Randy Rhoads Biography

Randall William Rhoads was born on December 6, 1956 at St. Johns Hospital in Santa Monica, California. With one brother (Doug) and one sister (Kathy), Randy was the youngest of three. When Randy was 17 months old his father, William Arthur Rhoads, a public school music teacher, left and all three children were raised by their mother, Delores Rhoads.

Randy started taking guitar lessons around the age of 6 or 7 at a music school in North Hollywood called Musonia, which was owned by his mother. His first guitar was a Gibson (acoustic) that belonged to Delores Rhoads father. Randy and his sister (Kathy) both began folk guitar lessons at the same time with Randy later taking piano lessons (at his mothers request) so that he could learn to read music. Randys piano lessons did not last very long. At the age of 12, Randy became interested in rock guitar. His mother, Delores, had an old semi-acoustic Harmony Rocket, that at that time was "almost larger than he was". For almost a year Randy took lessons from Scott Shelly, a guitar teacher at his mothers school. Scott Shelly eventually went to Randys mother explaining that he could not teach him anymore as Randy knew everything that he (Scott Shelly) knew. When Randy was about 14, he was in his first band,Violet Fox, named after his mothers middle name, Violet. With Randy playing rhythm guitar and his brother Doug playing drums, Violet Fox were together about 4 to 5 months. Randy was in various other bands, such as "The Katzenjammer Kids" and "Mildred Pierce", playing parties in the Burbank area before he formed Quiet Riot in 1976 with longtime friend and bassist Kelly Garni. Randy Rhoads and Kelly Garni (whom Randy taught to play bass guitar) met Kevin DuBrow through a mutual friend from Hollywood. How they actually got together is a different story with many variations:

A.) The two contacted Kevin DuBrow, went to his house to "audition" him but originally werent interested in having him as a vocalist. Kevin kept calling Randy and Kelly until they eventually decided to try him out as a vocalist.

B.) Randy and Kelly Garni auditioned Kevin DuBrow in Delores Rhoads kitchen. Kevin sang for them, then said something to the point of, "well if you dont like me just say so and Ill leave." Randy and Kelly decided to work with him though they would have to "work some things out".

C.) Randy Rhoads called Kevin DuBrow, they decided to get together to see about putting together a band. Randy went to Kevins house with his guitar and an amp. As Randy began to play, Kevin began to hear the best guitarist hed ever heard.

Around that same time Randy began teaching guitar in his mothers school during the day and playing with Quiet Riot at night. Originally called "Little Women", Quiet Riot got their "new" name from one of Kevins friends from the band Status Quo. Quiet Riot were quickly becoming one of the biggest acts in the Los Angeles area and eventually obtained a recording contract with CBS/Sony records, releasing two full length l.p.s and one e.p. in Japan. Quiet Riots two records, Quiet Riot 1 (1978), which was originally recorded for an American record label, and Quiet Riot 2 (1979), received rave reviews in the Japanese press, claiming them to be the "next big thing". Unfortunately these recordings were never released in the United States. While there were plans for Quiet Riot to tour Japan, their management turned down the offer and Quiet Riot stayed in the United States continuing to sell out college and high school auditoriums as well as clubs in the Los Angeles area. About 5 months before Randy left Quiet Riot, he went to Karl Sandoval to have a custom guitar made. Several meetings and drawings later they would ultimately create a black and white polka dot flying "V", a guitar that would become synonymous with the name Randy Rhoads. The guitar would cost Randy $738.00 and was picked up by Randy on September 22, 1979. (September 22, 1979 saw Quiet Riot playing at the "Whiskey a go-go" in Los Angeles, California,... so chances are, that was probably the first place he ever played that guitar in front of an audience.)

In the latter part of 1979, at the request of a friend (Dana Strum), Randy went to audition for a band being put together by former Black Sabbath lead singer, Ozzy Osbourne. As the story goes: Ozzy had auditioned just about every guitarist in Los Angeles and was about to go home to England, the hopes of a new band washed away. Enter Randy Rhoads. Randy wasnt completely interested in auditioning, he was happy with his current band and thought that this "audition" wouldnt amount to much. As with Kevin DuBrow, Randy's first meeting/audition with Ozzy Osbourne has a few variations:

A.) Randy walked into Ozzys hotel room late one evening with a guitar and a small Fender practice amp, plugged in and started tuning his guitar. He did a few warm up exercises and got the job as Ozzy Osbournes lead guitarist at age 22.

