So after reading a review online about the new Scorpions album I saw that they got Desmond Child, a big name song writer, came in and wrote most of their tracks. How expensive is it to get a big name songwriter to come in and write songs for you??? Desmond Child reserected Aerosmith's Career in the 80's by writing most of their big hits he also brought Bon Jovi into the mainstream by writing a lot of his big hits. People like Desmond Child and Mutt Lange must be swimming in royalties since a lot of the big rock singles were written by them.

Whatever it was, money well spent! When they tour the US in 2008, and they are, if they don't land close to the PNW I will be doing a road trip for this concert. Maybe we could put together a little convoy and tear it up! It'd be like wild hogs only far worse! Bunch of old geezers road tripping to a rock concert with t-shirts that don't quite cover the belly anymore. The Stuff Legands Are Made Of! Rumor is a team-up with Judas Priest. Anyone who is a fan of Rock classic or otherwise will not be disappointed with the purchase of this CD.

Did Lange actually get a writing credit on the songs? I seem to recall from my days of AC/DC fandom that Lange didn't get a writing credit on the songs on "Highway to Hell" or "Back in Black," AC/DC's big break-out album. (Correct me if I'm wrong.) Not sure about the other artists or what other royalties they arranged for production credit - but if a producer like Lange can turn an act into a huge success by producing a hit album or two, he sure deserves a piece of the pie.

Andrew

Desmond Child reserected Aerosmith's Career in the 80's by writing most of their big hits he also brought Bon Jovi into the mainstream by writing a lot of his big hits.

It's a DIFFERENT time and radio is different. With no airplay do you think this album will sell much? Do kids jump at the fact that the Scorpions have a new CD out or that crap like Soulja Boy is burning up the charts????

I don't think the lack of airtime and not selling the CD's is that big of a deal. Don't the groups make all of their or most of their money by touring. Sure royalties from the labels is great but a world tour is huge in comparison. This group will not have any problems selling out in every venue they visit. This CD deserves way more airtime than it is getting. IMHO of course.

I saw the Scorpions and Motley Crue (sans Tommy Lee) sometime in the late 90's, can't remember if it was the Coliseum or the Garden. Anyway, the Scorpions absolutely kicked ass that night. Both my friend and I were impressed with how good they sounded. They definitely won the battle of 80's butt rock bands that night.

I thought some of the new tracks from the Scorpions were getting some airplay????? The album is on the Billboard charts, I do know that. Kgon and maybe charlie will be playing some of their new tracks??? Hopefully! But yes Trixter, I don't expect Top 40 to be playing any of the new tracks from The Scorpions, Top 40 blows chunks and only plays that RAP CRAP!!!!!!

IF I was a musician and could afford songwriters like Mutt Lange or Desmond Child, I would have them write and proudce me an album in a heartbeart. And Yes Mutt Lange totally deserves credit for "highway to hell" and "back in Black", not only that but Def Leppard would never have been that popular in the 80's without Mutt Lange. He WAS Def Leppard. He wrote all of their hit singles, and hit records, not to mention he produced all their big albums.

I loaned the new Scorps CD to the 24 year old bartender who works next door after he heard it in my store. It was the first day I had it and it bumped KGON off, for once. He loved it, and was surprised to hear it was new: he thought the band was retired! They love it in his bar, too. So, yep, the "kids" are getting it, when they get a chance!

DT: TWO road trips? I'm in...again We may be spending half the summer on the road...

Maybe for some side trips we could catch the Def Leppard REO Styx show and the Queensryche Show. BOC will be in Tacoma later this month. Will be a short show for sure but the tickets are way affordable. I'm thinking of going to Vegas in February or maybe in May to Tahoe to catch a Sammy Hagar show.

Queensryche! H-E double hockey sticks Yeah! (Marty said that last night...cracked me up!)I could sit through REO just for the other two...The second I hear a note of anything from "Hi Infidelity" I'm going to the bar...ugh! Make that 2/3 of the summer...

Shania Twain would have been singin' only in the shower if not for Mutt! And back in the shower she is, methinks.

Andrew brings up an important point about Robert "Mutt" Lange. He did not write any material for either AC/DC or Def Leppard. He was only the producer. To be frank, from his early days with the Boomtown Rats, being producer has been his best role. As such, he may have seen more money than the bands from the releases since he was no doubt on points beyond his fee.

What "Mutt" has written is stuff like, "Do You Believe in Love?" for Huey Lewis & the News, "Lovin' Every Minute of It" for Loverboy, and "Only God (Could Stop Me Loving You)" for Billy Ray Cyrus. Lange is a man of great luck to have worked with acts that became timeless and very successful, but his pen is not nearly as consistent as his fine production.

Of course, back in the old days, a producer would often take a songwriting credit, rather than earn one. Buddy Holly is a fine example. The "Petty" in the credits of many Crickets tunes was Norman Petty. He recorded, produced and promoted most of Holly's songs, but never wrote a note.

Darktemper is absolutely correct when he says that most artists make all of their income from touring. Many acts never see a penny from sales and only a steady trickle from songwriting royalties. If they are at an impasse and bring in an outside songwriter, or scout around for undiscovered gems, or help out an up and comer, they could end up with a tune that folks demand for decades at shows.

At one time, songs were written for publishing houses and most of the authors were given a flat fee and told to scram. Willie Nelson made $50 on his first song, and until a few years ago, it was all he saw for that early effort.

In that system, Nashville and the Brill Building were cruel places that spawned fantastic melodies, but left many talents out of the payoff loop. Until folks like Willie, Carole King, Paul Simon and Lou Reed became performers, they saw next to nothing for their tunes.

