Armed and Ready

Hey Zoo Freaks, the Zoo Crew has got the needle locked on "Armed and Ready" from the Michael Schenker Group’s self-titled debut, and man does this one still hit like a clean Flying V through a cranked Marshall. Co-written by Michael and singer Gary Barden, it opens the record that Schenker cut right after walking away from UFO, produced by Roger Glover of Deep Purple and released as a single backed by the short instrumental “Bijou Pleasurette.” Clocking in around four minutes, the track was built as a show opener—an uptempo shot across the bow that told every room exactly what was coming next. The lyrics lean into that moment of stepping out on your own: “Is it hard enough, is it loud enough… if you don’t approve, you can use the door.” Fans have long read those lines as Schenker checking in with the crowd while claiming the freedom of putting his own name up front, then shifting into “I’m in overdrive, and I feel alive.” It is the sound of a guitarist who had already walked out of big situations and was determined to make his own thing work.

That determination shows up in the stories around the record. After leaving UFO in 1978 and a brief stint back with the Scorpions on Lovedrive, Schenker set out to lead his own band. Early lineups shifted—original plans with Billy Sheehan and Denny Carmassi fell apart—but the core of Barden’s voice and Schenker’s guitar locked in. In later interviews he has talked about following his own vision even when bigger offers came along. He has recalled turning down a Rolling Stones audition call in the early seventies because he was already committed to UFO and simply never returned it. Years later, when Ozzy Osbourne reached out after Randy Rhoads died, Schenker said he asked for a private jet so the offer would go away; he loved Sabbath but wanted to stay on his own path. Those choices sit behind the title and the attitude of “Armed and Ready.” The song has stayed a staple in live sets across decades of MSG lineups, showing up on box sets of early shows from Manchester to the Budokan and still getting the crowd moving when the band digs into the classics.

The man behind the riff started early. Michael Schenker was born on January 10, 1955, in Sarstedt, Germany. His older brother Rudolf brought home a Gibson Flying V that caught the kid’s eye, and Michael taught himself by decoding songs—Page, Beck, Clapton, Leslie West, Johnny Winter, Rory Gallagher—while Rudolf was at work. He played his first gig at age 11, jamming Shadows numbers onstage with the Scorpions in a nightclub. By his mid-teens he was writing material; “In Search of Peace of Mind” on the Scorpions’ debut Lonesome Crow carries his stamp. On the supporting tour the band opened for UFO in Germany. When UFO’s temporary guitarist went missing for a couple of dates, the English band asked the teenager to fill in. They liked what they heard. About a month later they called and offered him the permanent spot. Schenker, still not speaking much English, took it with his brother’s blessing, left the Scorpions (who brought in Uli Roth), and moved to London at 17. On UFO’s Chrysalis debut Phenomenon he co-wrote most of the material, including the lasting tracks “Doctor Doctor” and “Rock Bottom,” helping shift the band from space-rock explorations into sharp hard-rock territory. He stayed through Force It, No Heavy Petting, Lights Out, and Obsession, then left after the final U.S. date in Palo Alto in late 1978. The live album Strangers in the Night, recorded on that tour, came out after he was gone and cemented the run.

From there the path led straight to the Michael Schenker Group and the album that opens with this track. Schenker has said in interviews that he never chased the full fame machine the way some of his former bandmates did; he wanted the freedom to write what he felt and to stay a normal person. That mindset is audible in “Armed and Ready”—the questions to the audience, the declaration of being ready, the refusal to slow down. You can catch more of the story and current tour news on his official site at michaelschenkerhimself.com, where the discography still lists the 1980 debut. Follow the official accounts for updates: Facebook at Michael Schenker Rocks, Instagram at michaelschenkerrocks, and X at MW_Schenker. Longtime fans also keep the conversation going on the independent site rbaraki.com and in groups such as Michael Schenker Fans and the Scorpions / UFO / Michael Schenker Group page on Facebook. Spin it loud, Zoo Freaks—this one still feels like the start of something. Catch more freeform rock and deep cuts over at THE ZOO.