Customer Reviews

Save Yourself

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

"Perfect Timing", the precursor to "Save Yourself", introduced everybody to the awesome vocals of Robin McAuley. Schenker himself must've known there was something special going on here in his band if he retitled the band "McAULEY-Schenker Group" rather than go with the usual "Michael Schenker Group" moniker. While "P.T." was a good album, "Save Yourself" proved to be Schenker's best commerical effort of his solo career. Don't get disillusioned by the word "commercial", though. It just illustrates that the songs were his best songwriting attempt, before or since, to capture the ear of the average rock fan in addition to the diehards who knew him since his UFO days or guitar fanatics. Lord knows everyone I lent my tape to back then, who'd never heard him, usually ended up asking me "Who IS this guy and where can I get some more of his stuff?"
The band came flying out of the gate from the get go with the neo-classical-ish "Save Yourself" and never let up. Unlike neo-classical "god" Yngwie Malmsteen, however, the songs were't limp excuses to allow Schenker to solo endlessly. They were ACTUALLY songs!!
The sound and songs, though, now seem very much from that late 80s metal period, but tracks such as "Anytime" and the sweet instrumental "There Has to Be Another Way", among others, are still enjoyable to listen to. The album description lists "Take Me Back" as a bonus track but as I recall from my cassette of the album, which I still have, "Take Me Back" was part of that medium's songlist too. "Vicious", on the other hand, is new to all the mediums (LP, Cassette, & CD). Such was the push to get MSG on the pubic consciousness that the band actually did a video for "Anytime", thus probably explaining the [Single Edit] version included on the CD.
Alas, while the band did exceedingly well with this album and was largely the same lineup from the "Perfect Timing" session, the follow-up CD entitled "MSG" would see the band whittled down on the album art to just McAuley & Schenker, with no signs of the rest of the band; unlike as was the case in "Perfect Timing" and "Save Yourself".
If you're looking for a good introduction to Michael Schenker without first trying UFO's "Strangers in the Night" live album (another EXCELLENT must-have) THIS is the place to start!

Some of the best Schenker melodies and solos ever. I wore this CD out in the 80's (is that possible?) and somehow lost it over several moves. Now I've rediscovered it again and am loving every minute of it. Every track sizzles. Strong hooks, great harmonic solos, and that trademark "solo fade out" that no one can match. McAuley's vocals are powerful and are just as strong as Schenker's fretwork. By far one of the best Schenker albums. All I can say is buy it, turn it up, and enjoy!

Some people ask me "What, you're listening to old Adult Oriented Rock (AOR)?" when I ask around about this rare masterpiece of McAuley Schenker Group.

I can't blame them since all the critic I've been reading so far about MSG (Michael Schenker Group), punctually stamp them with the AOR mark, which is true except in this case where the name of the band, MSG is just a coincidence.

In fact, if we go back in the band history, Michael Schenker needed to come up with something new after his first AOR albums and joined forces with Robin McAuley to give a new power and energy to the brand new MSG (McAuley-Shenker Group rather than Michael Schenker Group): same name, different band.

The resulting album "Save Yourself" is an excellent combination of kicking Power Hard Rock (tracks: Save Yourself, Bad Boys, Destiny), and most classic AOR (tracks: Anytime, Shadow of the Night, This is my Heart).

In short, a must for whoever is interested into the pioneers of Hard and Power Rock.

THIS CD IS A CLASSIC.WHEN IT FIRST CAME OUT,I ALMOST DIDN`T BUY IT BECAUSE I WASN`T BIG INTO THE HAIR METAL THING PLUS THIS WAS QUITE A DEPARTURE FOR MICHAEL SCHENKER.BUT THE GREAT GUITAR IN THIS CD WITH THE GREAT VOCALS OF MCCULEY MAKE THIS A MUST HAVE FOR ANY MSG FAN.LOT OF MONEY BUT WELL WORTH IT.

I've been looking for this for many years, and finally it has been released! Great CD!

This music is really great if you are an 80's and 90's hair band lover! Great Tunes!!

Listen to the guitar solo on the 'Save Yourself' track from this McAuley Schenker Group album. It's just mind blowing guitar work and I'm a die hard Van Halen, Hendrix, Led Zep and AC/DC fan. Schenker just did not get the recognition he truly deserved in the U.S, but he deserves to be on any top 100 guitarists of all time list. This album is worth buying for just the 'Save Yourself' track if you love blistering 80's style guitar playing from a player who is right up there with Eddie Van Halen and Hendrix. Overall the album is very good with one or two weak tracks. I have owned this album since it was originally released in 1989 and I seen this band live once around the same time. I pull this album out every six months or so and listen to the 'Save Yourself' track which has always blown me away.

The guitar work is great, like satriani surfing with the alien with vocals.every song stylisticly different every solo as well

I thought 1987's "Perfect Timing" was a fantastic record, so when MSG put out "Save Yourself" two years later, I was really looking forward to it. Apparently they used up all their creative juices on the first release.

Aside from Anytime (which is great) and "Shadow of the Night" (pretty good), the rest of the album is filled with exceedingly mediocre songs.