I love to find bootlegs from my favorite bands. I was out and about doing some digging and came across this beauty. It is called ‘Rock And Roll Queen’ and it is a Scorpions bootleg taken from a live show all the back on the Fly to the Rainbow Tour. The show was recorded at Grugahalle, Essen, Germany on April 26, 1975. The line-up is great as it was Klaus Meine, Uli Jon Roth, Rudolf Schenker, Rudy Lenners and Francis Buchholz. There were various different colored vinyl released like red, white and peach and those are all listed on Discogs. My copy is traditional black and is not listed on Discogs…hmmm…that is strange. Maybe the black is more rare…who knows.
It opens with a straight up jam. It is a lot of guitar showboating and it is awesome. A nice drum and bass groove with Uli and Rudolf going to town. It is simply called “Jam” which is very appropriate. Not a traditional opening, but I’ll take it. They then go in to “This is My Song” off ‘Fly to the Rainbow. A mid-tempo rocker and it sounds great. It is a bootleg so it is a little rough, but I can hear everything. It only sounds like it does because it is from 1975. There are some cool moments with some dual guitar work with Uli and Rudolf wailing a solo. And if that isn’t enough, listen to Francis on bass…what a cool groove he is laying down. Lyrically, not the most stellar track, but musically, it does kick some ass. When the songs ends there is some polite clapping no huge cheers or roars.
Since they are in German, when Klaus addresses the crowd he does it in German which is cool and makes sense. They then go in to “They Need a Million”. It opens as a ballad with just a guitar that you can barely hear and Klaus singing away. A little ways in, a killer riff kicks in and the song explodes with some heavy drums. Someone else is on vocals and I believe it is Rudolf, Klaus comes back in and sings some harmonies, but this is a Rudolf track. The studio track has a Spanish vibe, this is pure rock & roll.
And Klaus still doesn’t sing when we get in to “Drifting Sun” as Uli takes the lead on this one. The opening guitar riffs are so Hendrix and “Spanish Castle Magic” and not a bad person to copy. He even has a little Hendrix style on vocals. He’s no Klaus Meine, but he ain’t half bad either. The sound is a little rough on this one going a little quiet at times and so far worse sounding song on the album. It also goes on a really long time, but it is still a great Uli showcase song. And some nice bass work from Franchis.
The final track on Side 1 is a Hendrix cover of the song “Red House”. It is a really bluesy tune with some sweet guitar work and sensational bass lines. A nice little groovetastic song. Now, the song just stops and fades back in so I am guessing there was an issue with the tape this was taken from which is too bad.
Side two kicks off with the title track, “Rock And Roll Queen” and it is a beaut of a jam. It isn’t their song that I know of so not sure who’s it is. I thought it was going to be Mott the Hoople’s song but it doesn’t sound like it. It is a pretty killer track though and I dig it. The guitar playing is immense, powerful and freaking awesome. Any help on this one would be great as i can’t place it. If it is their song it has to be rare.
Then we get to the title track from the album they are touring on and that is “Fly to the Rainbow”. They ditch the acoustic guitars and ramp up the electric ones and along with that driving drum beat, the band rocks out on 10…maybe even 11. Klaus’ vocals soar throughout and they turn this in to a one of the best tracks in the show. The song is real proggy and goes through many changes and adds to the charm. There is a storytelling part of the song that Uli does the vocals on and then they jam some more. A really interesting track.
After a brief intro they go straight in to another stellar track with the rocking “Speedy’s Coming”. Uli Jon Roth makes it known that he is the force behind their sound as his playing is exceptional. Klaus wails the vocals and makes me feel right at home as it his voice that for me screams Scorpions. The drumming by Rudy and Francis’ bass are a lethal combo and throw in Rudolf’s rhythm guitar and you have a hell of a package.
The final real song is “Robot Man” which actually is of ‘In Trance’ which comes out about 6 months after this show. The quick barrage of the drums and Rudolf’s guitar shuffle suck you in to this cool, fast-paced blistering track. The studio tracks has some effects on Klaus’ vocals, but not here. It is all Klaus. A frenzied, fast pace rocking track and great way to end the show and it ends with polite applause. Not the crazy screaming fans at a U.S. concert…but wait there is more. The show ends as it started with a Jam session. Klaus jumps in to start singing and it just ends. Nuts. Not sure the point of that. But oh well, that is what they gave us.
This is my first Scorpions and bootleg and so thrilled to get a show from all the way back in 1975. I did find it weird they played nothing from Lonesome Crow. The sound wasn’t bad. There were some moments where it cut in and out, the volume would go soft sometimes, but nothing bad enough to not enjoy the album. It is a short set, but sometimes that is all you need. An enjoyable setlist, some great guitar work and Klaus sings his heart out. And I love the little German interludes when Klaus speaks to the German crowd. My Overall Score is a 3.5 out of 5.0 Stars as I am sure there are better recordings out there, however, this is still not bad at all and I enjoyed it a lot. Early Scorpions is always a good thing.
THE SCORPIONS COLLECTION SERIES:
- Lonesome Crow (1972)
- Fly to the Rainbow (1974)
- In Trance (1975)
- Virgin Killer (1976)
- Taken by Force (1977)
- Tokyo Tapes (1978)
- Lovedrive (1979)
- Best of Scorpions (1979)
- Animal Magnetism (1980)
- Rock Galaxy (1980) – Bonus Edition
- Blackout (1982)
- Hot & Heavy (1982)
- Love at First Sting (1984)
- Still Loving You Maxi Single (1984)
- Best of Scorpions Vol. 2 (1984)
- Gold Ballads (1984)
- World Wide Live (1985)
- Savage Amusement (1988)
- Rhythm of Love – Single (Box Set) (1988)
- Best of Rockers ‘n’ Ballads (1989)
- Crazy World (1990)
- Crazy World – 4 Track From Crazy World Promo Vinyl (1990)
- Tease Me Please Me Promo CD (1990)
- Don’t Believe Her Promo CD (1990)
- Send Me An Angle Promo CD (1991)
- Face the Heat (1993)
- Live Bites (1995)
- Pure Instinct (1996)
- Big City Nights (Compilation) (1998)
- Eye II Eye (1999)
- Moment of Glory (with Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra) (2000)
- Acoustica (2001)
- Bad for Good: The Very Best Of Scorpions (2002)
- Unbreakable (2004)
- Humanity: Hour 1 (2007)
- Sting in the Tail (2010)
- Comeblack (2011)
- MTV Unplugged in Athens (2013)
- Return to Forever (2015)
- Rock Believer (2022)
- The Albums Ranked Worst to First
- Rock And Roll Queen (2019) – BOOTLEG