Customer Reviews

Msg

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i purchased the original version of this album in 1981 when it was first released and i think it's one of the most under appreciated records ever!

at the time, i heard that michael schenker was dissatified with the production by ron nevison but i never understood that...i thought and still do think it has a great sound to it!

if anything, the remaster sounds a little brighter but overall i think it sounds the same...great!!!

my real attraction to this though are the extra live songs and the outtake of the great, "never trust a stranger", without guitar. gary barden's voice cracks a little but he sounds excellent, as well as paul raymond, (piano), and cozy powell, (drums).

i saw them in concert on this tour and they played all these songs live. they're faster and played with great energy.

i'm not into buying every remaster or reissue that is released but this is certainly worth picking up if you're a schenker fan!

A great follow up to a masterpiece of a debut album a year earlier. This album is just as good as the first. However the remaster seems a bit weak. Sonically this does not jump out of my speakers unless the volume is higher (especially that of the recently remastered debut). However all that doesn't seem to matter as soon as the 6 bonus live tracks come on. Any fan of the One Night in Budakon your jaws will drop when you hear how on fire and intense this band is just touring their debut album. Pick this up.

i have been a fan of michael schenker since his days in ufo.i think he is one of hard rock,s finest guitarists,this album is great,from; are you ready to rock thru and including the new live bonus cuts with this album michael had assembled a great band cozy powell from rainbow,paul raymond his buddy from ufo,chris glen and gary barden,its too bad this line up did,nt last longer..anyway if you are a schenker fan grab this cd and play it loud!

I've ALWAYS loved MSG and UFO,they have never left My Heart Or My Ears,so Enjoy,dang it!Schenker is Revered around the World,but,hardly makes the cover of "said" guitar Mags.But what do they know,except what might be trendy.Amazon.com is a GREAT place to find these and other great artists pushed to the side by our trendy society.So,go ahead,START SHOPPING!!! T66

The second solo album from Michael Schenker Group is from start to finish a non-stop machine full of thick guitar sounds and thunderous beats from late great Cozy Powell.

There is not a weak track on this record and it sounds as fresh today as it did when it was released. I maybe younger than the record, but my ears tell me all I need to know. This is one of the many records I own that is so dynamic it simply does not get old.

A stirring snapshot of a mercurial guitarist at the peak of his craft, Michael Schenker's second solo album (imaginatively entitled MSG) is an enduring and inspired affair. Hard-rocking and infused with a melodious spirit that should have been bottled, this 1981 release is a bonafide classic and one which resides at the very top of Schenker's impressive solo-catalog.

Joining Herr Schenker on this, his second foray as bandleader, is an all-star line-up featuring some of the era's more notorious heavy-hitters: Returning vocalist Gary Barden, bassist Chris Glen, ex-UFO chum Paul Raymond on keyboards/rhythm guitar and drum powerhouse Cozy Powell. Schenker and company would convene in the Bahamas with producer Ron Nevison to track the sessions which would become one of the most beloved albums of Schenker's post-UFO career. Recording in the tropics with it's cool winds and sands drenched-in-moonlight beget an artistic elixir for the the fearsome-five and saw them emerge from the studio with eight tracks of pure hard-rock dynamite.

The one-two punch of album openers "Are You Ready To Rock" and "Attack Of The Mad Axeman" are staggering statements of intent. Both cuts are assured and possessed by killer riffs with "Rock" kicking things off in spectacular fashion. A vintage Schenker riff rallys the metal faithful with a call-to-arms atop the surging back of Cozy Powell's authoritative drums, whilst Gary Barden intones the lyric "out in the streets/the kids stand and wait their time" with a frosty bite.

Schenker swings for the fences with "Mad Axeman" and simultaneously creates an anthemic and timeless track for the ages. A disturbing - albeit playful - nod about a killer loose on the streets, Schenker detonates an explosive riff at the outset of this mid-tempo rocker and weaves and bobs alongside a seductively propulsive rhythm section. Powell's militaristic drumbeats are the perfect foil to Schenkers infectious licks which reach a feverish pitch come solo-time when Schenker attains warp-drive and LAUNCHES into a solo that has to be heard to be believed. "Mad Axeman's" outro-solo is imbued with a melodic confidence and spontaneity that reaches rarefied heights of genius as it hurls towards the finish line with a barrage of fleet-fingered histrionics and lightning-fast runs. Schenker is in full Guitar-God mode here and delivers with an uncanny, almost UNEARTHLY performance. Absolutely incredible stuff!

Paul Raymond's haunting keys unlock the mystery that is "On And On," another riff-heavy track that benefits from an amazing Barden vocal. This is vinatge MSG and the vocal/keyboard hook at the song's chorus is arranged perfectly so that it gives way to yet another fierce Schenker solo as he rips and tears like a hungry wolf at his Flying V with unmatched virtuosity. A killer track and one that remains a staple of Schenker's set-list some 30-years on (and on). "Let Sleeping Dogs Lie" is cut from the same cloth as 'Axeman" and closes side one in appropriate fashion.

Side Two opens with the majestic and grandiose "But I Want More," an epic track with multiple layers and moods. An hypnotic keyboard intro sets the stage for Schenker and company to create this album's "Lost Horizons." Cozy's double-bass fills and the sharp-snap of his snare contribute mightily to the power of this track as does Schenker's intricate, spellbinding riffing. The Paul Raymond-penned semi-ballad "Never Trust A Stranger," rests comfortably here and affords the guys an opportunity to slow things down a bit. A woeful Barden reminisces about "conversations that get him down" and "times and places not long ago" as the band percolates just beneath him with a soft, romantic swing.

Business picks-up significantly with the superlative "Looking For Love," a rousing, driving Schenker tour-de-force. Schenker is front-and-center and lays down a PHENOMENAL performance here with a melodic-gem of a tune. His guitar buzzes with a VICIOUS snarl at the song's start followed closely by a Cozy Powell drum-eruption which sends the song into hyper-space. Raymond's glorious synth-line fights the good fight and manages to co-exist with the HEAVY guitars but concedes the battle at the solo. Undoudtedly one of Schenker's finest moments ever, the "Love" solo is enveloped by an intangible element which sees him magically snatching melodic notes out of thin-air to contruct an awe-inspiring piece of mellifluous magnificence. Set-closer "Secondary Motion" barely has a chance to succeed on it's own merits following so closely after the clinic which came just before. Despite this handicap, it is able to end the set on a high-note and it bode well for the group's future.

Released at the outset of a new decade, Michael Schenker's MSG was a bold, artistic triumph for the controversial guitarist. Armed and ready with a somewhat stable line-up and an aresenal of terrific songs, the stage was set for MSG to ascend to new, dizzying heights in the metal world. Unfortunately, fate is a cruel jester and this was not meant to be. - Ronnie Jimenez

Excellent re-mastering. Excellent bonus tracks. Excellent album.
This is one of the best hard rock/metal albums of 80's - and it's even better now with the remastering and great extra tracks. This was a great purchase!

I may be slightly overrating the first two Michael Schenker albums slightly but I guess I'm just blown away by the overall sound quality and musicianship that both LPs have provided. `MSG' which was released slightly over one year after the debut could really be considered the first album by the Michael Schenker Group as the first featured mostly sessioneers (outside of Michael and Gary Barden). Cozy Powell, Paul Raymond and Chris Glen complete the lineup of seasoned rock vets for Michael's second opus and while `MSG' does not have a song that compares with "Armed and Ready" or "Lost Horizons" it still features some amazing tunes. Favorites included such moody burners as "Let Sleeping Dogs Lie", "On and On", "But I Want More" and what would be a sort of theme song for the "Mad Axeman" in that appropriately named track. I also really like "Secondary Motion" as an album closer as the solo is absolutely superb. I prefer the first record to the second because of the two songs already mentioned, but you kinda need both as they are similar in quality though MSG seems to have an overall better sound. Michael's career as a solo artist never took off after such a promising start and like most troubled geniuses, not being able to keep this band together may have been the biggest reason why Michael Schenker never reached superstardom in the US....look behind the window winter's gone..