B.) Randy walked into a Ozzy's studio/rehearsal place late one evening with a guitar and a small Fender practice amp, plugged in and started tuning his guitar. He did a few warm up exercises and got the job as Ozzy Osbournes lead guitarist at age 22.

C.) Ozzy was first introduced to Randy in a bar where someone introduced him to Ozzy as his (Ozzy's) "next guitarist".

With Ozzy Osbourne, Randy Rhoads and bassist Dana Strum (Slaughter), all that was missing was a drummer. Randy Rhoads brought in a friend of his, Frankie Bannalli (Quiet Riot, W.A.S.P.), and the band began to rehearse in Los Angeles for a short time. However, when it became time to go to England, where Ozzy's albums would be recorded, the record company could only obtain a work permit for one non-English band member,... Randy Rhoads.

Randy was whisked off to England shortly before Thanksgiving of 1979 where, at Ozzy's home in Wales, the two began to write the "Blizzard of Ozz" album and audition musicians to fill out the band. While the band rehearsed at "John Henrys", a rehearsal hall in London, the earliest public performances of Randy Rhoads and Ozzy Osbourne came after theyd complete a song then go to a local pub to play the song for whoever was there. One such song, Crazy Train, appeared to get the audience moving, leading them to believe that they "had something". With ex-Uriah Heap members: Lee Kerslake (drums) and Bob Daisley (bass), the Ozzy Osbourne Band entered Ridge Farm Studios in Surrey, England on March 22 of 1980 and began recording for almost a month.

"Blizzard of Ozz" was originally to be mixed by Chris Tsangarides who was fired after one week because Ozzy felt that it "was not happening" with him. Max Norman, Ridge Farm Studios resident engineer, was then hired to pick up where Chris left off and would play an integral part of both Ozzy Osbourne studio albums and the live e.p., as well as later down the road with "Tribute". After the finishing touches had been put on "Blizzard of Ozz", Randy Rhoads returned home to California in May of 1980, where he teamed up one last time with the members of Quiet Riot at the Starwood club in Hollywood for their final show. However, this would not be the last time he played with Quiet Riot bassist Rudy Sarzo, who would later join Ozzy Osbournes band just before the start of the United States Blizzard of Ozz tour. Once back in England, the Ozzy Osbourne Band surfaced for their first "official" show on September 12, 1980 when 4,000 fans broke the box office record at the Apollo Theatre in Glasgow, Scotland. "Blizzard of Ozz" went straight into the U.K. charts at number 7 as they toured around the United Kingdom for close to three months playing 34 shows.

December of 1980 brought Randy Rhoads back home to California for Christmas. Once again Randy wanted a custom guitar built, this time he went to Grover Jackson of Charvel guitars, about a week before Christmas. With a drawing scribbled on a piece of paper, Randy Rhoads and Grover Jackson created the very first "Jackson" guitar to ever be made. Randys white "flying V" type guitar was yet another guitar that would become synonymous with the Randy Rhoads name. The finished guitar was sent to Randy in England about two months later.

During the months of February and March of 1981, the Ozzy Osbourne band once again entered Ridge Farm Studios to record their second album titled: "Diary of a Madman". With an impending United States tour to follow soon after the recording of "Diary of a Madman", the actual recording of the album became rushed. (Randys solo on "Little Dolls" was actually a "scratch" solo and was not intended to be the solo for the finished song.) None of the band members could be present for the mixing of "Diary of a Madman", which only furthered their already mixed feelings of the album.

