Love at First Sting
Love at First Sting is the ninth studio album by the German hard rock and heavy metal band Scorpions, released on 27 March 1984. It followed Blackout from 1982 and came before Savage Amusement in 1988, placing it at the heart of the band's run of records in the early part of that decade. Mercury Records handled the release in the US, while Harvest Records issued it in the UK.
It is the album that gave the band three of their best-known songs: the thunderous "Rock You Like a Hurricane", the slow-burning power ballad "Still Loving You", and the swaggering "Big City Nights". If you want to understand why Scorpions became a name far beyond Germany, this is the record to start with, and it rewards hearing in full rather than as a handful of singles.
Love at First Sting: tracklist, credits and charts
9 tracks · 41:14Tracklist
- 1Bad Boys Running WildSchenker, Erbel, Meine3:56
- 2Rock You Like a HurricaneSchenker, Meine, Rarebell4:13
- 3I’m Leaving YouRudolf Schenker and Klaus Meine4:18
- 4Coming HomeRudolf Schenker and Klaus Meine5:00
- 5The Same ThrillRudolf Schenker and Klaus Meine3:32
- 6Big City NightsRudolf Schenker and Klaus Meine4:09
- 7As Soon as the Good Times RollRudolf Schenker and Klaus Meine5:03
- 8CrossfireRudolf Schenker and Klaus Meine4:36
- 9Still Loving YouRudolf Schenker and Klaus Meine6:28
- Produced by
- Dieter Dierks
- Recorded at
- Dierks Studios, Dierks (Stommeln, West Germany)
- Recorded
- 1983
- Mixed by
- Mike Beiriger, Dieter Dierks, Scorpions
- Engineered by
- Mike Beiriger, Dieter Dierks, David Hewitt, Gerd Rautenbach
- Labels
- Mercury Records, Harvest/EMI
- Length
- 41:14
Line-up
- Francis Buchholz · bass guitar, background vocals
- Matthias Jabs · electric guitar, background vocals, slide guitar
- Herman Rarebell · percussion, drums (drum set), background vocals
- Rudolf Schenker · electric guitar, background vocals, acoustic guitar
- Klaus Meine · lead vocals, background vocals
Singles
- “Rock You Like a Hurricane” · 27th March 1984
- “Still Loving You” · June 1984 (US)
- “Big City Nights” · August 1984 (UK)
- “I'm Leaving You” · November 1984 (US)
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 · 1984 | 6 |
| UK Albums Chart · 1984 | 17 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 1984 | 4 |
| French Albums (SNEP) · 1984 | 4 |
| German Albums · 1984 | 6 |
| Swiss Albums · 1984 | 9 |
| Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1984 | 15 |
| Swedish Albums · 1984 | 17 |
| Austrian Albums · 1984 | 19 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 1984 | 25 |
All 11 charts
| New Zealand Albums · 1984 | 48 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Canada · 1988 | 2× Platinum |
| France · 1985 | Platinum |
| Germany · 1985 | Gold |
| Japan · 1985 | Gold |
| Switzerland · 1985 | Gold |
| United States · 1995 | 3× Platinum |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
Released the same week
Also released on 27 March
Every year →More from Scorpions
Full discography →The best of 1984
All of 1984 →More on Mercury Records
The label →Releases and pressings
How we know the release date musicbrainz + wikidata
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 27 March 1984 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | February 1984 (US) | |
| Wikidata | 27 March 1984 | |
| US release | 1984 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 27 March 1984 | earliest UK or European date |
32 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | US | — | other | |
| — | CA | Mercury Records | 042281498121 | other |
| 1984 | US | Mercury Records | 0208312199249 | other |
| 1984 | US | Mercury Records | 042281498121 | other |
| 1984 | XE | Harvest | other | |
| 1984 | XE | Harvest | 077774602525 | other |
| 1984 | US | Mercury Records | 042281498145 | other |
| 1984 | XE | Harvest | 5099924000710 | other |
| 1984 | US | — | other | |
| 1984 | PT | Harvest | other | |
| 1984 | JP | RCA | other | |
| February 1984 | US | Mercury Records | 042281498114 | original |
| February 1984 | US | Mercury Records | 042281498114 | original |
| 27 March 1984 | GB | Harvest | 5099924000710 | other |
| 27 March 1984 | — | — | 4050538477399 | other |
| April 1984 | US | Mercury Records | 042282203816 | other |
| 21 June 1984 | JP | Breeze Music | other | |
| 1989 | XE | Harvest | other | |
| 1989 | DE | Harvest | 077774602525 | other |
| 1989 | JP | Mercury Records | 4988011318405 | other |
| 4 September 1989 | XE | Harvest | 077774602525 | other |
| 1990 | US | Mercury Records | 042281498121 | other |
| 5 November 1991 | JP | PolyGram Records, Inc. | 4988011328497 | other |
| 1997 | US | Mercury Records | 731453478725 | other |
| 19 August 1997 | US | Mercury Records | 042281498121 | other |
| 2001 | JP | EMI | 4988006797765 | other |
| 26 October 2001 | XE | Harvest | 724353515621 | other |
| 18 September 2012 | US | Audio Fidelity | 780014214326 | other |
| 6 November 2015 | XE | 2DF.enterprises | 4050538159349 | deluxe |
| 2016 | RU | BMG | 0889853171323 | other |
| 17 August 2018 | FR | BMG | 4050538394481 | other |
| 8 August 2023 | XW | BMG | 4050538477399 | deluxe |
Cover art sources
deezer · upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25)
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| deezer ✓ | 1200×1200 | upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25) |
| coverartarchive | 1000×1000 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |