Album
Lonesome Crow
Lonesome Crow is the debut studio album by the German band Scorpions, released on 9 February 1972 in West Germany. It was made soon after the group turned fully professional, with Conny Plank producing, and the sessions reportedly took only six or seven days. The record also served as the soundtrack to Das Kalte Paradies (The Cold Paradise), a German anti-drug film. The US release followed in May 1973.
It is the starting point of a studio catalogue that runs through to Rock Believer in 2022, yet it sounds quite unlike what came later. The style is darkly melodic, with hard rock, psychedelic rock and Krautrock all in the mix. For anyone who knows the band from their later work, it's a fascinating look at where they began, and a reminder that the story started somewhere far moodier and more experimental.
Lonesome Crow: tracklist, credits and charts
7 tracks · 40:42Tracklist
- 1I’m Goin’ MadDziony, Heimberg, Meine, Schenker, Schenker4:56
- 2It All DependsDziony, Heimberg, Meine, Schenker, Schenker3:30
- 3Leave MeDziony, Heimberg, Meine, Schenker, Schenker5:06
- 4In Search of the Peace of MindDziony, Heimberg, Meine, Schenker, Schenker5:00
- 5InheritanceDziony, Heimberg, Meine, Schenker, Schenker4:42
- 6ActionDziony, Heimberg, Meine, Schenker, Schenker3:56
- 7Lonesome CrowDziony, Heimberg, Meine, Schenker, Schenker13:31
- Produced by
- Conny Plank
- Recorded at
- Star Studios, Star Studios (Hamburg, West Germany)
- Recorded
- October 1971
- Mastered by
- John Cremer, Jens Müller-Koslowski
- Label
- Brain
- Length
- 40:42
Line-up
- Wolfgang Dziony · drums (drum set), percussion, background vocals
- Lothar Heimberg · bass guitar, background vocals
- Michael Schenker · electric guitar, background vocals, guitar
- Rudolf Schenker · electric guitar, background vocals
- Klaus Meine · lead vocals
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| Swiss Albums · Combined | 54 |
| German Albums · 2026 | 62 |
| Belgian Albums (Wallonia) · 2026 | 125 |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
65.1
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
856
ListenBrainz listeners
85k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
7.2k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Also released on 9 February
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More from Scorpions
Full discography →
Fly to the Rainbow
1974
In Trance
1975
Virgin Killer
1976
Taken by Force
1977
Scorpions All Night Long 1978
All Night Long
1978
Tokyo Tapes
1978
Lovedrive
1979
Best of Scorpions
1979
Animal Magnetism
1980
Blackout
1982
Love at First Sting
1984
Best of Scorpions, Volume 2
1984
World Wide Live
1985
Believe in Love
1988
Rhythm of Love
1988
Big City Nights
1988
Savage Amusement
1988
Best of Rockers ’n’ Ballads
1989
Crazy World
1990
Still Loving You
1992
Extras
1993
Face the Heat
1993
Deadly Sting
1995
Live Bites
1995
Scorpions Still Loving You 2 1996
Still Loving You 2
1996
Live
1996
Pure Instinct
1996
The Real Sting
1998
Big City Nights
1998
Scorpions Eye to Eye 1999
Eye to Eye
1999
Scorpions Scorpions 1999
Scorpions
1999
Eye II Eye
1999
Moment of Glory
2000
Acoustica
2001
20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best of Scorpions
2001
Classic Bites
2002
Bad for Good: The Very Best of Scorpions
2002
Box of Scorpions
2004
Unbreakable
2004
The Platinum Collection
2005
Humanity: Hour I
2007
Taken B-Side
2009
Sting in the Tail
2010
Comeblack
2011
MTV Unplugged in Athens
2013
La Selection Best Of
2014
Return to Forever
2015
Born to Touch Your Feelings: Best of Rock Ballads
2017
Rock Believer
2022
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Acoustically
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Vol 4
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Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + wikidata
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 1972 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 9 February 1972 | |
| Wikidata | 9 February 1972 |
24 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | DE | Brain | 042282573926 | other |
| 1972 | DE | Brain | original | |
| 1972 | DE | Brain | original | |
| 1972 | DE | Brain | original | |
| 1976 | DE | Brain | other | |
| 1980 | DE | Brain | other | |
| 1982 | GB | Heavy Metal Worldwide | other | |
| August 1985 | DE | Brain | 042282573926 | other |
| 1 September 1986 | JP | Brain | 4988023001043 | other |
| 1988 | GB | Metal Masters | 5016658212424 | other |
| 1988 | DE | Brain | 042282573926 | other |
| 1989 | US | Rampage Records | 081227091521 | other |
| 1989 | US | Rampage Records | 081227091521 | other |
| 1991 | DE | Karussell | 731451101427 | other |
| 1992 | ES | PDI | other | |
| 2001 | DE | Brunswick News | 731454979320 | other |
| 2002 | US | Hip‐O Records | 042282573926 | other |
| 29 October 2002 | US | Hip‐O Records | 042282573926 | remaster |
| 2005 | XE | Brain | 0042282573926 | other |
| 18 May 2005 | JP | Brain | 4988005610836 | other |
| 23 June 2010 | JP | Brain | 4988005610836 | other |
| 2014 | XE | Brain | 0042282573926 | other |
| 26 February 2026 | XW | Brain | 00602478478550 | other |
| 27 February 2026 | XE | Brain | 00602478478482 | remaster |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · upscaled: major: best source 1299x1266, upscaled to 1500 (x1.18)
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 1299×1266 | upscaled: major: best source 1299x1266, upscaled to 1500 (x1.18) |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |