Scorpions/Aichi,Japan 1985

After the release of “LOVE AT FIRST STING”, SCORPIONS continued to actively perform live in North America and Europe, and in the first half of January 1985, they also appeared at “Rock in Rio” in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and finally began to play an active role as a world-class band. During the “LOVE AT FIRST STING” tour, they toured Japan twice. One of them was at “Super Rock ’84”. Although it was about an hour set, they showed a passionate and energetic performance that was not inferior to the main bands WHITESNAKE and M.S.G. In contrast, the second performance in Japan, which took place in the end of January and the beginning of February the following year, was a big one, including the band’s first performance at the Budokan. Of course, the performance time was a full set, and SCORPIONS, who had become world class, showed a large-scale, professional stage. In this work, you can enjoy the live performance at Nagoya City Public Hall on February 2nd from the 1985 Japan tour with the best audience sound! From this 1985 tour, “UNDERCOVER OF THE NIGHT” recorded at the Nippon Budokan performance in Tokyo on February 7th is now a big staple. The sound image and performance give the impression of a large scale, just like SCORPIONS as a world-class band. On the other hand, this work “NAGOYA 1985” has a sound quality with clarity and brightness that is in no way inferior to that, but it is an excellent recording that seems to capture the intimate mood of the venue and the direct feeling of the performance even more! While capturing the excitement of the audience with a wonderful sense of realism, the wonderful performance recorded with the realism and closeness of a sound board should overwhelm the listener from the opening “Coming Home”. Klaus Meine’s vocals that emerge vividly, Rudolf Schenker and Matthias Jabs’ guitars, as well as Herman Larebel’s loud drums are also powerful! The ensemble of these bands is reproduced in detail with exquisite balance and vividness. The first half of the live performance was a series of memorable scenes, including “Blackout,” where Rudolph cuts through the listeners with sharp cuts, “Bad Boys Running Wild,” which is as fast as the song title suggests, and “Loving You Sunday Morning” and “Make It Real,” which captivate the listeners with their unique grooves. The listeners will not be able to take their ears off the performance for even a moment. The chorus part of “Big City Nights,” where Klaus’ melodic vocals bring the venue together, is already overwhelming. In the following “Coast To Coast,” Rudolph and Matthias’ guitars also spin melodies as if they were singing, and the high melody sense of the entire band is once again recognized. The opening of disc 2, “Holiday” and “Still Loving You,” allow you to enjoy the greatness of the ballads, which are a major attraction of the band, along with the hardness. Klaus’s heartfelt singing and the song ideas that combine sadness and strength make you say, “This is SCORPIONS!” The next songs are “Rock You Like A Hurricane” and “Can’t Live Without You”, followed by the vigorous performance of “Another Piece Of Meat” and “Dynamite”, which can be said to be the royal road of SCORPIONS in the ’80s. The band’s performance is so intense that you can picture the members running all over the stage. At the beginning of “The Zoo”, which was performed as an encore, Rudolph expresses his gratitude to the Japanese fans (following that high-energy shout). The band continues with non-stop momentum through “No One Like You” and the final song, “Can’t Get Enough”! This album is packed with the unique charm of SCORPIONS over the course of about 95 minutes of the live performance! This is a quality that rivals “UNDERCOVER OF THE NIGHT”, the definitive album of the Budokan performance, which had a great sense of big scale. Live at Nagoya Civic Assembly Hall, Nagoya, Japan 2nd February 1985 TRULY PERFECT SOUND Disc 1(35:27) 1. Undercover Of The Night 2. Opening S.E. 3. Coming Home 4. Blackout 5. Bad Boys Running Wild 6. Loving You Sunday Morning 7. Make It Real 8. Big City Nights 9. Coast To Coast Disc 2(60:42) 1. Holiday Still 2. Loving You 3. Rock You Like A Hurricane 4. Can’t Live Without You 5. Drums Solo 6. Another Piece Of Meat 7. Dynamite 8. The Zoo 9. No One Like You 10. Can’t Get Enough Klaus Meine – Vocals Rudolf Schenker – Rhythm Guitars Matthias Jabs – Lead Guitars Francis Buchholz – Bass Herman Rarebell – Drums