Love at First Sting
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Love at First Sting is the ninth studio album by German rock band Scorpions. It was released in February 1984 by Mercury Records in the US<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> and in March 1984 by Harvest Records in the UK.<ref name="Martin" /> The album contains "Rock You Like a Hurricane", "Still Loving You", and "Big City Nights", three of the band's most famous songs.
Music
The album's music has been described as heavy metal,<ref name="ucr" >Template:Cite web</ref> hard rock,<ref name="ucr" /> and Template:Nowrap.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Background and recording
The album was recorded at Dierks Studios in Stommeln, West Germany. Initial sessions took place in Stockholm's Polar Studios in the Summer of 1983 with ex-Rainbow members Jimmy Bain on bass and Bobby Rondinelli on drums, but nothing made it to the final album.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Love at First Sting is notable in that it was one of the first digitally recorded heavy metal records ever released.
It became the group's most successful album in the US, where it peaked at number 6 on the Billboard 200 chart in 1984,<ref name="US" >Template:Cite web</ref> and went double-platinum by the end of the year, reaching triple-platinum status in 1995.<ref name="RIAA" >Template:Cite web</ref> The song "Rock You Like a Hurricane" reached number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the same year;<ref name="US" /> "Still Loving You" reached number 64 on the same chart,<ref name="US" /> number 14 in Germany,<ref name="GER" >Template:Cite web</ref> and number 3 in the French<ref name="FR" >Template:Cite web</ref> and Swiss<ref name="CH" >Template:Cite web</ref> single charts.
Artwork
The original cover art was created by Kochlowski, which is a German graphic design company, and features a photo shot by renowned German photographer Helmut Newton. Despite the record company having shown the original cover art to retailers without any concerns, a complaint by Walmart in the US after the album was released resulted in PolyGram Records issuing a "clean" cover for use in several department store chains. The alternative cover was designed to be less controversial by simply showing a photo of the band members, which was the same photo as the one on the inner sleeve.<ref name="Metal Exiles interview with Klaus Meine">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Book">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Web">Template:Cite web</ref>
Track listing
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Personnel
- Scorpions
- Klaus Meine – lead and backing vocals
- Rudolf Schenker – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2, 3, 8), lead guitar (6, 7, 9)
- Matthias Jabs – lead guitar, rhythm guitar (6, 7, 9)
- Francis Buchholz – bass, Moog Taurus
- Herman Rarebell – drums
- Production
- Dieter Dierks – producer, mixing
- Gerd Rautenbach – engineer, mastering
- Kochlowski/Missmahl/Pieczulski – cover design
Charts
| Chart (1984) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts)<ref name=FINI>Template:Cite book</ref> | 4 |
| French Albums (SNEP)<ref>Template:Cite web Select Scorpions from the menu, then press OK.</ref> | 4 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon)<ref name="JPN">Template:Cite book</ref> | 25 |
Certifications
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