The UFO Discography And Listening Party Thread

[TAC]

Ok Tim I just watched that Scorpions video for the first time ever.......................................

Those are Bad Boys Running F&$@ing Wild!!!!!! 

 

If you don't play along with their games, you better get out of their way.

[TAC]

Update



So Mick Bolton would leave UFO in late '71/very early '72. He was engaged to be married, and started to drift away from the band.

UFO enlisted local player Larry Wallis, who would go onto play in an early version of Motorhead.
Here is some very rare footage of Wallis in the band:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bu1lb6-rWlw

Wallis lasted about 8 months, so in late '72, Bernie Marsden would join the band. You may recognize Marsden as a future member of Whitesnake.

Here is a band pic:




During a spring tour in 1973, UFO were touring with Scorpions. On a trip to Germany, Bernie Marsden, the story goes, apparently lost his passport, so he could not travel to Germany. UFO asked Scorpions if they could "borrow" Michael Schenker to play their set. After a couple of shows with Schenker, Marsden rejoined the band. After the tour, before the band could fire him, Marsden quit.
The band would set their sights on Schenker.


Michael had always said that if an English band came calling, he would move to London because that's where the scene was. Well,..an English band came calling.


Here is some amazing footage from a German TV show in 1973:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ke_DWm4mtw4

It starts off with an early version of Rock Bottom, with very different lyrics. The Rock Bottom portion is great, but the video does suffer from some synch issues after that.

[wolfking]

Did Mick Bolton go on to do anything else of relevance?

[TAC]

Did Mick Bolton go on to do anything else of relevance?

Nope!

[wolfking]

Did Mick Bolton go on to do anything else of relevance?

Nope!

Huh!  A shame because his playing on the debut was really tasty.

[TAC]

I read a review of Flying where they basically said that they would've loved to see where the band went from there, as they would refine their playing.

I actually like both albums. I don't listen to them a whole lot, not because they aren't good, but more because they sound so completely different than anything else UFO did. They are just so different.

[ProfessorPeart]

I got a bit of an early start with UFO 1 and 2 as I just purchased everything up to Misdemeanor recently. I really enjoyed 1. It was a nice, steady rocker and Pete is super loud in the copy I purchased. I found 2 to be a tad unfocused with the long tracks, otherwise, I enjoyed it as well.

It's kind of funny that 1 and 2 cost me exactly the same as it cost me to buy the box that has Phenomenon through Misdemeanor. Hah, just did the math and the 12 albums cost me an average of $6.66 a piece! All physical, of course. My 1 and 2 remasters are hotter than the box with the 2008 remasters of the other 10.

Anyway, 1 is the clear winner for me out of 1 and 2. I am a sucker for long songs but the ones on 2 aren't quite up to snuff.

[PowerSlave]

Update



Here is some amazing footage from a German TV show in 1973:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ke_DWm4mtw4

It starts off with an early version of Rock Bottom, with very different lyrics. The Rock Bottom portion is great, but the video does suffer from some synch issues after that.

I think that it might be safe to say that none of us has heard Rock Bottom played that fast since. Holy  they're flying through that one!!!

[wolfking]

Yeah 1 definitely is my preferred one also.

[wolfking]

That Scorpions vid. What the fuck was that?  So many joints smoked that day.  And the song was just as fucking baked.

[TAC]

That Scorpions vid. What the fuck was that?  So many joints smoked that day.  And the song was just as fucking baked.

 

If you have a spare couple of minutes, you should checked out some of that album. It makes Flying sound concise.

Here's the title track
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRKTvZV1rkg

[jjrock88]

Lonesome Crow has some cool parts to it, but overall it’s so far removed from what they ended up sounding like. Reading the reviews, there are people who love that track and I can totally understand that. It’s out there and like wolf said, lots of smoking was done during these albums lol.

[jingle.boy]

Just noticed this now.    Will catch up later today, and do my hardest to follow along better than I did with the Riot listening party.

P.S.  Great opening statement, Tim.  Also, your buddy got the better deal with that Zeppelin pin.   

[TAC]

Great opening statement, Tim. 

Thanks, Chad!

do my hardest to follow along better than I did with the Riot listening party.

That shouldn't be too hard.




Don't kill yourself on these first albums I posted. Shit gets real later today.

