SCHENKER PATTISON SUMMIT – The Endless Jam Continues

When a musician of Michael Schenker’s standing releases an album of ‘Covers,’ you’ve got to ask yourself “Why?” When he goes and releases two in a row, then you really have to wonder if he’s not just kicking the ass out of it! Here’s a ‘Guitar Legend’ since the age of seventeen with the Scorpions, UFO, and later with his own Michael Schenker Group, who belted out riffs and solos that would make your ears bleed, now copying other people. That’s normally how you START playing guitar, not how you bring to an end an illustrious guitar playing career; even if he does take other people’s music and graffiti’s his name all over it.

The Endless Jam Continues does what it says on the tin – Provides a ‘Summit’ (Platform) for Michael Schenker and Davey Pattison. Guitars and vocals are definitely at the forefront of this album. Drummer Aynsley Dunbar, who once played with UFO, Journey, Starship, and Whitesnake, keeps the beat but shows none of the flair or originality he displayed in the aforementioned bands. Then again, if he did, then the album would be by The Schenker, Pattison, Dunbar Summit. Bassist Tim Bogert (Vanilla Fudge, Cactus, Jeff Beck) seems to have been given more free reign, and shows some pretty neat finger work throughout the album. All together though, giving credit where credit is due, the foursome creates a very tight package.

To get to the ‘meat’ of this album, Pattison’s vocals seem to adapt to the style of each track; though somehow, you get the feeling he’s not exactly pushing himself. Perhaps it’s because when you listen to the tracks you are familiar with, you’re expecting to hear the original artist and you can’t quite get your head round someone else singing.

However, most people buying this album will be getting it because Michael Schenker is playing on it. Once you get over the fact that he’s playing other people’s stuff, you will accept that truly he is an exceptional guitar player. Of all the familiar original tracks, he has gripped them by the dangles and squeezed hard until they submitted to his bidding. In particular, his execution of “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” will get the hair on the back of your neck all electric, and, many of you have probably heard the full, extended version of “Layla.” Well Schenker takes the guitar-fest ending to a new level; almost three and a half minutes of a ripping guitar solo that blows away Clapton’s version.

The Endless Jam Continues is, in reality, a Michael Schenker tribute to some of his favorite tunes. As the title implies, he has brought a few of his mates with him to chug a few beers and jam along, same as he did with The Endless Jam released before this CD. If you get yourself into the right mood, the right Groove, you might imagine the banter that went on between the tracks; where one of them would start out playing a riff, then another would join in until they got into the swing of the song. Just like what happens at band practices all over the world in every conceivable musical genre. How do you thing Children Of Bodom ended up recording “Hit Me Baby One More Time” –- yup, messing around in the studio.

There’s no doubt Michael Schenker fans will lap this up, as will a wider audience of fans of Rock Music from the late ‘70s early ‘80s. However, Schenker is an extremely talented writer and should really be blasting fans with his own material; not stamping his name all over someone else’s. Although his brother Rudolf gets the credit for the majority of the Scorpions material, the partnership of Schenker/Mogg on the UFO albums and his penmanship on the MSG albums are a testament to his writing ability. With the MSG’s Heavy Hitters album, and two Endless Jam albums in the last year, the message to Michael should be –- “Get some new biro’s and get working on your own stuff, everyone knows you can do it!” Although his guitaring wizardry makes these really good albums, an album of his own songs would just kick serious ass!

Tracklist – (original artist in brackets)

1. “Rock Steady” (Bad Company)
2. “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” (George Harrison/The Beatles)
3. “Too Rolling Stoned” (Robin Trower)
4. “Layla” (Eric Clapton/Derek and the Dominoes)
5. “I’m Losing You” (Rod Stewart)
6. “The Hunter” (Free)
7. “Badge” (Cream)
8. “I Don’t Need No Doctor” (Humble Pie)
9. “Dear Mr Fantasy” (Traffic)
10. “Wang Dang Doodle” (Savoy Brown)
11. “I’d Love to Change The World” (Ten Years After)