With "Diary of a Madman" already recorded but not yet released, the Ozzy Osbourne Band began its North American tour in support of "Blizzard of Ozz", beginning in Towson, Maryland on April 22, 1981, one year and one month after the "Blizzard of Ozz" sessions began. Though they did not play on either studio efforts, Tommy Aldrige (drums) and Rudy Sarzo (bass) joined Ozzys band in time for the North American tour. They toured across North America from May through September of 1981 playing songs from "Blizzard of Ozz" as well as "Diary of a Madman", with a few Black Sabbath songs thrown in to close their shows. The month of June (1981) brought Randy back to the Los Angeles area for his first "local" show with Ozzy Osbourne at the Long Beach Arena. Choosing to headline their tour instead of going on a bigger tour as a support act paid off as "Blizzard of Ozz" went gold in 100 days, though in some of the smaller cities in the United States, their shows were threatened to be cancelled due to poor ticket sales. In one such city, Providence, Rhode Island, the Ozzy Osbourne Band (along with opening act Def Leppard) was informed by the concerts promoter that (due to poor ticket sales) he did not have enough money to pay either band.

Towards the end of the United States "Blizzard of Ozz" tour, Randy once again went to Grover Jackson to have another custom guitar made. He complained that too many people thought his white "Jackson" was a flying-V. He wanted something more distinctive. A few weeks later, Randy and Kevin DuBrow went to look at the unfinished guitar that Grover Jackson had begun work on. Once in the wood shop, Randy and Grover Jackson began drawing on this unfinished guitar for close to an hour before a final design was decided upon. There are two stories as to how the guitar was actually cut:

A.) As Grover Jackson cut the body to their design specifications, Randy waited in Grovers office, not wanting to watch it being cut.

B.) Grover Jackson put the unfinished guitar body on a bandsaw and cut a "chunk" out of it. Randy, watching, said, "yeah, yeah. Thats it!"

Ultimately they came up with a variation of his white "Jackson" only with a more defined look to the upper wing of the guitar. Randy would receive this guitar, the 2nd Jackson ever made, just before the start of the "Diary of a Madman" tour. At the time, there were three guitars being made for Randy. He recieved the first one, the black custom, as they continued to finish the other two. (Unfortunately, one of the "two" guitars, that were being built for Randy at the time of his death, was accidentally sold at a NAMM show by Grover Jackson. The "third" guitar, which Jackson stopped working on at the time of Randy's death, is currently owned by Rob Lane of Jacksoncharvelworld.com.)

Ironically, as with Quiet Riot, Randy Rhoads guitar playing would be heard on two full length albums and one e.p. while in Ozzy Osbournes band. The "Mr. Crowley" e.p. featured live performances of three songs (including: "You said it all", previously unreleased) recorded in October of 1980 in South Hampton, England, during the United Kingdom "Blizzard of Ozz" tour. ('You said it all' was actually recorded during the bands sound check, with the crowd noise added at the time of mixing.) It was said that at that time the "Mr. Crowley" picture disk became the biggest selling picture disk of all time and even earned a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records.

With the release of the Ozzy Osbourne Band's second album, "Diary of a Madman", Ozzy Osbourne and Randy Rhoads (the only original member of Ozzys band) along with Rudy Sarzo and Tommy Aldrige traveled to Europe in November of 1981 for a tour that would end after only three shows. The tour had to be cancelled after Ozzy collapsed from both mental and physical exhaustion. The entire band went back to the United States so that Ozzy could rest. They would come back a little over a month later with a four month United States tour to start December 30, 1981 at the Cow Palace in San Francisco and a single (Flying high Again) that was making it's way up the charts.

Traveling with a crew of approximately 25 Las Vegas and Broadway technicians, Randy Rhoads went from selling out Los Angeles area clubs with Quiet Riot to selling out the biggest arenas in the United States on one of the most elaborate stage sets with Ozzy Osbourne. When the "Diary of a Madman" tour began, their first album, "Blizzard of Ozz", was selling at the rate of 6,000 records each week. Backstage opening night in San Francisco, Randy was awarded with Guitar Player Magazines Best New Talent Award. (He also won best new guitarist in Englands "Sounds" magazine.) With that, the band began an exhausting yet memorable tour that seemed to be plagued with problems. Their concerts were boycotted by many cities while others were attended by local S.P.C.A. officials due to claims of animal abuse. Meanwhile "Diary of a Madman" was well on its way to platinum status.

With all of this going on around him, Randy Rhoads interest for classical guitar was consuming him more each day. Often times Randy would have a classical guitar tutor in each city the band played. It became common knowledge that Randy wanted to quit rock and roll temporarily so that he could attend school to get his masters in classical guitar. Randy also wanted to take advantage of some of the studio session offers he was recieving.

