Guitarist Michael Schenker spoke about his experience with the Scorpions and the problems he had with his brother Rudolf Schenker. Michael claims that although he contributed to the band’s debut album ‘Lonesome Crow’ and the 1979 album ‘Lovedrive,’ he did not receive the credit for his work. In a recent interview for ‘The Flying V Documentary,’ he claimed that the Scorpions appropriated his compositions and copied elements from UFO, another band he was involved with. Michael expressed disbelief at these actions, suggesting that they took advantage of his youth during his early days in the band. He said:
“My first song I ever wrote on ‘Lonesome Crow’ was ‘In Search of the Peace of Mind.’ And the solo is still one of my favorite solos. I was 15 years old. Today, when I look back, I can’t believe it. They credited themselves for my song. I wrote most of the ‘Lonesome Crow’ album, they credited everybody. And because I was only 15, and they were already over 20, I guess they just took advantage. Unbelievable.”
Michael accused the Scorpions, particularly his brother Rudolf, of imitating aspects of UFO, including cover designs by Hipgnosis. He expressed frustration at Rudolf’s tendency to adopt elements from others. He continued:
“They copied a lot of UFO stuff. They copied the UFO cover designs, they had the same cover designer [Hipgnosis]. Like I said before, Rudolf took whatever he liked and made it his own. If it was from Pete Townshend with the arm or this one from the ‘Strangers in the Night’ album — he copied everything so he would not look like a nerd.”
What Does Rudolf Side Of The Brothers Say?
Michael Schenker has been vocal in recent interviews about his brother Rudolf and the Scorpions. He even labeled Rudolf as a ‘con artist’ and accused him of adopting Michael’s image. Furthermore, Michael criticized the Scorpions for misrepresenting his time with the band and expressed regret over transferring his songwriting credits for the classic song ‘Coast To Coast’ to Rudolf.
Rudolf takes a more relaxed approach to the subject than his brother. Although he praised his brother’s guitar playing and personality, he said he didn’t want to get too involved in it. In 2022, Rudolph spoke to Guitar Player about his brother:
“I tell you one thing: I love my brother. He can say whatever he wants to say. He’s an amazing guitar player, an amazing person — whatever he wants to say, why not say it? I wish him all the best. I think, sooner or later, we will all be friends again and we will play together again. My life is too happy to put myself into a dustbin over it. I want to live in the sky. I am so happy for my life.”
Rudolf spoke to Classic Rock in 2019 and clarified the situation regarding Michael Schenker’s earnings from the band. He explained why the credits for the song ‘Coast to Coast,’ which his brother was fixated on, could not be shared. by stating:
“Look, I love my brother. He’s a fantastic guitar player but he knows nothing about business. When we made ‘Lovedrive,’ the band was under contract to Dieter Dierks [producer and manager]. When I asked Michael to play a solo to my composition Coast To Coast we agreed a half-and-half credit, but Dieter wouldn’t allow it – this related to publishing and studio costs.”
Rudolf then attributed the problem to his brother’s incompetence, and when his brother didn’t pay him the money he was supposed to, he used his brother’s half to cover the bills. He continued:
“Michael had a signed contract with Dieter that gave him one point on the song. And we agreed to pay Michael… he had the money. But in 1985 when he was completely smashed and had a new MSG with Robin McAuley, Michael lived with me in my house. We flew in musicians, I did all of that for nothing on the understanding that Michael would pay me when a record label came in. But he didn’t pay me anything. So I took his half to cover the bills he hadn’t paid.”
You can watch Michael Schenker’s full interview with The Flying V Documentary below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEVfRNUR6pU
