On Friday night, I headed down to the AT&T Center in San Antonio to cover the Scorpions show - one of my all time favorite bands. The German band is currently touring the world in support of their latest release "Sting of the Tail" which has enjoyed a decent amount of airplay on classic rock stations this summer primarily with the hit "Raised on Rock". The new CD was released in March and the band launched the world tour in May.

Earlier this year, the Scorpions announced on their website that this will be their last project and last tour as they want to end their careers on a "high note". After all, they've sold over 100 million albums over their 40 year career and I guess all good things must eventually come to an end. Personally, after seeing this show, I think they have a few good rockin years left... but that's just me.

As I journeyed toward the arena, I couldn't help but notice the crowd. Two generations were represented and there was a good number of young fans at the arena which was no surprise. I noticed various Scorpions songs competing against one another on the car stereos in the parking lot. Like several of the bands greatest hits joined into one song. The tail gators were out in full force and I spoke to a few as I passed by. Everyone was excited to see the Scorpions return to town. There's something special about San Antonio metal fans. Always a pumped, hard core, and enthusiastic crowd and this night was no exception.

As I was getting my camera gear all set up, the lights went down in the AT&T Center and the overly excited crowd (I'm guessing 14,000) went wild! (here come the goose bumps). The band shared a cool video with us from the 1983 US Festival in California where the band performed at a peak time in their career. I saw the bands drummer, James Kottak appear on the drum platform as it was raised above us. Bassist - Pawel Maciwoda ran out and the rest of the band quickly appeared and kicked the show off with the title track from the latest album "Sting of the Tail". You could feel the energy as Klaus Meine, the bands lead singer came running out to greet us. Klaus looked great dressed in black, loose tie, black beret, black leather vest and converse sneakers. It was time to rock!

Without hesitation, with much of the crowd still standing and cheering, the band took us back 30 years with "Make It Real" from the 1980 "Animal Magnetism" album and really showed everyone that Klaus still had the voice, the one and only voice of the Scorpions. I was honestly shocked by how good he sounded. In fact, the well tuned band sounded excellent and really tight all night. Matthias Jabs and Rudolph Schenker - the bands two guitarists, moved up and down the ramp getting closer to the fans as they jumped right into "Bad Boys Running Wild" for the 1984 "Love at First Sting" album. The band took a breath, Klaus said hello to San Antonio and told the adoring crowd that it was good to back! Instantly, the band played the opening chords to "The Zoo" from "Animal Magnetism" and then the instrumental "Coast to Coast" from the 1985 "World Wide Live" album which gave each band member a chance to flex a bit.

One of the highlights of the night came after the band played "Loving You Sunday Morning" from the 1979 "Lovedrive" album when Klaus mentioned a few words about the late Ronnie James Dio. The crowd cheered as the band played "Send Me An Angel" in tribute (again, here come the goose bumps). Next, that awesome San Antonio crowd sang together like a big family to the rock anthem "Holiday" also from "Lovedrive". More goose bumps here as everyone in the arena swayed back and forth in harmony with thoughts of "Dio" still in my mind.

There were many more highlights yet to come throughout the night. I loved the speed and energy of "Dynamite" from the 1982 "Blackout" album which was immediately followed by "Kottak Attack" James Kottak's magnificent ten minute drum solo which segued nicely into the crowd pleasing "Blackout". With the crowd still on their feet, all spot lights focused in on Matthias Jabs - the bands primary lead guitarist since 1982, as he began his incredible guitar solo "Six String Sting". Of course, the crowd went wild as he clearly displayed his lasting abilities and reminded us how great he has been through the years. The band closed out the main set with "Big City Nights" from "Love at First Sting".

The encore turned out to be a huge part of the show! The band played three major hits to close out the night - "Still Loving You", "No One Like you", and "Rock you Like a Hurricane" placing an exclamation point on a night that will be long remembered - especially by the writer of this review.

The Scorpions performance was fantastic. On my scale of one to ten, I'll give this one an eight and a half. I must admit I was pleasantly surprised, especially by the vocal performance. I liked the way the band arranged the show and the set list was probably about as thorough as you could get with the time allowed. The current tour is a big one and the band has many more cities to play, but I wouldn't be surprised to see new legs of the tour added when they get the current tour completed. Maybe even an Austin date!

Thanks Klaus, Rudolph, Matthias, Pawel, & James for all the memorable concerts and 40 years of great music. If this indeed is the end of the road for the Scorpions, I'm glad it's on their own terms.