I just picked up the DVD Showtime for a whopping $37.99 Canadian, on special order. UFO are one of the best-known 70's hard rock bands from England but were arguably most famous in Japan. They peaked in the 70s but didn't receive a lot of airplay in North America and then were overshadowed by other (new wave of British heavy metal) NWOBHM bands like Def Leppard and Whitesnake, both of whom are more "metal" than hard rock. UFO also had within their ranks the celebrated German guitarist Michael Schenker, who was also briefly in the Scorpions. Most rock fans will recognize the fantastic title track from the 1977 album, Lights Out, and the classic rock standard, "Only You Can Rock Me" from 1978's Obsession. On disc 2, the band recounts the story of how they wrote this rock standard, with then guitarist Michael Schenker discovering the final pieces to complete the song.
The two-disc DVD features a concert in Wilhelmshaven, Germany from May 13, 2005, in what appears to be a small room, instead of an arena. I was surprised at first to see the size of the room, which wasn't packed tightly, but then I realized that these guys are long past their prime, despite being so influential during the pre-metal heydays of the '70s. The sound quality on my stereo television was fine. I don't have a surround set up so I can't say how much better the sound could be with the right equipment.
The interviews on disc 2 are really more for the serious fans, with the band talking about typical rock'n'roll debauchery, bandmates coming and going, etc. It's the sort of thing that I would watch once and then likely not again. At times, you get reminded how close to a chemically damaged Ozzy Osbourne some of these guys are!
Article comments
1 - Tim Hall
Pity they've ignored the Paul Chapman years, that was an underrated era of UFO's history. Took Paul Chapman a while to emerge from Schenker's shadow, but some of those albums had some great songs.
2 - Bennett
Sorry, but for me UFO will always be Schenker and his Gibson Flying V, with the sound quality of Rock Bottom on the UFO live album "Strangers In The Night".
Those were great days indeed.
Excellent review!
3 - Guppusmaximus
I have always wanted to give them a try...
I know in Iron Maiden's Biography,"Run to the Hills" that UFO was mentioned as NWOBHM but Whitesnake is no where to be found. Not even at:
http://www.nwobhm.com/
Oh well, I think I will try some UFO cds first before I spend that much cake on a DVD...I just hope they don't sound like Whitesnake because they sucked major ass!!
4 - Tim Hall
The only times I got to see UFO live were when Chapman was in the band, at the 1980 Reading Festival, and two years later at the Hammersmith Odeon (a gig recorded for radio broadcast, and now available on CD). So the post-Schenker UFO is the one I remember :)
5 - Tim Hall
Reviewed here
6 - Triniman
I think Guppusmaximus comment is a fair one about Whitensnake...when I think of major NWOBHM bands, I tend to think about Maiden, Saxon, etc.
7 - Guppusmaximus
Definately, Man. But, Not to knock your article because I think Maiden mentions UFO as one of their influences and I appreciate you shining a light on some good stuff... Hell,I'm just a youngen and I remember liking some of MSG's hits, so, UFO has got to be better than that...Right??
8 - Triniman
MSG have some good material that I would classify as very commercial-sounding, particularly the albums with Robin McAuley on vocals...then again, some of their material is less commercial sounding and more muscular, straight-ahead.
Whether you end up prefering UFO to MSG or vice versa is matter of your own taste. I like both bands.
9 - Rob
I loved these guys in high school and 25 years later, I still enjoy the music. They really were a great hard-rocking band. Songs like "Rock Bottom", "Mother Mary", "Lights Out" and "Love to Love", especially the live versions on "Strangers in the Night", still stand the test of time. I was lucky enough to receive a DVD of a concert UFO performed in the later 70s somewhere in Germany. The sound and video quality's not the best, but it's great to see the band performing the classics back then.
10 - Billy Bob
I like UFO real well. Neil Young does a great job on lead guitar,and Dr Dre is a standout on vocals. Highly recommend!