When a writer does pre-writing exercises, it is
mainly to loosen up the creative juices and to get ready for a
piece of writing that will become their best work. The Scorpions’
Lovedrive is an audio example of this process; while the
material is not terrible, it definitely is a prelude to what would
come later.
The Scorpions recorded these eight songs in four
months, adding to a schedule that saw them tour around the world,
playing in Moscow before it was okay to do so and creating some
great slices of heavy arena rock. One could argue that guitarists
Rudolf Schenker and Matthias Jabs are synonymous with “great guitar
riff.”
But the disc starts slowly with “Loving You Sunday
Morning,” which suffers from the mid-tempo crunch when the band
drops the tempo and gets sappy. “Another Piece of Meat,” is a solid
track, one I consider pre-writing for later classics like “No One
Like You.” The groove is solid and drummer Herman Rarebell and
bassist Francis Buchholz nail the up-tempo shifts, which are more
energetic than “Loving You Sunday Morning.” The lyrics are better
as well.
Also, the ballad “Always Somewhere” is like any other
track about being on the road and away from loved ones, giving it a
universal appeal because it is about the desolation inside of the
soul when the spark that makes life worthwhile is not around.
Vocalist Klaus Meine sounds convincingly alone and sad on this
track.
Other highlights include the instrumental “Coast To
Coast,” a showcase for the Schenker/Jabs guitar experience that has
no low points, and the chaotic “Can’t Get Enough,” which is a
pre-write of “Coming Home.” The band pulls out an apparent reggae
influence for “Is There Anybody There?,” the least rocking song on
this release but a refreshing departure from the rest of the
material that works.
The title track and “Holiday” end this release.
“Lovedrive” could have easily been the lead-off track as Schenker
and Jabs introduce it with a great guitar riff, Meine sings in his
thick German accent and the rhythm section pounds throughout the
song. “Holiday” is the band’s other ballad and, like other tracks
on this release, is really pre-writing for “Still Loving You” or
even “Winds of Change.”
In short, this disc is solid but not great,
functioning more as an indicator of where this band was headed.
