Not much exists on the Internet regarding this record. Tyme Machine posted about it in 2009, but that post just lists the original release date (March 9th, 1966), labels it “psych flower-power,” and affirms that it was produced by Kim Fowley. The Swedish Progg Blog (yes, two g’s) gets more in depth, calling it “one of the most legendary albums to come out of the Swedish progg scene, and also one of the earliest. It’s almost mythical to collectors, being extremely hard to find and fetching ridiculous prices any rare time it is offered for sale. It was [the] ninth album release on MNW, one of the most important labels of the Swedish ’70s, putting out many stellar albums of the era.”
That blogger is right. Only a handful of copies have ever been offered for sale. In 2005 a copy fetched nearly $600. Two years ago a VG/VG+ copy netted $371. The one used to make the vinyl rip I made today is probably VG- cover, VG vinyl. It could use a VPI-ing, that’s for sure. The gatefold “style” (I say that because it opens up and has printed artwork on the inside, but there’s a pocket to hold the record instead of a full sleeve.
What about the music, you ask? The man behind the record is named Bo Anders Larsson, who also recorded with Tintacs, Hansson de Wolfe United, Vargen, and Contact. The members of Contact are the backing band on I Am The Scorpion. This was a one-off side project for Larsson, and he made the most of it. Along with Fowley’s production, the ‘A’ side is pure 60s Detroit. Like the Stooges. Remember that record by the French Stooges-wannabe band Soggy that was originally recorded in 1980? It’s about as wild and frantic as that, but with less…Motorhead? And more…60s psychedelics. The title track boasts a searing guitar lead and motorik drumming tied together by the assertive singing of Larsson, who accentuates his singing with background shouts and screams that get very primal. “Hey Girl, I’m Ugly” sounds even MORE Stooges-like, maybe with a tinge Lou Reed’s vocal delivery. Again, each line is punctuated with “Yeah!”s and grunts and hollers. Great drumming throughout. “Red Queen Of The Underground” is a standout, with a creepy Iggy-ishness to it. You can almost hear Larsson slithering around — or writhing on stage — delivering those lines. The all-too-brief “Blues For Jimi Hendrix” closes out the first half of the album with a choral arrangement juxtaposed to the song’s refrain and another blistering guitar solo.
Things get off to a weird start on the ‘B’ side with the one-two gut punch of “Michoican” and “Funny Yellow Car” which are a complete 180 from the standout cuts on the album’s top side. The former sounds like something you might hear playing behind a 1920s “talkie,” and the latter is too sunshine-y pop for an album with so many heavy hitters. “Are You My Friend,” “Hey La, La, La…” and “We Are Through” aren’t much better. I guess if you really dig for comparisons — and strain your ears — you can hear elements of early glam, but they are fleeting compared to the folksy, soft-rock that dominates the fifteen-plus minutes and six tracks on the side. Album closer “Love Is Ment For Two” sounds like a Nilsson-backed sunshine pop song. Maybe something you’d hear behind a breakfast cereal commercial. In fact, entire second side is VERY commercial sounding compared to its heavy, progressive, garage-y predecessor. Perhaps this is why the label chose “Michoican” as the single to promote the album. It seems like a horrible decision on the surface, but as I never lived in Sweden in the 60s I can’t say for certain that any of the songs from the ‘A’ side had any chance at being a commercial success. If anything, “Hey La, La, La…” might have been my pick for a single, seeing as how it’s a little heavier, but still sounds enough like the Beatles to have been accessible to a wide audience. Not being familiar with all the nomenclature, I’ll agree with whoever described it as “freakbeat.” So there’s one standout on the side, and — if I recall correctly — it’s the only instance of overdriven guitar on the ‘B’ side.
All that said, I Am The Scorpion is still a remarkable album for its time and place. The Stooges first record came out in 1969 and Scorpion sound every bit as hard and heavy as anything on that that first album. Whether there was a scene surrounding Larsson in Sweden at the time with other similar-sounding bands, I don’t know. There could be five or ten other recordings like this out there I haven’t heard yet. Either way there’s no denying it is WAY ahead of its time. I’d say it’s a must-hear for fans of garage and hard rock as well as fans of mid-60s soft rock and psych. Whichever you prefer…just play the requisite side (remember “A = Loud, B = Soft”) and you’ll be quite happy.
Scorpion
I Am The Scorpion
(Green Light/MNW, 1966)
MediaFire DL Link
01. I Am The Scorpion
02. Hey Girl I’m Ugly [MP3]
03. Sagitarius
04. Everybody Knows My Name
05. Red Queen Of The Underground
06. Blues For Jimi Hendrix
07. Michoican
08. Funny Yellow Car
09. Are You My Friend
10. Hey La, La, La…
11. We Are Through
12. Love Is Ment For Two