[Stadler]

I get that it's not "Blackout" but I LOVE that first Scorpions record.   It was real; some of the later stuff - even the "classic era" stuff - sometimes seemed a little... contrived.   There was this vibe about Scorpions of being "crazy rockers", with Rudy always looking like he's screaming whatever, and it seemed a little silly.   The records are good, especially deeper tracks, but it was cartoony compared to the early stuff with Michael and Uli.   

Good thing Klaus got his teeth done, too. 

[TAC]

I love the Roth albums, but the Scorps would end up writing themselves into a corner in the 80's.
The albums where they "passed the torch" like Lovedrive , Blackout, and Love At First Sting are all excellent.

I'll talk about Lovedrive later on when the time comes in this thread, and it's interesting to hear Michael's thoughts on the whole era.

[Podaar]

You know, on listening to UFO1 and Flying today (just a refresher), I have to say I prefer Flying. Silver Bird is really cool and I think the Mogg's maturity as a singer really shows a pretty big leap from UFO1 (although his performance on UFO1 was not as bad as I remembered). Anyway, I like the spacey shit and enjoyed the journey more than I thought I would.

[TAC]

The hardest part about listening to Flying is actually DECIDING to listen to it.

[jjrock88]

The hardest part about listening to Flying is actually DECIDING to listen to it.

 

[devieira73]

The hardest part about listening to Flying is actually DECIDING to listen to it.

Big UFO fan here (from Phenomenom onwards at least), specially the Schenker and Chapman phases, but I really like a lot of the albums/songs even after the classic years (74-83). So I will follow this thread. TAC, thanks for you to have started it!
But, I don't know, I still don't have the courage to listen to UFO 1 and 2... 
Man, that Scorpions videoclip!

[v_clortho]

I'm following along here. My only exposure to UFO has been Lights Out and Redemption's cover of Love to Love. I listened to the first 2 today. 1st wasn't really my thing and you can tell it is a first album. Not bad just not really anything I found interesting. The second I found a lot more interesting. Lots of growth from the first to the second. (Lots of drugs probably as well) I'm most of the way through Phenomenon and I really like that. So far so good.

[TAC]

Phenomenon




Phenomenon (1974)

Released May 1974


1. Too Young To Know
2. Crystal Light
3. Doctor Doctor
4. Space Child
5. Rock Bottom
6. Oh My
7. Time On My Hands
8. Built For Comfort
9. Lipstick Traces
10. Queen Of The Deep


Phil Mogg-Vocals
Michael Schenker-Guitar
Pete Way- Bass
Andy Parker-Drums

Phenomenon was the first album with Chysalis and also the beginning of the Classic Michael Schenker era. After their contract with Beacon ran out, they were trying to sign with Chrysalis. The first song they wrote with Schenker was Give Her The Gun, which would be part of the demo brought to the record company. Chrysalis asked Leo Lyons, bass player for Ten Years After, and part time producer, to take UFO in the studio for a day and see what they came up with.  Chrysalis had an interest in the band, given their popularity in Europe and ended up signing UFO.

It was recorded at Morgan Studios (which would later become The Power Plant) in London, familiar to Lyons. It was a popular studio, with Yes, Juthro Tull, and Rod Stewart having all used it.

For the cover of Phenomenon. UFO would use Hypgnosis, who at the time were also doing Pink Floyd's albums.

Songwise, Phenomenon is a bit all over the place. But it gives a great introduction of some of the types of things UFO would deliver. UFO, especially in the Schenker era, would always be able to go from rocker to ballad to slow to fast. Phenomenon has all of it. Obviously, the two tracks that stand out are Rock Bottom and Doctor Doctor. Michael for years would cite his Rock Bottom solo as his favorite, and considering he was only 18 when he recorded Phenomenon, it's well,..phenomenal.

Time On My Hands has one of my all time favorite Schenker solos. It's just beautiful.

I also want to call a shout out to Queen Of the Deep, which truly is a um..deep track. So much to chew on in this track. It's like every song on this album rolled into one.


After returning home from a US tour, Michael felt that he needed more than just bass and drums underneath his solos.  UFO would enlist Paul Chapman, fresh off of replacing Gary Moore in Skid Row. Chapman toured with the band for the better part of a year, and was present while the band was writing Force It. Chapman fancied himself a true lead guitarist, so he would leave to form Lone Star.

