Scorpions Announce 60th-Anniversary Las Vegas Residency for 2025
· Ultimate Classic RockScorpions will celebrate their 60th anniversary with another Las Vegas residency, setting up shop at PH Live at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in early 2025.
The "Scorpions – Coming Home to Las Vegas 60th Anniversary" residency kicks off on Feb. 27, with four additional dates confirmed for March. Buckcherry will provide support. Tickets go on sale to the general public on Saturday. You can learn more at Ticketmaster and see the full list of dates below.
"There couldn‘t be a better way than to start 2025 in Las Vegas with another residency at Planet Hollywood," singer Klaus Meine said in a statement. "Come and celebrate with us our 60th anniversary and catch a rockin' good time ... we gonna sting yaaaa!!!"
READ MORE: Scorpions Biopic Will Chronicle Band's Rise to Stardom
Scorpions' Recent Las Vegas History
The Coming Home to Las Vegas residency will mark Scorpions' third Sin City sojourn in four years. The rockers previously visited the entertainment mecca for 2022's Sin City Nights residency (featuring support from Skid Row) and 2024's Love at First Sting Las Vegas, which saw them performing most of the career-defining album for its 40th anniversary.
There's no word yet on what Scorpions will play during their upcoming residency, but they've got plenty of choices among their 19-album discography. Although they rocketed to stardom in the early '80s, they've been together since 1965 and released their debut album, Lonesome Crow, in 1972.
Four more albums — 1974's Fly to the Rainbow, 1975's In Trance, 1976's Virgin Killer and 1977's Taken by Force — followed before Scorpions finally landed on the album charts in their native Germany and in the United States with 1979's Lovedrive. The next decade saw them score several Top 10 albums certified platinum or higher, and in 1991, they earned the biggest hit of their career with the global smash power ballad "Wind of Change."
Scorpions – Coming Home to Las Vegas 60th Anniversary Residency
PH Live at Planet Hollywood
Feb. 27
March 1
March 6
March 8
March 11
18: ‘Eye II Eye’ (1999)
A truly desperate attempt to stay “current” by tapping into then-popular musical trends — primarily electronica, trip-hop and just plain pop music — 'Eye II Eye' was virtually unrecognizable as a Scorpions album. Instead, this all-time career low seemed like a belated mishmash of Def Leppard’s 'Slang,' U2’s 'Pop' and the Prodigy on a particularly wimpy night.
17: ‘Pure Instinct’ (1996)
In contradiction of the wild beasts depicted on its zoological cover, the Scorpions’ unlucky thirteenth album was atypically stuffed with ballads, more so than rockers. None of which would have been a problem, mind you, if the songs in question had been in any way decent. Instead, it seemed like the band was conceding defeat to grunge’s mid-‘90s reign.
16: ‘Return to Forever’ (2015)
The word “retirement” must clearly have different definitions in English and German, because after hinting in 2011 that they’d soon be hanging up their stingers, the Scorpions released another album four years later. As it was, 'Return to Forever' carried numerous allusions to mortality and old glories that confirmed the band’s dearth of new ideas.
15: ‘Savage Amusement’ (1988)
Call it Dieter Dierks’ folly, if you will. 'Savage Amusement' suffered from interminable studio delays as the Scorpions’ longtime producer pushed them to construct an answer to Def Leppard’s 'Hysteria.' Alas, they fell well short. This technology-overloaded LP briefly suited some pop metal tastes, but dated quickly – and it turned off many longtime fans.
14: ‘Sting of the Tail’ (2010)
Initially envisioned as 'Humanity: Hour II,' their 17th album was eventually stripped of its conceptual ideas, arriving very much in the classic Scorpions mold. Fan interest was also piqued by retirement rumors. But 'Sting in the Tail’ generally lacked any kind of wow factor, and an ill-advised robotic vocal style adopted by Klaus Meine didn't help.
13: ‘Face the Heat’ (1993)
A somewhat underrated album, the workmanlike 'Face the Heat' got lost amid the commercial distractions of alternative rock. “No Pain No Gain,” one of its highlights, was dedicated to Germany’s national team ahead of the 1994 World Cup. Unfortunately, the squad suffered an unusually early exit.
12: ’Humanity: Hour I’ (2007)
Following 2004's return-to-form 'Unbreakable,' the Scorpions knew better than to risk another experimental sidestep like 1999’s 'Eye II Eye.' But they still couldn’t resist applying a conceptual framework here, one that likely dissuaded many fans from giving it a fair shake. They missed out on a very solid, overlooked set of rockers and ballads, very much in tried-and-true Scorpions tradition.
