Wind of Change

If you were a pop-metal band with a power ballad in 1990, you damn near had a guarantee that your record would go gold. If your power ballad was a wishy-washy expression of desire for world peace, bingo — the charts were yours. The Scorpions' "Wind of Change" was exactly such a song. As the leading single from their Crazy World album, it became one of the biggest worldwide singles of the year — and not too surprisingly. After all, in 1990, much of the world (especially in the band's native Germany) was celebrating the fall of the Berlin Wall, a truly remarkable moment in modern European history. Simultaneously, Americans eased back into a brief sense of optimism, temporarily assuming that, without a rival superpower, there was now a much bigger chance for world peace. All of these audiences flocked to "Wind of Change," even though the single isn't exactly unique or special. It's your basic let's-all-hold-hands-across-the-world-and-pray-for-the-children ballad that, by 1990, was all but old hat in the music world. Nonetheless, the Scorpions haven't sounded this sincere about what they're singing since "Rock You Like a Hurricane" (ironically enough) and, clichéd as it may be, "Wind of Change" works because the song is just too damn feel-good to pass up. It's also one of the catchiest songs the Scorps have ever written, making it all the easier to sit back and enjoy the overtly idealistic balladry. Sure, it doesn't break any new ground and, in retrospect, it killed the Scorpions' reputation as hard rockers, but as far as these kind of songs go, "Wind of Change" is one of the most enjoyable do-gooder ballads of the 1990s. Call it tacky, call it a guilty pleasure, call it anything you want — the fact remains, it's a good song to sing, and somehow manages to bring out the wishy-washy peace-lover in anyone.