This was great melodic metal and it made the scorps popular among metal fans far more than their earlier output had. Some people call this arena rock , all that means is that this band was good enough to sell out arenas! Other bands were stuck in small venues and could never capture the fanbase that this great band did. Up until this point the scorps were heavily hendrix influenced among other styles and it was great stuff with uli roth playing his best. But this sound was a new direction and it was more melodic than what can before. This one set the standard for the band in coming 3 decades. It even has Michael Schenker on a few tracks again , the first since 'fly to the rainbow'. Mathias Jabs has to take credit for the way the new sound flows and I loved the older scorpions. I really did but this was the type of cd that every song was filled with flowing energy. They still play some of these songs live too. The sound is great on this cd so that's a added bonus. There are no bonus tracks though and the scorps need a boxset someday to put all their rarities on and there are many of them. I have many rare tracks on single cd's etc. Anyways this is a great one to grab for all fans of 1980's sounding metal. And this was released in 1979!

"Lovedrive" (1979) #55.
Bringing in Michael Schenker really changed the Scorpions sound. "Loving You, Sunday Morning", is a great lead off track, one of their best! You also get the rock and raunch of "Another Piece Of Meat", the sophisticated "Always Somewhere", the fast paced charging' "Can't Get Enough", "Coast To Coast, the riff rocker "Lovedrive" and "Holiday", with some beautiful acoustic guitar. #2 all-time favorite, next to "Blackout". Again the album cover rocks!

Well this album has 2 really great songs (Always Somewhere + Is there anybody there?) and their best songs ever (Holiday) and the rest are just ok. I give one star plus because of the Holiday song. If you have Holiday then i don't think you will appreciate this album. Proceed with caution.

Lovedrive is where it completely fell apart as far as getting any kind of enjoyment out of the Scorpions goes. Starting here, they were obviously going for a more commercial sound and in the process, completely disregarding quality songwriting, vocal melodies, guitar solos and riffs. The Scorpions would never again return to their glory years when songwriting was their number one biggest concern. Now it's all about popularity, selling albums, and gaining success... and making the music significantly worse.

It's clearly obvious from the first song. "Loving You Sunday Morning" is almost impossible to sit through thanks to a terribly bland guitar riff, verse melody, and what strikes me as an average attempt to try and fool listeners with a chorus that isn't the least bit interesting. It *tries* to be interesting though, but it's too late- the signs of going generic and bland have officially been made clear.

"Always Somewhere" honestly makes me gag because it tries to be an emotional power ballad but... it's not the least bit emotional. A failed attempt to make me tear up, and nothing more. Everything down to the terrible vocal melody makes me sick. I normally enjoy power ballads too, but this... this? The Scorpions were a HECK of a lot better than this just a few years earlier.

The title song has a chorus that borders on mindlessly simplistic and downright annoying thanks to the lead singer sticking exclusively to a high-pitched range, and "Holiday" is probably the best cut here (though it wouldn't hurt to cut down on its length by a minute or so). "Coast to Coast" is a pretty good guitar instrumental. It's quite heavy and melodic, something I can't really say about the rest of the material.

I personally will remember the Scorpions for their early days when the songwriting, the excitement and the vocal melodies added up to one really cool experience. Unfortunately most people are apparently just the opposite- they choose to remember the Scorpions for their successful hair metal days while ignoring the early stuff which, quite frankly, is disturbing.

what a rock album to my mind the best cd thay have made it never dates but with each playing get better and better this album was thought with intteligents and not thrown together like some albums treat your self to this cd but make sure that you get the 1990 copy much better than the remastered copy it is harsh and looses detail treat yourself you bite as well

Even though this album came out in 1979, it is considered the first of the classic 80's lineup for the group. Guitarist Ulrich Roth was gone, replaced temporarily by Matthias Jabs. Founding member (and brother of guitarist Rudolf Schenker) Michael Schenker (UFO) rejoined the group for a while, until health and personal reasons forced him to step down, at which point Jabs returned, and the classic Scorpions lineup was born.

The album opens with "Loving You Sunday Morning", and it's a blast - you can hear what will become the best known Scorpions' sound in it, with Klaus Meine's clear vocals and the ringing twin guitars. It's quickly followed by "Another Piece of Meat", which is a blazing rocker with some interesting lyrics, easily one of the hardest rocking pieces on the album. The semi-mellow but still great "Always Somewhere" is next, followed by the instrumental "Coast to Coast", in which the Schenker brothers show off their blazing guitar work.

"Can't Get Enough" is another hard rocker, with the quintessential Scorpions' sound that will be repeated on albums for years to come. The slightly softer (but still rocking) "Is There Anybody There?" is next, followed by the fast & furious title track, and the album ends with the song "Holiday", another great rocker.

This is an album that is easy to listen to again and again... a definite must for any Scorpions collector and fan. If you're lucky, you might be able to find the original album cover, showing the man and woman in a car - otherwise it'll be the 'non-offensive' blue & black scorpion. But the album cover obviously doesn't affect the music - this is a great album, well worth it for any of the songs.

the scorpions lovedrive album was recorded at the end of 1978 and released in early 1979.by the time scorpions were recording the lovedrive album guitarist ulrich roth had left the band.ulrich roth replaced michael schenker in 1974 when michael left scorpions to join up with the soon to be great band ufo.by the end of 1978 things had come full circle michael schenker left ufo after playing guitar like a demon and cowriting some of ufo,s best material ever.in fact during the mixing phase of ufo,s excellent live album ;strangers in the night, michael left for good and by december was back with his brother rudolf schenker; [rythm guitarist and co founder of the scorpions]in the studio recording lovedrive also during this difficult time for the band lead guitarist; matthias jabs was also heavily involved with the band given michael,s track record for disapearing before shows and major tours something that michael started doing with ufo just before the u.s.leg of the lights out tour.michael did a few shows with the scorpions on the lovedrive tour but had some health issues and left the scorpions before the tour was complete.so matthias jabs from that point on became lead guitarist for the scorpions....the album is chock full of great tunes, some of the bands most memorable...such as; loving you sunday morning,another piece of meat,coast to coast,lovedrive,always somewhere and holiday to name a few greats so for any scorpions fan lovedrive is a must for the collection. also a good thing is that the original cover of the partially nude woman and man in the backseat of a limo has been restored this cover should never have been banned.