11: ‘Crazy World’ (1990)
After stumbling with the pop metal-focused 'Savage Amusement,' the Scorpions found their way again by shaking things up across the board. New producer Keith Olsen encouraged everyone to bring tunes to the table and also enlisted noted song doctor Jim Vallance. The resulting 'Crazy World,' made complete by a mega-single in “Winds of Change,” was – by and large – quintessential Scorpions.
10: ‘Lonesome Crow’ (1972)
Like many young bands, the Scorpions lacked seasoning and direction on their debut. A peculiar release, 'Lonesome Crow' indulged in psychedelia and some Kraut rock, more so than hard rock. The kinetic guitar of Michael Schenker certainly boasted a palpable star power, but the guys in UFO soon poached him.
9: ‘Unbreakable’ (2004)
Coming on the heels of the previous decade’s uninspired releases and embarrassing experiments, 2004’s 'Unbreakable' probably elicited a sigh of relief from fans. Sure, its calculated return to the Scorpions’ signature, melodic heavy rock sound may sound obvious years later, but it wouldn’t have worked without high-caliber songs and renewed energy.
8: ‘Fly to the Rainbow’ (1974)
The Scorpions’ second album was a transitional affair, as the group replaced Michael Schenker with the equally gifted Uli Jon Roth. It also signaled their gradual transformation from peace-loving ‘60s hippies (“They Need a Million,” “Fly People Fly,” etc.) to cut-throat ‘70s metal-merchants. They took no prisoners on tracks like “Speedy’s Coming” and “Drifting Sun.”
7: ‘Virgin Killer’ (1976)
This album's original cover art unfortunately tends to dominate conversations, eclipsing what was another important step in the group’s development. Building on the brilliant 'In Trance,' Rudolf Schenker and Klaus Meine honed their craft on “Pictured Life” and “Backstage Queen,” while Uli Roth contributed venomous six-string stings in “Hell Cat” and “Polar Nights.”
6: ‘Animal Magnetism’ (1980)
The Scorpions roared into the 1980s with their sights set on breaking big in America, having already done so in Europe and even Japan. That soon happened on a major scale, but not without the improved chart foundation laid down by perennial favorites from this album like “Make it Real,” “Don’t Make No Promises” and “The Zoo.”
5: ‘Taken By Force’ (1977)
Not even the sanity-challenging jack hammer sound effect heard throughout first song “Steamrock Fever” can taint one of the Scorpions’ most engaging albums. 'Taken by Force' contrasts the high-speed gender-bending of “He’s a Woman — She’s a Man” against the unparalleled majesty of “We’ll Burn the Sky,” celebrates the recently deceased Elvis Presley on “The Riot of Your Time,” and showcases Uli Jon Roth’s sheer genius on “Sails of Charon.”
4: ‘Love at First Sting’ (1984)
The Scorpions’ most successful album, 'Love at First Sting' crowned the group’s long and steady climb to global stardom with multi-platinum sales, career-best chart peaks and hits in “Rock You Like a Hurricane,” “Big City Nights” and “Still Loving You.” Yet it never lacked substance, thanks to excellent deeper cuts like “Bad Boys Running Wild” and “Coming Home.” In keeping, this LP still teems with white-knuckle excitement, all these years later.
3: ‘In Trance’ (1975)
This was their first classic release, and it's fair to say that 'In Trance' became the basic blueprint behind all of the Scorpions' most successful albums to date. In the title track, they mastered the secret for contrasting dark and light. “Top of the Bill” and “Robot Man” perfected their relentlessly direct hard rock attack. And the special sauce came via Uli Jon Roth cuts, namely the absolutely ripping “Dark Lady.”
2: ‘Blackout’ (1982)
This was the album that truly awakened America to the Scorpions. Ignited by the hell-bent title cut, 'Blackout' was pushed up the charts by the irresistible melodies and choruses of “Arizona” and “No One Like You,” and given nuance by the heroin indictment of “China White." Then there was the skull-bashing metal of “Now!,” and the simply perfect “Dynamite.” This was the Scorpions at their most powerful.
1: ‘Lovedrive’ (1979)
'Lovedrive' remains a creative tour de force, collecting the Scorpions' most eclectic and consistently amazing songs. More impressive still is that it arrived while the group was struggling to replace the departed Uli Roth. They finally settled on the fresh-faced but as-yet-unproven Matthias Jabs, but not before opening the door for a returning Michael Schenker to contribute a spate of dazzling solos. Oh, and 'Lovedrive' came packaged in maybe the funniest album cover in metal history.