The remaster contains two demo versions of Oh My and Sixteen, both with Bernie Marsden on guitar.



l-r..Way, Parker, Mogg, Schenker



l-r.. Mogg, Way, Chapman, Parker, Schenker


Live on Don Kirshner
I queued it up at Rock Bottom. Good God Michael Schenker

Atlanta 1974 audio
Amazing quality!

London 1974 audio
Quality a bit iffy, but it does include Paul Chapman

[TAC]

@ Stadler... Is it me, or does Too Young To Know sound like a sped up Back Into My Life.

[Stadler]

@ Stadler... Is it me, or does Too Young To Know sound like a sped up Back Into My Life.

No it's not just you; I think I hear that when the vocals kick in.    Blasphemy alert:  I like the Chapman version a little better.   Both songs really bring out Mogg's voice though; what a great singer.

It's so unfortunate though; I get that I'm a relative new-comer to the UFO party, but he has no... I was going to say charisma, but that's not really it.  He's not flamboyant like the other singers that came out around that time; he doesn't have that larger than life personality.  You kind of know where Paul Stanley and Robert Plant are coming from.  Stephen Tyler.   Jon Anderson.   Geddy Lee.  Ozzy.  But it's like I don't know a single thing about Mogg.   You know Stanley was hustling in New York, working as a cab driver, the mythology being that he banged 1000 women, four at a time.   Ozzy worked odd jobs at a machine shop and didn't do a great job of staying out of jail, the mythology being he did 1000 tons of drugs, sometimes four at a time.   Stephen Tyler was a hippie Beatles fan that spent summers in the New Hampshire woods, the mythology being he banged 500 women while doing 500 tons of drugs.   Phil Mogg?  Beats the hell out of me; he might as well have invented a synthesizer for all I know. 

[TAC]

@ Stadler... Is it me, or does Too Young To Know sound like a sped up Back Into My Life.

No it's not just you; I think I hear that when the vocals kick in.    Blasphemy alert:  I like the Chapman version a little better.   Both songs really bring out Mogg's voice though; what a great singer.

I find the little guitar accent bits in the verses really similar too.

It's so unfortunate though; I get that I'm a relative new-comer to the UFO party, but he has no... I was going to say charisma, but that's not really it.  He's not flamboyant like the other singers that came out around that time; he doesn't have that larger than life personality.  You kind of know where Paul Stanley and Robert Plant are coming from.  Stephen Tyler.   Jon Anderson.   Geddy Lee.  Ozzy.  But it's like I don't know a single thing about Mogg.   You know Stanley was hustling in New York, working as a cab driver, the mythology being that he banged 1000 women, four at a time.   Ozzy worked odd jobs at a machine shop and didn't do a great job of staying out of jail, the mythology being he did 1000 tons of drugs, sometimes four at a time.   Stephen Tyler was a hippie Beatles fan that spent summers in the New Hampshire woods, the mythology being he banged 500 women while doing 500 tons of drugs.   Phil Mogg?  Beats the hell out of me; he might as well have invented a synthesizer for all I know. 

He was actually laying carpet when he met up with Pete Way.


The thing is, when I got into UFO, there were no video major videos. All I had was his voice and his songs.

And while I can't speak to Plant and Anderson, everyone else that you listed sounds like ass today. Mogg, who has done just as much touring, especially in the last 10 years, still sounds great.

[Podaar]

@ Stadler... Is it me, or does Too Young To Know sound like a sped up Back Into My Life.

No it's not just you; I think I hear that when the vocals kick in.    Blasphemy alert:  I like the Chapman version a little better.   Both songs really bring out Mogg's voice though; what a great singer.

It's so unfortunate though; I get that I'm a relative new-comer to the UFO party, but he has no... I was going to say charisma, but that's not really it.  He's not flamboyant like the other singers that came out around that time; he doesn't have that larger than life personality.  You kind of know where Paul Stanley and Robert Plant are coming from.  Stephen Tyler.   Jon Anderson.   Geddy Lee.  Ozzy.  But it's like I don't know a single thing about Mogg.   You know Stanley was hustling in New York, working as a cab driver, the mythology being that he banged 1000 women, four at a time.   Ozzy worked odd jobs at a machine shop and didn't do a great job of staying out of jail, the mythology being he did 1000 tons of drugs, sometimes four at a time.   Stephen Tyler was a hippie Beatles fan that spent summers in the New Hampshire woods, the mythology being he banged 500 women while doing 500 tons of drugs.   Phil Mogg?  Beats the hell out of me; he might as well have invented a synthesizer for all I know.

