[3] The longest-running and most successful line-up of the band included Schenker, Klaus Meine (vocals), Matthias Jabs (lead guitar), Francis Buchholz (bass), and Herman Rarebell (drums), and lasted from 1978 to 1992.

Following Roth's departure, the band recruited Matthias Jabs and began moving towards a more melodic rock style on their sixth studio album Lovedrive (1979), which also saw Scorpions reunite with Michael Schenker before he left again to pursue a solo career.

Scorpions are estimated to have sold over 100 million records around the world, making them one of the best-selling hard rock and heavy metal bands.

In 1972 the group recorded and released their debut album Lonesome Crow, with Lothar Heimberg on bass and Wolfgang Dziony on drums and re-recorded their CCA songs.

He attended some of Dawn Road's rehearsals and ultimately decided to join the band, which consisted of Roth, Francis Buchholz (bass), Achim Kirschning (keyboards) and Jürgen Rosenthal (drums).

The album proved to be more successful than Lonesome Crow and songs such as "Speedy's Coming" and the title track established the band's sound.

Soon after, Jürgen Rosenthal had to leave as he was drafted into the army (he later joined German progressive rock band Eloy, recording three albums).

Meanwhile, as "The Hunters", the band recorded "Fuchs geh' voran" and "Wenn es richtig losgeht", German language cover versions of "Action" and "Fox on the Run" by the Sweet for EMI's Electrola label.

[14] In 1976, the Scorpions released Virgin Killer, the album cover of which featured a nude prepubescent girl behind a broken pane of glass.

The cover art was designed by Stefan Bohle, who was the product manager for the West German division of RCA Records,[15] their label at the time.

The following year, Rudy Lenners resigned for personal reasons and was replaced by Herman Rarebell, an experienced musician who had recorded with the bands Missus Beastly and Onyx.

By that time in mid-1978, after auditioning around 140 guitarists, the Scorpions recruited Matthias Jabs, a veteran of the German rock scene who had played in the bands Lady and Fargo.

Although it had been widely believed for decades that Michael Schenker's contribution to the record was only limited to three songs, he vehemently maintained he appeared on the whole album during an interview with satellite radio host Eddie Trunk.

In 1980, the band released Animal Magnetism, again with a provocative cover this time showing a girl kneeling and a Doberman Pinscher sitting in front of a man.

Propelled by the single "Rock You Like a Hurricane", Love at First Sting climbed the charts and went double platinum in the USA a few months after its release.

The channel even supplied Scorpions with the nickname "The Ambassadors of Rock", to the chagrin of industry insiders who recognized the executive influence behind the scenes.

Released in 1988, four years after their previous studio album, Savage Amusement represented a more polished and mature sound similar to the style Def Leppard had found success with.

[19] Also in 1989, Scorpions released the compilation album Best of Rockers 'n' Ballads, which, in addition to the band's hits from 1979 to 1988, included several rare or previously unreleased tracks: "Hey You", from the Lovedrive sessions; a remixed version of "Is There Anybody There?

[5] Wishing to distance themselves from the Savage Amusement style, the band separated from their long-time producer and "Sixth Scorpion", Dieter Dierks, replacing him with Keith Olsen when they returned to the studio in 1990.

However, critics accused them of following on the coattails of Metallica's similar collaboration (S&M) with the San Francisco Symphony which had been released the previous year, even though the orchestra had first approached the Scorpions with the idea in 1995.

In 2001, the Scorpions released Acoustica, a live unplugged album featuring acoustic reworkings of the band's biggest hits, plus new tracks.

Whether a result of poor promotion by the band's label or the long time between studio releases, Unbreakable received little airplay and did not chart.

[24] In November 2009, the Scorpions announced their 17th studio album, Sting in the Tail, would be released in early 2010,[25] recorded in Hanover with Swedish producers Mikael "Nord" Andersson and Martin Hansen.

[29] On 6 April 2010, they were enshrined in Hollywood's Rock Walk in a handprint ceremony,[30] with the band members placing their hands in a long slab of wet cement next to other musical artists.

"[32] Despite initial plans for a break up or retirement, guitarist Matthias Jabs told AZ Central on 12 June 2012 that the Scorpions would not split up.

On 29 August 2015, the Scorpions announced 50th anniversary deluxe editions of their albums Taken By Force, Tokyo Tapes, Lovedrive, Animal Magnetism, Blackout, Love at First Sting, World Wide Live, and Savage Amusement which were released 6 November 2015.

These deluxe releases include "dozens of unreleased songs, alternate versions of big hits, rough mixes, and rare live concert recordings".

In an August 2018 interview with Digital Journal, Scorpions guitarist Rudolf Schenker stated that the band was open to the idea of recording a follow-up to Return to Forever.

[51] Progress on the album had continued to be slow by August 2021, when Scorpions posted a video on Facebook from the studio where they rehearsed a new song (possibly titled "Seventh Sun") for an upcoming tour.

[citation needed] "Wind of Change" is a podcast from Pineapple Street Studios, Crooked Media and Spotify that explores a rumor that the song was actually written by the CIA.