I want to talk today about UFO, they were influential and the first band I saw live in that era. It would be nice to find one of the original members and draw a few stories out about the times which I only saw through the eyes of the hacks on Sounds. There seemed to be a lot of drinking involved, and all the rest, so who knows what state they’d be in now. UFO travelled over to the States and had a go, becoming part of one of Britain’s most successful cultural exports.
Most of Strangers in the Night [1979, Chrysalis], was recorded on tour over there and it stands out, in parts, as their finest hour. A punishing version of Lights Out exemplifies the times. The lyrics to this one describe the experience of an air raid warden in the Blitz:
“Lights out, lights out in London, hold tight til the end, why not now you know we’ll never wait til tomorrow.”
It may be more erotic fantasy than biography, it’s reminiscent of Don’t Want to Wait Anymore by The Tubes [Completion Backwards Principle, 1981, Capital]:
“Stranded on a desert isle, with no one around for thousands of miles. Imagine any place, if this is what it takes, but don’t tell me to wait.”
Michael Schenker had made a move across to UFO from The Scorpions and found his shine with them before pursuing a solo career, or a career in soloing. He dovetails neatly with Phil Raymond (guitar and keys) who, one imagines, was the balladeer in the band, much to Pete Way’s (bass) disgust. Raymond had the Dr Who scarf and Miami Vice jacket thing going on, where Schenker and Way used to plant their legs wide, shirts off, rugby socks down the front, screwed up faces plastered with sweat and hair.
On You Tube there’s an interview with Schenker in which he describes a back and forth picking action as a secret of his speed. It seems asinine to me now, as speed is only half the deal, even for a metal guitarist. There are hundreds of quick and yet ultimately tedious practitioners out there, Schenker is a lyrical monster with superb dramatic timing.
In a very real sense, much of the power came from the feeling that he was teetering on the edge of his abilities, a few fluffs here and there were more exciting than seamless soloing, as if on rails. Perfection was more of an American metal thing back then, to my mind. The track Rock Bottom puts these qualities of Schenker’s at the fore.
He left soon afterwards and, to my mind, lost his raw edge becoming, if you like, more American. I don’t know if this is fair as I stopped following him and don’t own a single MSG album but early Scorpions and mid UFO eras, with Schenker involved, were the best these bands ever had. Don’t let me bang on, but Lonesome Crow holds most of my guitar playing ambitions, right there. It’s got that urgency, with blues feel, and grunt, like Black Sabbath’s first album.
