After nearly-disastrous North American and European tours in 2007, which saw canceled shows and less-than-stellar performances caused by heavy drinking, Schenker regained his composure and hit the road in the UK as Michael Schenker & Friends in 2008. Early 2008, Schenker worked with Gary Barden, Don Airey, Simon Phillips, and Neil Murray on a new MSG album In the Midst of Beauty, which was released in May 2008, followed by touring.

In 2009 Schenker toured extensively including Russia, UK and the USA with MSG including original members Gary Barden and Chris Glenn. With Schenker now clean shaven and having lost weight many fans commented that he both looked and sounded his best, with the tour receiving rave reviews from loyal fans[citation needed].

Schenker's main guitar for much of his career was a Gibson Flying V, which he typically played through a wah-wah pedal (used as a parametric equalizer to strengthen the "sweet spot") and Marshall amplifiers. His "unmistakable midrange tone" emphasized by the partially engaged wah, as exemplified on the song "Rock Bottom" from the UFO album Strangers in the Night, was listed among the 50 greatest tones of all time by Guitar Player magazine. In recent years Schenker has switched to using a signature model Dean V.

In 2007 Dean Guitars, after producing a signature Schenker Dean V, also made two acoustic models with the familiar black and white "V" design.