For me Mogg's performances have always been pretty journeymanlike, a craftsman with a microphone as his preferred tool. He has passion for his craft, without a doubt, but it's subtle. More like Daltrey rather than Plant. His stage persona is much the same. The consummate team guy who plays his part, enthusiastically, but isn't put off by playing a support role when the performance demands it.

That being said, I remember reading about him being a real tough guy asshole off the stage. A beer swilling hooligan with a background in boxing. Didn't Geddy Lee once talk about Phil getting plastered and taking a swing at Gene Simmons when Rush, UFO and Kiss were all touring together? I forget.

[TAC]

Yeah, he has a reputation to be pretty brash off stage.

He actually seems so mild mannered on stage.





Gregg, at what point did you become aware of UFO? Was it with Phenomenon? And how so? Radio, record store..?

[TAC]

[Podaar]

Gregg, at what point did you become aware of UFO? Was it with Phenomenon? And how so? Radio, record store..?

I was 12, in the record store (Raspberry Records as I recall), with a $10 bill burning a hole in my pocket, and was looking at the Rock new releases. I liked the cover and turned it over. The faces on the back looked like me and some of my friends (except we wore shirts). I saw that Hypnosis was the album designer and I associated them with quality acts due to Pink Floyd and 10cc. I plucked it off the rack and asked the store attendant what he thought of the record. He told me that it was pretty rockin' and kinda spacey. So I bought it.

When I got it home I wasn't particularly connecting with it until Rock Bottom started playing. My god, that riff just knocked me over and then when the solo section started I was transfixed by the liquid tone of Michael's korina wood flying V. I probably made 20 tapes of that song to share with my friends. For a time I was a hero among my peers for that song alone (I only topped that when I was the first of my crowd to discover Boston).

Other than Rock Bottom and Queen of the Deep, the rest of the album was more of a curiosity and I'll admit it didn't really resonate with me for a while. In the end I came to love Crystal Light, Space Child, Time on my Hands, Built for Comfort, Lipstick Traces, just as much. I can do without pretty much the rest of the album, and yes I include Doctor Doctor...I don't get the love for that one. It never gets anywhere, IMO.

[TAC]

That's awesome! Was that grass cutting money?

[Podaar]

Actually, I got a summer job when I was 11 at a nearby farm. Taking care of livestock, weeding corn fields, painting barns, whatever Mr. Noble wanted done on his property. He paid me pretty well for the time and I saved up a bunch of money which I promptly blew on a stereo that would blow my bedroom windows out. 

The ten bucks was probably allowance money. I needed to find music to put on my new stereo, you understand.

[jjrock88]

Checked out Phenomenon and it rocks 

My three favorite UFO tracks are Lights Out, Rock Bottom and Doctor Doctor, so clearly Phenomenon had a head start. Schenkers guitar playing is head and shoulders above most and his playing is what stood out to me in most tunes. I was familiar with Oh My before; that’s a great tune. The song that I hadn’t heard before that stood out the most was easily “Queen of the Deep”. That is an awesome tune with fantastic riffs. Crystal Light and Time on My Hands are nice ballads but nothing on either that overly stood out upon first listen. Space Child seems to continue in that space rock vibe but still a cool song and great guitar solo. Lipstick Traces was a very nice instrumental. Bottom line....Michael Schenker 

[devieira73]

Phenomenon is a good album and it shows a promising band with a impressive guitar player still in its embrionary stage and with the great achivement of already having 2 of the greatest all time UFO classics. Besides Doctor Doctor and Rock Bottom, I also really love Oh My and Time on My Hands, but it's my less favourite album from the Phenomenon to Making Contact run. Of course it's an old album, but it does sound much more dated than Force It and No Heavy Petting.

[TAC]

it's my less favourite album from the Phenomenon to Making Contact run.

I think that's fair. I don't really disagree.

And you better not bale after Making Contact!

[devieira73]

 
No way, TAC! I have a lot of good things to say post-Making Contact, you'll see! There's even a non Schenker/Chapman album that I think it is at least better than Phenomenon...