As for Desmond Child, he does deserve credit for making Bon Jovi a household word, writing Ricky Martin one of the most annoying songs in human history, and turning Aerosmith into purveyors of profitable MOR* tripe. Perhaps, Desmond's latest high quality efforts for the Scorpions will redeem him in the eyes of history, but it will not make us all forget his involvement with that assclown Michael Bolton. :0)

*when once they were true "Monsters of Rock"

Hey Little songs you are incorrect about Def Leppard. Mutt Lange wrote or co-wrote almost all of Def leppards biggest hits. Everything on Pyromania and Hysteria was all Mutt Lange. His name is credited on all those songs. He was the unofficial member of Def Leppard. That band would have been nothing without him.

Lange was certainly given credit and he is loved by the band. However, to the best of my knowledge, he was only the producer of those classic platters. In fact, he quit early on during the recording of "Hysteria" -- only to return after a year or so to help salvage the record. Remember, both he, and more tragically, Rick Allen, were injured in automobile accidents during the project. They eventually put seven singles into the Hot 100, but the recording and production work stretched on for three plus years.

All right ladies and gents, pool your $$$ together ... I got the RV locked, stocked, and ready to rock!

Beano - IMHO, Def Leppard HAS BEEN next to nothing since Hysteria, and that album lacked in comparison to Pyromania (still one of my all-time favorites).

The Scorpions AND Judas Priest ... WITH Rob Halford? w00t ... hah don't know if I ever told this, but I delivered pizza to the Scorpions after they played a show in Spokane in the early 90s ... their hotel suite was what one would expect from a big rock band, lots of hotties in various stages of undress ... lines of cocaine on the back table (the lead guitarist asked me if I wanted a line) ... nice guys, they tipped like $20 and asked me if I wanted to stay and party it up.

Thank you, Brianl! Great story! Those were the days...Had the same kind of experience with AC/DC in Ft. Lauderdale on the Heat Seeker tour.

It's so nice to be at the age when "road trip" does not equal "bicycle/backpack/cash found under sofa" anymore...(but those were fun, too).

"It's so nice to be at the age when "road trip" does not equal "bicycle/backpack/cash found under sofa" anymore..."

LMAO! Classics from both Brianl and EN. You folks have got a plan! I am certainly someone who wants to hear the stories.

By the way everybody -- EN's autographed Rush book is AWESOME!

If somebody can just find us a tank of N2O, we can pay for the whole trip for all of us and we'll stay in good hotels and have hotel Sunday brunches and happy hours. Ahh, those were the days!

"It's so nice to be at the age when "road trip" does not equal "bicycle/backpack/cash found under sofa"

Hah that's precisely how I paid for my first concert ... AC/DC Who Made Who tour, I was 13 ... I actually went around and collected pop cans and took them to the recycler (for like 50 cents a pound at the time), and I got my ticket. My mother sure wasn't paying for it, she was convinced I was going straight to hell for going to that show!

Oh and EN and LS - you guys better keep the autographed Rush book away from me. My drool marks will stain the perfection that is God's band.

I like to think God would have a band!

I would be "Pink Floyd" if he did!

Oh, BTW.......in case you did not know:

Queensryche
Thu, 02/28/08
07:30 PM Newmark Theatre
Portland, OR

N20..it's not just for dentistry anymore...

Thank you for the heads-up, sir! w00t good news good news!

Did anyone hear the Rockline interview with Geoff Tate? The new music sounds great! That would definitely be a good show!

Just checked Ticketmaster...Orch Row L on the first try, so tix are not selling like crazy for Q, and they are cheap...We should do it! It would be great to see these guys in a real venue instead of a barn. Now I gotta go break out "Mindcrime"...

DT: who ya callin' "geezers"?

Well, if the shoe fit's......

Operation: Mindcrime is an absolutely brilliant album. Empire is really outstanding too.

Maybe it's because Terry Brown, of Rush fame, produced 'em.

DT: Shoes? I'm from Battle Ground! LOL

Brianl: I think that's why we Rushies grok Queensryche...that Terry Brown influence, complex rythyms, dynamics, and lyrics...all the things we love! I loaded "Empire" while I was at it, and I'll give a review of the new one when I get my hands on it.

I almost forgot how much I love "Anybody Listening?" and "Resistance". Awesome!

I requested "Anybody Listening" from Iris the other day and she said she had forgotten about that song and how great it was. Right up there with "Silent Lucidity"! How bout Another Rainy Night, thats a great one as well! EMPIRE, what a great CD!

Oh Yah, I forgets, BattleGround. You gals just wore cowpies of your feets back yonder.

That and they put on a VERY impressive show live. I saw the Empire tour in Spokane, and was blown away.

They aren't as technical as Rush by any stretch, they have the dynamic and complex rhythms ... and Geoff Tate's voice is insanely good. Together, though, they're very tight ... and I really dig it.

With a handful of hay in one back pocket to catch our horses in time for school, and a snus can in the other, to catch the boys for after school...LOL

Brian, ya nailed it!

Just be damn careful which Coke can you grab to take a swig from.

People spit snus juice into cans? That's disgusting! LMAO

hah don't laugh, that year I was in Deadwood, the first day of hunting season school was closed.

We also used to take our hunting rifles, put them in our lockers, and go hunting after school.

I doubt they do that now, but in 1990 they didn't care.

Yep...food on the table is a priority, and if you have it with you, you don't have to waste daylight going home first!

Amazing how many people are armed (and what they're armed with) and how civilized things are at the Rally. I love the population vs. crime rate statistic as compared to a city of the same size for the same period of time: much lower for the Rally than for a normal city!

heck the population of the state of South Dakota literally DOUBLED that week.

They stopped counting at 650,000 bikers. And they largely policed themselves. The Hells Angels never left the Buffalo Chip, and the rest of the gangbangers behaved.