UFO’S ORIGINAL DRUMMER JUST BROUGHT “STRANGERS IN THE NIGHT” BACK TO THE STAGE — AND ROCK FANS WERE NOT READY FOR THIS. 🤘🔥 — ANDY PARKER RETURNED TO THE MUSIC THAT HELPED MAKE UFO LEGENDARY Andy Parker, the original drummer of UFO, stepped back onto the stage with LIGHTS OUT – A UFO EXPERIENCE in San Antonio, delivering a performance packed with the band’s classic sound. The lineup took on UFO’s legendary 1979 live album Strangers In The Night in its entirety, alongside some of the group’s most beloved tracks. For longtime fans, seeing Parker behind the kit again was a powerful reminder of one of hard rock’s most celebrated eras. The performance also carries extra weight considering how much UFO’s iconic lineup has changed over the decades. But there was one particular detail about this return that makes the footage a must-watch for anyone who grew up with UFO… 👀🔥

On Friday, August 7, LIGHTS OUT – A UFO EXPERIENCE performed at the Fitzgerald’s nightclub in San Antonio, Texas. The group’s lineup for the show consisted of original UFO drummer Andy Parker, vocalist Mark Boals (Yngwie Malmsteen, Uli Jon Roth),bassist Barry Sparks (UFO, Yngwie Malmsteen, Uli Jon Roth, MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP, DOKKEN),keyboardist/rhythm guitarist Wayne Findlay (MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP) and lead guitarist John Adams (LOVE AND WAR, DEAD MAN’S HAND). They performed UFO‘s legendary 1979 live album “Strangers In The Night” in its entirety, along with other UFO classics. Fan-filmed video of the concert can be seen below.

UFO‘s success story began in London way back in 1969, when vocalist Phil Mogg, drummer Andy Parker, guitarist Mick Bolton and bassist Pete Way formed the group. The global breakthrough arrived when German guitarist Michael Schenker joined the fold in 1973, having left his band SCORPIONS to follow an offer by Phil Mogg and Pete Way. UFO released three consecutive rock classics with Schenker (1974’s “Phenomenon”, 1975’s “Force It” and 1976’s “No Heavy Pettin'”),featuring classics like “Doctor Doctor”, “Shoot, Shoot” and “Rock Bottom”. Following the arrival of keyboardist/rhythm guitarist Paul Raymond, UFO released its two studio albums “Lights Out” (1977) and “Obsession” (1978),including the hit singles “Too Hot To Handle”, “Lights Out” and “Only You Can Rock Me”. Their live album “Strangers In The Night” came out in 1979 and is referred to by the press to this day as one of the best live releases of all time, while also signalling the end of the Mogg, Way, Schenker, Parker and Raymond lineup.

The reorganized band underwent fifteen years marked by various eras and numerous lineup changes. To everyone’s surprise, autumn 1993 saw the return of the former UFO lineup consisting of Mogg, Way, Schenker, Parker and Raymond. This new edition of the classic team brought out “Walk On Water”, their first joint effort after one and a half decades, and embarked on a world tour. However, Schenker left UFO during the “Walk On Water” tour again to continue working with his own group, MSG, while Mogg and Way went on to release their second album, “Chocolate Box”. The UFO albums “Covenant” and “Sharks”, recorded by Mogg, Way and Schenker, arrived at the stores in 2000 and 2002. Vinnie Moore went on to follow in Schenker‘s footsteps, who had returned to MSG, recording the songs on “You Are Here” with Jason Bonham. During the subsequent world tour, UFO cut a show in Germany, which was later released on the live album “Showtime” and the same-named DVD featuring additional bonus material. Later, Bonham bid his farewells, and UFO‘s original drummer Andy Parker returned on “The Monkey Puzzle” (2006) and its successors “The Visitor” (2009),“Seven Deadly” (2012),“A Conspiracy Of Stars” (2015) and “The Salentino Cuts” (2017).

Mogg officially pulled the plug on UFO in 2022, more than 50 years after the band’s formation.

Phil suffered a heart attack in August 2022. The now-78-year-old British-born musician was rushed to the hospital where he had two stents implanted into his coronary arteries.

UFO‘s farewell tour was scheduled to kick off on October 15, 2022 at the De Casino in Sint-Niklaas, Belgium and run through a final show at the Fuzz Club in Athens, Greece on October 29, 2022.

In 2021, UFO announced that it would embark on its final tour featuring a series of exclusive concerts in summer 2022 to bid farewell to its fans in style. UFO was scheduled to play the very last concert of in Athens, where the band performed its first show featuring Vinnie Moore in February 2004.

UFO guitarist/keyboard player Paul Raymond died in April 2019. He appeared on more than a dozen of UFO‘s albums, including “Lights Out” and the live classic “Strangers In The Night”.

UFO‘s most recent lineup included original members Mogg and Parker, as well as Moore, who joined in 2003, and Rob De Luca (bass),a member since 2012.