The scorpions were never the hardest rocking metal band out there but they were certainly one of the best when it comes to melody and catchiness. They might not be the hardest but nevertheless, they rock! This album is a must-have for any serious metal or hard rock fan. Every song is a keeper. Several of them are Scorpions classics and are still played live to this day. This was the transitional album between the changing of the guard of founding lead guitarist Uli Roth and Matthias Jabs. Legendary guitarist Michael Schenker, of UFO and MSG fame helped rhythm guitarist and brother Rudy with lead guitar duties after Uli quit the band, for this album only. Jabs and Rudy did the rest of the lead guitar work.

Every track is a highlight. They even threw in a reggae song in Is There Anybody There? Loving You Sunday Morning, Another Piece Of Meat, Coast to Coast, Lovedrive and Holiday are all classic Scorpions. One of their finest.

I first learned of the "Lovedrive" album in 1982 through Hit Parader magazine. Hit Parader used to have a feature in which a then-contemporary rock star would rate his/her top ten albums of all time. I was into Iron Maiden then and was intrigued when Dave Murray, Iron Maiden guitarist and the featured album ranker in one issue of Hit Parader, rated "Lovedrive" by Scorpions as one of his favorite albums. I had recently been turned onto Scorpions through the success of the "Blackout" album (another great recording)and was curious as to why Murray thought so highly of Scorpions "Lovedrive." I was already a fan of Scorpions but only owned the "Blackout" album. I thus sought out the "Lovedrive" album based on Dave Murray's recommendation and my own love of "Blackout." When I found "Lovedrive" in my local record store, I was blown away by the album cover (what high school freshman boy wouldn't have been?); in fact, I felt that I was getting away with something illegal even being able to purchase the album as a minor. Can you say, "breast?" I knew you could.

All kidding aside, Dave Murray was right about "Lovedrive." This album has to rank as one of the best rock records ever made; perhaps THE best hard rock album ever. The mixture of heartfelt (not cheesy) ballads, pure rocking metal, mid-tempo AOR prototype "hits," immaculate production and arguably the best song writing ever produced by Scorpions, make this a must have recording.

Coming at the juncture of what I term "Early Scorpions" (with Ulrich Roth) and "Classic Scorpions" (the hit producing version of the band), this album reveals a group poised for the big time but not quite there yet in 1979; at least not in the U.S. market. Though the Ulrich Roth material from 1974-1978 is fantastic and foundational for any serious rock guitarist, 1979's "Lovedrive" marked the departure of Roth and the '70's vibe. In came a newer, more polished, more modern (at the time) sound that was ready-made for public consumption. Obviously, Scorpions would go on to greater fame after 1979, but never greater writing, production and musicianship all in one package. Like Dave Murray, I highly recommend "Lovedrive."

I'll go one step further and recommend all Scorpions albums from 1972 - 1985 (I'm a fan of ALL their efforts but the average consumer should probably focus on the Scorpions music within these years). Keep in mind, if you purchase any Scorpions albums produced before 1979's "Lovedrive" album, you are getting a different experience. Roth era Scorpions is essentally a more progressive band; well worth checking out if you appreciate great musicianship, but not the slick, "pop" hard rock of the 80's. Pre-Lovedrive Scorpions were a band of great musicians, ultimately divided by divergent goals. Rudolph Schenker and Klaus Meine seemed to focus on the goal of hitting the proverbial "big-time (check out the song "Top of the Bill" from the "Intrance" album) whereas, Ulrich Roth was idealistically focused on producing music that appealed to his soul. This noticeable division in style and purpose made for great hard rock albums with a twist of diversity; however, the unified goal was lacking. Conversely, Scorpions from "Lovedrive" onward reflect musicians on a common mission to become superstars; a mission in which they succeeded.

By the way, I would like to offer a correction to a previous reviewer who said that the solo in the song,"Always Somewhere," was performed by Matthias Jabs. I'm quite certain that it was performed by Rudolph Schenker.

5 stars = Masterpeice

Absolute top flight album!

"Lovedrive" ranks right up there with "In Trance" for a tie of my favorite Scrops album. Killer stuff here & not a bad cut to be found! Melodic, but heavy, "Lovedrive," (album) is all over the board sonically. "Another Piece of Meat," just rips & roars at full throttle! "Holiday," on the other end of the spectrum, may be the Scrops best ballad. It really takes you away! Everything else in between is just lean mean tasty meat for this sonic sub sandwich for your muse to devour!

Klaus Meine really is on top of his game here, adding his potent pipes for what may be his best vocal performance. Micheal Schenker reunites with his brother Rudolf, & Matthais Jabs proves he can take the reigns for lead guitar on latter albums. They make for a towering trio of shiny metallic leads, bent on a mission to pierce your brain through your ears!

If you could only have two Scorpion albums, "Lovedrive," & "In Trance" are the ones to have. Enough good music here to take you on a well deserved holiday!