LIVE REVIEW: Scorpions & Whitesnake - Melbourne, February 19th 2020

It was a big night of music in a cold and damp Melbourne, with Whitesnake and the Scorpions playing in one arena, and Queen playing in the stadium next door. But rock was the winner and it was great to see droves of fans turning up to see these legends of rock music. For me it was an easy choice, I had traveled across the country to see two of my favourite bands, on the same bill, and boy was it worth the trip!!

Whitesnake were on first, with a cry of “Are you ready, here’s a song for ya” they opened with Bad Boys, which set the scene for a night of old and new songs. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen them play Ain’t no Love in the Heart of the City, but it was beautifully put in the set list tonight for Australia, with David Coverdale recognizing the country having been through so much with the recent devastating bushfires, it certainly brought a tear to my eye!

Reb Beach and Joel Hoekstra took to the stage taking it in turns to play guitar solos, impressing the crowd, and winning their hearts with a combined rendition of Waltzing Matilda to finish. And then of course the inevitable drum solo from Tommy Aldridge, much appreciated by the fans, as he threw his sticks in to the crowd and continued to beat the hell out of his drums with his fists!

A chance then for Mr Coverdale to say hello, and introduce the band, and mention that it’s been way too long since Whitesnake last visited Australia, he hoped we’d kept the “fires burning” but with a cry of “Oh, no!”quickly changed his words!

For 90 minutes we were treated to some classic Whitesnake, “Give me all Your Love” and Here I Go Again” being particular crowd-pleasers, but for me, it was “Love Ain’t no Stranger” and “Slow an’ Easy” that made my night, and finally the night was rounded off with the classic “Still of the Night”. An impressive performance as always, and for me, as a fan for forty years, and having seen this band many, many times, I always leave hoping that one day I’ll get to see them again one more time.

WHITESNAKE Set list
Bad Boys – Slide it in – Love Ain’t no Stranger – Hey You – Slow an’ Easy – Ain’t no Love in the Heart of the City – Trouble is Your Middle Name – Shut Up and Kiss Me – Is This Love – Fool for Your Loving – Give me all Your Love – Here I go Again – Still of the Night

For many people in Melbourne there was an air of anticipation to finally get to see the Scorpions in concert. After cancelling their shows in Melbourne and Sydney in 2018 it was finally time for them to see their German heroes on the epic “Crazy World Tour”.

Starting with “Going out with a Bang” and Make it Real”, Klaus announced it was “ good to be back in Australia” and was genuinely apologetic for cancelling the scheduled show in Melbourne two years ago.

There followed a run of hits and a medley of 70’s songs for the die hard fans in the audience! Rudolph Schenker looked in great shape, running up and down the platform to perform, and around the stage such great energy! After “We Built this House” from the 2015 album “Return to Forever”, Klaus reminisced about the show in St Kilda, a one off show in Australia in 2016, and also mentions the recent bushfires and how people all over the world had been following the story. A touching moment was the song “ Send me an Angel” which was dedicated to our Australian firefighters, and “Wind of Change” a song of hope, both of which had the crowd singing along. Klaus sounded amazing, his voice back to his best.

We were then treated to another drum solo, Mickey Dee rising up on a platform showing off his talents. The drum sticks had been flying all night, with Klaus throwing what seemed like hundreds in to the audience during songs! “Big City Nights” came next, and then the show just seemed to end, with the Scorpions throwing guitar pics out to fans, and then going off stage, it seemed so abrupt, I think with the show starting a bit later than advertised the time restraint hit, and so there was just time left to come back on and do the encore.”Still Loving You” and “Rock You Like a Hurricane” brought our night to a close.

For me, it was a wonderful show and a memorable evening, well worth the journey east. Let’s hope we get to see both these bands back in Australia once again.

SCORPIONS Set list
Going Out With a Bang – Make it Real – The Zoo – Coast to Coast – 70’s Medley – We Built this House – Send me an Angel – Wind of Change – Tease Me, Please Me – Big City Nights
Encore: Still Loving You – Rock You Like a Hurricane

PHOTO GALLERY
Photos by Scott Smith: Rock Lives Here

Scorpions