Michael was born in Sarstedt, Germany. He started playing in his early teens when his brother Rudolph brought home a Flying V guitar, which captured Michael's imagination. His playing style is unusual in that he seems not to use conventionally practiced guitar scales but seems instead to improvise.
Schenker joined UFO under unusual circumstances. The band left the UK to play some dates in Germany. Their guitarist at the time; Bernie Marsden, forgot his passport and was unable to make the first gig. At the venue UFO spotted Michael playing a soundcheck with the Scorpions and managed to persuade him into playing that evening's show. Despite the language barrier; he spoke no English and they spoke no German, something clearly "clicked" and Schenker brought the ellusive X factor to the band and took them to another level musically.
Schenker has had a turbulent career with UFO, often walking out mid song and causing shows to be cancelled. He is evidently as temperamental as he is gifted. Schenker says his playing with UFO is like chocolate: fantastic for a while but once you've had enough....
Clearly a musical prodigy, Schenker was one of the 1970's most inspirational guitarists, influencing later musicians such as Kirk Hammett from the band Metallica.
Michael was offered gigs with Aerosmith and Ozzy Osbourne but decided he wanted to play his own music and not be a hired hand in another group. In 1979, he founded the Michael Schenker Group (M.S.G). The history of the Michael Schenker Group has been strewn with personality conflicts and "incidents" between band members. In 1982, original vocalist Gary Barden was sacked in favor of Graham Bonnet (Rainbow, Alcatrazz) who lasted one album (Assault Attack) and was fired from the band after dropping his pants in a warm-up gig before the Reading festival. Gary Barden was enticed back to the band for Reading and stayed with M.S.G. for the recording of a new studio album (Built to Destroy) and a live album (Rock Will Never Die). After the second departure of vocalist Gary Barden after the Built to Destroy album, Michael reorganized the band around himself and vocalist Robin McAuley as the McAuley Schenker Group. After three albums in that configuration, Michael and Robin parted company.
Michael next rejoined UFO for the album Walk on Water. A short tour punctuated by a fight between Michael and vocalist Phil Mogg ended the reunion.
Michael resurrected the Michael Schenker Group with all new players and recorded three decent albums and toured yearly to appreciative Schenker-heads around the United States and Europe.
Michael fell on hard times in the early 2000's after his divorce in which he lost rights to his own music, his Mercedes and his prized Flying V guitars.
Michael picked himself up and got back to the business of making and performing music. The recording of the album Arachnophobiac and the resulting two years of touring got Michael back in rocking form.
2005 brings the 25th anniversary of the Michael Schenker Group. Michael is putting together a new album of songs called Tales of Rock and Roll honoring that anniversary. Singers from each iteration of the group have been enlisted to sing on a track or two.
A new Michael Schenker Group album is as much about finding out who is left in the band as it is about the music. Devoted fans love him regardless of his personal and personnel problems.
Love Is Not A Game
Michael Schenker Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There's no new words to say
You're changing, rearranging
There's a whole new game to play
But this time I think I've lost
Only memories of the past
Tell me where did I go wrong
Was it you all along
Love is not a game
The stakes are high, you're playing with fire
Love is not a game
Knock over the pieces and start it again
You know it 'cause you show it
You should never hide it from me
I'm trying, really trying
To be what you want me to be
These emotions are killing me
I can't let go are you crazy
Thought the pleasure had just begun
Look what we have become
The lyrics of Michael Schenker's song Love Is Not A Game revolve around the theme of love and the complications that come with it. The song starts off by stating that both the singer and the subject have feelings for each other, but there are no new words to express how they feel. Despite sharing the same feelings, the subject is changing and rearranging things which brings up the question of whether the love is fading away or if it's still there. The singer starts to question if it's better off losing the love and just keeping memories of the past. He wonders if he was the one who went wrong or if it was the other person all along.
The chorus emphasizes the seriousness of love by saying that it's not a game and that you're playing with fire. The stakes are high and one wrong move can cause everything to come crashing down. The singer seems to be at his wit's end because of the complications that come with the emotions that he and the subject have. They both know they have feelings for each other, yet the relationship is not flourishing. The song ends by saying that the emotions are killing him and he can't let go. He thought the pleasure would have just begun but instead, it has become something else entirely.
Line by Line Meaning
You feel it and I feel it
Both of us are experiencing the same emotions towards each other
There's no new words to say
We've said everything there is to say about our feelings
You're changing, rearranging
You're evolving, becoming someone new
There's a whole new game to play
Our relationship has changed and we need to navigate it differently
But this time I think I've lost
I'm not sure if I can salvage our relationship
Only memories of the past
All I have left is memories of better times
Tell me where did I go wrong
I need to know what I did to ruin our relationship
Was it you all along
Maybe it was your fault for not communicating enough
Love is not a game
Love is serious and cannot be treated like a game
The stakes are high, you're playing with fire
Serious consequences can arise from reckless actions in a relationship
Knock over the pieces and start it again
We need to reset our relationship and start over from the beginning
You know it 'cause you show it
You express your love for me openly
You should never hide it from me
You should always be honest with me about your feelings
I'm trying, really trying
I'm doing my best to make things work between us
To be what you want me to be
I'm willing to change to make you happy
These emotions are killing me
The intensity of our relationship is overwhelming me
I can't let go are you crazy
I'm struggling to move on from our relationship
Thought the pleasure had just begun
I thought we would be happy together for a long time
Look what we have become
Our relationship is not what we thought it would be
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ALLAN NELSON, ROBIN MC AULEY, ROCKY NEWTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind