''The Michael Schenker Group'' is the debut studio album by English

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...

band

Michael Schenker Group The Michael Schenker Group (often abbreviated as MSG) are a guitar-oriented hard rock band, formed in London in 1979 by former Scorpions and UFO guitarist Michael Schenker. In 1986, Schenker and vocalist Robin McAuley formed the McAuley Schenke ...

, released in 1980. This was the first album after Schenker's departure from

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...

in 1978 and brief reunion with

Scorpions Scorpions are predatory arachnids of the order Scorpiones. They have eight legs, and are easily recognized by a pair of grasping pincers and a narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back and always end ...

for the album ''

Lovedrive ''Lovedrive'' is the sixth studio album by German band Scorpions, released in 1979. Considered by some critics to be the pinnacle of their career, ''Lovedrive'' was a major evolution of the band's sound, exhibiting their "classic style" that wou ...

''.

Reception and legacy

The album was a commercial and critical success, entering the charts in the US, the UK and Japan, and was supported by the singles "Armed and Ready" and "Cry for the Nations". The album also topped the

KTUH KTUH is a non-commercial, college radio, student-run, listener-supported station in Honolulu, Hawaii. It was Hawaii's first non-commercial FM station, and signed on the air July 7, 1969. Their programming originates from the studios located on th ...

's charts on the week of 29 September 1980.
KTUH FM Honolulu - Charts - September 29th, 1980. URL:http://ktuh.fm/charts/1980/09/29 The song "Armed and Ready" is featured in the video game '' Guitar Hero: Metallica''.

Track listing

All songs written by

Michael Schenker Michael Schenker (born 10 January 1955) is a German guitarist. He played in the rock band UFO and leads the Michael Schenker Group. He was an early member of the hard rock band Scorpions, a band co-founded by his elder brother Rudolf Schenker. ...

and

Gary Barden Gary John Barden (born 27 August 1955, Royal Tunbridge Wells, England) is an English singer-songwriter, best known for his work with Michael Schenker Group. Barden was discovered by Schenker upon the guitarist's hearing a demo of Barden's pre ...

unless otherwise noted. ;Side one # "Armed and Ready" - 4:05 # "Cry for the Nations" - 5:08 # "Victim of Illusion" - 4:41 # "Bijou Pleasurette" ''(Schenker)'' - 2:16 # "Feels Like a Good Thing" - 3:44 ;Side two #

"Into the Arena" ''(Schenker)'' - 4:10 # "Looking Out from Nowhere" - 4:28 # "Tales of Mystery" - 3:16 # "Lost Horizons" - 7:04

2009 Reissue bonus tracks

"Just a Lover" (demo) - 4:34 # "Looking Out from Nowhere" (demo) - 5:13 # "Get Up and Get Down" (demo) - 3:59 # "After Midnight" (demo) - 4:31 # "Breakout" (demo) - 4:42 # "Cry for the Nations" (radio edit) - 3:35 # "Armed and Ready" (live at the

Manchester Apollo The O2 Apollo Manchester (known locally as The Apollo and formerly Manchester Apollo) is a concert venue in Ardwick Green, Manchester, England. It is a Grade II listed building, with a capacity of 3,500 (2,514 standing, 986 seats). History The ...

) - 4:40 # "Into the Arena" (live at the

Hammersmith Odeon The Hammersmith Apollo, currently called the Eventim Apollo for sponsorship reasons, and formerly known as the Hammersmith Odeon, is a live entertainment performance venue, originally built as a cinema called the Gaumont Palace. Located in Ha ...

, London) - 4:13

Personnel

;Band members *

–

guitars The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

–

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

;Session musicians * Simon Phillips –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

Mo Foster Mo Foster (born Michael Ralph Foster, 22 December 1944) is an English multi-instrumentalist, record producer, composer, solo artist, author, and public speaker. Through a career spanning over half a century, Foster has toured, recorded, and perf ...

– bass *

Don Airey Donald Smith Airey (born 21 June 1948) is an English musician who has been the keyboardist in the rock band Deep Purple since 2002, after the retirement of Jon Lord. He has had a long and productive career, playing with such acts as Gary Moore ...

–

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

;Production *

Roger Glover Roger David Glover (born 30 November 1945) is a Welsh bassist, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known as the member of the hard rock bands Deep Purple and Rainbow. As a member of Deep Purple, Glover was inducted into the Rock and Ro ...

– producer *Gareth Edwards – engineer *Jeremy Allom – tape operator ;1979 demos on 2009 reissue * Michael Schenker – guitar * Gary Barden – vocals *

Billy Sheehan William Sheehan (born March 19, 1953) is an American musician. He is best known for playing the bass guitar with acts such as Talas, Steve Vai, David Lee Roth, Mr. Big, Niacin, and The Winery Dogs. He is also known for his "lead bass" playing ...

– bass *

Denny Carmassi Denny Carmassi (born April 30, 1947) is an American drummer most notable for playing with many rock bands. Biography Carmassi was born into a family of drummers; his father, his uncle, and his brother each played the drums. Some of Denny's e ...

– drums ;1980 Live tracks on 2009 reissue * Michael Schenker – guitar * Gary Barden – vocals * Paul Raymond – keyboards *

Cozy Powell Cozy Powell (born Colin Trevor Flooks; 29 December 1947 – 5 April 1998) was an English rock drummer who made his name with major rock bands and artists such as The Jeff Beck Group, Rainbow, Michael Schenker Group, Gary Moore, Robert Plant, ...

– drums *

Chris Glen Christopher John Glen (born 6 November 1950), known simply as Chris Glen, is a Scottish rock musician. He is best known for playing with The Sensational Alex Harvey Band from 1972 to 1978, and Michael Schenker Group from 1980 to 1984, 2008 to 2 ...

– bass

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Michael Schenker Group, The 1980 debut albums Michael Schenker Group albums Albums produced by Roger Glover Chrysalis Records albums Albums with cover art by Hipgnosis