SCORPIONS’ “Rock You Like A Hurricane” Originally Had A Way More Literal Title

The immediately recognizable guitar riff, the infectious power, the lyrics that fueled numerous nights of youthful riot within the 80s — Scorpions‘ “Rock You Like A Hurricane” is a timeless anthem of rock ‘n’ roll. Nonetheless, behind its meteoric rise to fame lurked a title so controversial, that it was deemed too scorching for the airwaves.

In a latest interview with Classic Rock journal, former Scorpions drummer Herman Rarebell, who was liable for co-writing the “Rock You Like A Hurricane”‘s lyrics with singer Klaus Meine, peeled again the curtain on the making of Love At First Sting, the album that catapulted the band to world stardom. Rarebell credited the band’s American excursions with acts like Foreigner, Aerosmith, and Journey for influencing their sound. He explains how they “discovered quick” from these iconic bands, ensuing within the album’s slicker and extra melodic method.

“It was touring with bands like Foreigner and Aerosmith and Journey that taught us. We noticed how they wrote, and we discovered quick.”

“Klaus and Herman wrote the lyrics collectively,” shared guitarist Rudolf Schenker in the identical interview, revealing that he wrote the now-famous riff through the earlier album’s tour.

Schenker humorously described the contrasting types of the 2 songwriters: “Klaus‘s very romantic, harmonic thoughts and Herman‘s very soiled thoughts.” This inventive pressure is clear in a few of Rarebell‘s extra suggestive lyrics, which he admits had been autobiographical reflections of their hard-living rock and roll way of life.

“I might open the curtains within the morning after partying all evening to let the solar are available,” Rarebell recalled. “The query was at all times, [to imaginary sexual partner] ‘And what’s your title?’ For me it was a wild time, it actually was intercourse and medicines and rock’n’roll.”

Nonetheless, the largest shocker comes when Rarebell confesses the music’s authentic title. “I assumed we wanted a rock music with lyrics that needs to be forbidden,” he mentioned. “The unique title, for me at the least, was ‘Fuck You Like A Hurricane’.”

He revealed that the report firm unsurprisingly rejected the thought, calling him “utterly out of his thoughts.”

Whereas the title “Fuck You Like A Hurricane” could have been deemed too risqué for mainstream consumption on the time, Rarebell muses that at the moment, such express language would hardly elevate an eyebrow.

“Trying again at it now, it makes you chuckle. There are all these songs that go, ‘Motherfucker, asshole…’ They might by no means have been performed in America again then. Now you possibly can launch it as ‘Fuck You Like A Hurricane’ and no person would give a shit.”