ULI JON ROTH 'Would Love To' Make New Studio Album

In a brand new interview with Grande Rock, legendary guitarist Uli Jon Roth said that he "would love to" make a new studio album. "The problem is that I have written a lot of new music, and I am quite pleased with some of it," he said. "But I'm not the kind of artist who just walks into the studio and has a new album ready the next day, you know. Unfortunately, I may be too much of a perfectionist in the studio, so, for me, it's always a big deal and an album always takes a long time. Because we're touring so much these days, it is a little bit difficult to find enough time."

He continued: "I have started a new album, but I have no idea when it will be finished. I know that it is long overdue, but that's the reality. Who knows? Maybe it'll suddenly come quickly; maybe we will record it live. I'm beginning to think that maybe that is the way to do it, in order to finish it more quickly. And that could be a good thing. A different approach."

Asked what he thinks is his best release to date and his personal top moment as a guitarist and songwriter, Uli said: "You know, I really don't have any of that. All the albums I've done are all completely different from one another. Even the SCORPIONS albums. That's probably my trademark. It's not that I'm trying to do it, it just happens to be this way, because I am a traveler. I like to explore new countries, new thoughts, new ideas, and each album is a station of that. I don't think I've got a favorite one. I've got some I'm more proud than others. Recently I worked on my 'Methamorphosis', which is a rendition of Vivaldi's 'Four Seasons' with the orchestra. Also, a guitar concerto that I wrote. I thought that was really good. I was proud of that. It's not very well known, 'cause it is certainly not for the rock audience. It's something that I was proud of because it was very difficult to do, but when you listen to it, it does not sound difficult. To me, that was an achievement. When it comes to the electric sound period, my favorite is 'Beyond The Astral Skies'. With the SCORPIONS, I don't really have a favorite. I like certain songs more than others. I really enjoy playing with orchestras; that's more my way, I'm gonna do more of that in the future. So, I cannot tell you one specific moment. There were many many different moments. Every year, there's highlights that I never forget. And there are some shows that I prefer to forget, you know, when things go wrong, which also happens. You've gotta roll with the punches… you know."

In recent times, Uli has successfully revisited the early music of his celebrated SCORPIONS days which resulted in the superb "Scorpions Revisited" double CD and "Tokyo Tapes Revisited" DVD/Blu-Ray releases. His current 50th-anniversary set naturally features the best of that timeless material, including "The Sails Of Charon", "In Trance", "Fly To The Rainbow" and many other songs.

Virtually singlehandedly, Uli pioneered a unique style of guitar playing which — for the first time in the history of the electric guitar — combined complete technical mastery of the instrument with an intensely melodic and emotional appeal.

As a guitar player and artist, Uli Jon Roth is in a league of his own as legions of guitar players will attest. Joe Satriani stated in one of his interviews that of all the guitarists who ever played in the "G3", Uli impressed him the most. Yngwie Malmsteen, Jason Becker and other top-league players agree.

Uli's playing and onstage presence is always inspirational and each concert is a unique event, because of his ability to make his instrument soar and sing emotionally and his spur of the moment improvisations. His musical scope is enormous and ranges from vintage Jimi Hendrix and CREAM to the technically much more demanding world of classical music, yet somehow Uli manages to create exciting bridges between these seemingly musical opposite languages. Uli has written classical concertos and symphonic pieces and is equally at home in both worlds, which makes him a unique phenomenon and very rare breed among guitar players.