Blackout (Scorpions album)

Blackout is the eighth studio album by German rock band Scorpions. It was released in 1982 on Harvest Records and Mercury Records.

Blackout
Cover art by Gottfried Helnwein
Studio album by
Scorpions
Released29 March 1982
RecordedNovember 1981 – January 1982
StudioVilla San Pecaïre (Saint Jacques, Grasse, France) with Dierks Recording Mobile
Dierks Studios (Stommeln, West Germany)
Genre
Length36:44
LabelHarvest/EMI (Europe)
Mercury (US/Canada)
ProducerDieter Dierks
Scorpions chronology
Animal Magnetism
(1980)		 Blackout
(1982)		 Love at First Sting
(1984)
Singles from Blackout
  1. "Now!"
    Released: March 1982 (Japan)
  2. "No One Like You"
    Released: 21 March 1982
  3. "Can't Live Without You"
    Released: July 1982 (UK)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal10/10[2]
Forces Parallèles[3]
Rolling Stone[4]

After losing his voice during the writing of the album[5] lead singer Klaus Meine had to undergo surgery on his vocal cords and was uncertain as to whether or not he would be able to record. Demos of the material were recorded with singer Don Dokken. [6] However none of those recordings are featured on the album and Dokken is only credited with backing vocals.[7]

In Kerrang! issue 12 Rudolf Schenker said that he could not choose between his guitar solos on "China White" so the US and European releases differed in this detail.

A self-portrait of artist Gottfried Helnwein[5] is featured on the cover of the album. Rudolf Schenker portrays this character in the "No One Like You" music video.

The RIAA certified Blackout Gold on 24 June 1982 and Platinum on 8 March 1984.[8]

"China White" was used as entrance music for the professional wrestling tag team The Skyscrapers in World Championship Wrestling.

Rolling Stone ranked Blackout as 73rd on their list of "The 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time" in 2017.[9]

Track listing

All music is composed by Rudolf Schenker.

Side one
No.TitleLyricsLength
1."Blackout"Klaus Meine, Herman Rarebell, Sonja Kittelsen3:49
2."Can't Live Without You"Meine3:47
3."No One Like You"Meine3:57
4."You Give Me All I Need"Rarebell3:39
5."Now!"Meine, Rarebell2:35
Side two
No.TitleLyricsLength
6."Dynamite"Meine, Rarebell4:12
7."Arizona"Rarebell3:56
8."China White"Meine6:59
9."When the Smoke Is Going Down"Meine3:50
2015 bonus tracks (Deluxe Edition)
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
10."Blackout" (Demo Version)Meine, Rarebell, KittelsenSchenker4:03
11."Running for the Plane" (Demo Song)MeineSchenker4:07
12."Sugar Man" (Demo Song)MeineSchenker, Matthias Jabs4:22
13."Searching for the Rainbow" (Demo Song)MeineSchenker3:56

Personnel

Scorpions

Others

Production

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[22] Platinum 100,000^
France (SNEP)[23] Gold 100,000*
Mexico (AMPROFON)[24] Gold 100,000[25]
United States (RIAA)[26] Platinum 1,000,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Weber, Barry. "Scorpions Blackout review". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  2. Popoff, Martin (1 November 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 319. ISBN 978-1894959315.
  3. Gaguet, Guillaume. "Scorpion Blackout review". Forces Parallèles. Forces Parallèles. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
  4. Considine, J.D. (24 June 1982). "Album Reviews: Scorpions - Blackout". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 14 October 2007. Retrieved 26 October 2012.
  5. Jeffrey Easton. "Metal Exiles interview with Klaus Meine". metalexiles.com. Archived from the original on 21 April 2010. Retrieved 21 April 2010.
  6. "Scorpions Frontman on Losing His Voice: 'I Thought My Career Was Over'". Noisecreep. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
  7. Dokken, Don (n.d.). "Dokken". Artist Magazine (Interview). Interviewed by Joy Williams. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
  8. "RIAA Searchable Database: search for Scorpions". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 5 February 2017.
  9. "Rolling Stone Share Their Choices For 'The 100 Greatest Metal Albums Of All Time'". ThePRP. 21 June 2017. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  10. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 6482". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  11. "Dutchcharts.nl – Scorpions – Blackout" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  12. "Le Détail des Albums de chaque Artiste – S". Infodisc.fr (in French). Archived from the original on 22 October 2014. Retrieved 9 June 2012. Select Scorpions from the menu, then press OK.
  13. "Offiziellecharts.de – Scorpions – Blackout" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
  14. Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005 (in Japanese). Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
  15. "Swedishcharts.com – Scorpions – Blackout". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  16. "Scorpions | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  17. "Scorpions Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
  18. "Blackout Billboard Albums". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Archived from the original on 25 November 2013. Retrieved 27 October 2012.
  19. "Top Singles - Volume 36, No. 23, July 17, 1982". Library and Archives Canada. 17 July 1982. Archived from the original on 18 December 2014. Retrieved 27 October 2012.
  20. "Scorpions Official Charts". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
  21. "infodisc.fr Note : You must select Scorpions". infodisc.fr. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  22. "Canadian album certifications – Scorpions – Blackout". Music Canada.
  23. "French album certifications – Scorpions – Blackout" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved 13 January 2022. Select SCORPIONS and click OK. 
  24. "Scorpions Blackout Mexican Promo award disc(292099)". Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  25. "Scorpions Blackout Mexican Promo award disc (292099)".
  26. "American album certifications – Scorpions – Blackout". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 15 November 2011.
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