job. The drums are immense and the guitars rip-roar through out. A fun, energetic cover. Better than Manson’s cover too. Man, a lot of people have covered this one. The next cover is T. Rex’s song “Children of the Revolution” and another fine romp through a song. The Scorpions guitars turn it up a notch as Schenker and Jabs really pack a punch. Klaus changes up his vocals a little on this to get that Rex edge and the choruses are more with his higher register. Not bad at all.

The Beatles were a big influence on the band so why not cover one of their songs and they did with “Across the Universe”. They whip out the acoustics for this one and add a lot of Beatle-esque sounds in to it. It is psychedelic and completely stunning. One of my favorites of the bunch. They stay true to the heart and intent of the song and Klaus’ vocals are perfectly fit for it. Small Faces’ “Tin Soldiers” is up next and this is a fine version, but it does lack some of that energy and feelings of the original. There is an excitement or childlike energy in the original that is lacking although this version has more punch.

Speaking of punch, “All Day And All of the Night” cover of the Kinks song is a knock down drag out battle of guitars. The song sounds like it is on steroids with all those guitars. Schenker and Jabs have fun with this one. Plus the song is so, so good to begin with it is hard to screw it up. The last cover is of the Rolling Stones with “Ruby Tuesday” and that song is such a classic, that anything fails in comparison, sorry Scorps, but it does. Jagger is Jagger and no one else can hold a candle. It is still beautifully done, but completely misses the boat for me. It doesn’t even feel like the same song.

And there you have it. The re-recording of the classic Scorpions songs was a complete and utter waste of time for me. If I want to hear those, I’m going to ALWAYS listen to the original tracks. Under no circumstances would I ever care to listen to the re-recordings…EVER!! Now, the covers are a different story. Although they all don’t work perfectly, most are stellar covers and a lot of fun and I’d listen to the Scorpionized versions anytime. I wish they would’ve done a full covers album as that would be worth having in the collection. As a result, this one is for those people that need to complete the Scorpions library and nothing more. My Overall Score is a 2.0 out of 5.0 Stars as the covers were good, but nothing else was worth it.

NEXT UP: ‘MTV UNPLUGGED: LIVE IN ATHENS’ (2013)

THE SCORPIONS COLLECTION SERIES:

1. Lonesome Crow (1972)
2. Fly to the Rainbow (1974)
3. In Trance (1975)
4. Virgin Killer (1976)
5. Taken by Force (1977)
6. Tokyo Tapes (1978)
7. Lovedrive (1979)
8. Best of Scorpions (1979)
9. Animal Magnetism (1980)
10. Rock Galaxy (1980) – Bonus Edition
11. Blackout (1982)
12. Hot & Heavy (1982)
13. Love at First Sting (1984)
14. Still Loving You Maxi Single (1984)
15. Best of Scorpions Vol. 2 (1984)
16. Gold Ballads (1984)
17. World Wide Live (1985)
18. Savage Amusement (1988)
19. Rhythm of Love – Single (Box Set) (1988)
20. Best of Rockers ‘n’ Ballads (1989)
21. Crazy World (1990)
22. Crazy World – 4 Track From Crazy World Promo Vinyl (1990)
23. Tease Me Please Me Promo CD (1990)
24. Don’t Believe Her Promo CD (1990)
25. Send Me An Angle Promo CD (1991)
26. Face the Heat (1993)
27. Live Bites (1995)
28. Pure Instinct (1996)
29. Big City Nights (Compilation) (1998)
30. Eye II Eye (1999)
31. Moment of Glory (with Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra) (2000)
32. Acoustica (2001)
33. Bad for Good: The Very Best Of Scorpions (2002)
34. Unbreakable (2004)
35. Humanity: Hour 1 (2007)
36. Sting in the Tail (2010)
37. Comeblack (2011)
38. MTV Unplugged – Live in Athens (2013)
39. Return to Forever (2015)
40. Rock Believer (2022)
41. The Albums Ranked Worst to First