March 18, 1982, the Ozzy Osbourne band played what would be their last show with Randy Rhoads at the Civic Coliseum in Knoxville, Tennessee. From Knoxville, the band was headed to Orlando, Florida for Saturdays "Rock Super Bowl XIV" with Foreigner, Bryan Adams and UFO. On the way to Orlando they were to pass by the home of bus driver Andrew C. Aycock, who lived in Leesburg, Florida, at Flying Baron Estates. Flying Baron Estates consisted of 3 houses with an aircraft hanger and a landing strip, owned by Jerry Calhoun, who along with being a country & western musician in his earlier days, leased tour buses and kept them at the Estate. They needed some spare parts for the bus and Andrew Aycock, who had picked up his ex-wife at one of the bands shows, was going to drop her off in Florida.

The bus arrived at Flying Baron Estates in Leesburg at about 8:00 a.m. on the 19th and parked approximately 90 yards away from the landing strip and approximately 15 yards in front of the house that would later serve as the accident site. On the bus were: Ozzy Osbourne, Sharon Arden, Rudy Sarzo, Tommy Aldrige, Don Airey, Jay Duncan (their tour manager), Wanda Aycock, Andrew Aycock, Rachel Youngblood and Randy Rhoads. Andrew Aycock and his ex-wife, Wanda, went into Jerry Calhouns house to make some coffee while some members of Ozzy Osbournes band slept in the bus and others got out and "stretched". Being stored inside of the aircraft hanger at Flying Baron Estates, was a red and white 1955 Beech model F35 (registration #: N567LT) that belonged to Mike Partin of Kissimmee, Florida. Andrew Aycock, who had driven the groups bus all night from Knoxville and who had a pilots license, apparently took the plane without permission and took keyboardist Don Airey and the bands tour manager up in the plane for a few minutes, at times flying low to the ground. Unbeknownst to anyone at the time, Andrew Aycocks medical certificate (3rd class) had expired, thus making his pilots license not valid.

Approximately 9:00 a.m. on the morning of March 19th, Andrew Aycock took Rachel Youngblood and Randy Rhoads up for a few minutes. During this trip the plane began to fly low to the ground, at times below tree level, and "buzzed" the bands tour bus three times. On the fourth pass (banking to the left in a south-west direction) the planes left wing struck the left side of the bands tour bus (parked facing east) puncturing it in two places approximately half way down on the right side of the bus. The plane, with the exception of the left wing, was thrown over the bus, hit a nearby pine tree, severing it approximately 10 feet up from the bottom, before it crashed into the garage on the west side of the home owned by Jerry Calhoun. The plane was an estimated 10 feet off the ground traveling at approximately 120 - 150 knots during impact. The house was almost immediately engulfed in flames and destroyed by the crash and ensuing fire, as was the garage and the two vehicles inside, an Oldsmobile and a Ford Granada. Jesse Herndon, who was inside the house during the impact, escaped with no injuries. The largest piece of the plane that was left was a wing section about 6 to 7 feet long. The very wing that caught the side of the tour bus, was deposited just to the north of the bus. The severed pine tree stood between the bus and the house.

Ozzy Osbourne, Tommy Aldrige, Rudy Sarzo and Sharon Arden, who were all asleep on the bus, were awoken by the planes impact and (at first) thought they had been involved in a traffic accident. Wanda Aycock had returned to the bus while keyboardist Don Airey stood outside and witnesses the accident, as did Marylee Morrison, who was riding her horse within sight of the estate. Two men, at the west end of the runway, witnessed the plane "buzzing" the area when the plane suddenly "went out of sight" as it crashed.

Once outside of the bus the band members learned of the catastrophic event that had just taken place. The bus was moved approximately 300 feet to the east of the house that was engulfed in flames. The band checked into the Hilco Inn in Leesburg where they mourned the death of Randy and Rachel and would wait for family members to arrive. While Orlandos "Rock Super Bowl XIV", scheduled for later that day, was not canceled, the Ozzy Osbourne band would not play and the promoters offered refunds to all ticket holders.

Randy Rhoads was put to rest in San Bernadino, California.

Randy Rhoads guitar playing, however, could not be silenced as "Tribute" was released in 1987. "Tribute", recorded live, much of it in Cleveland, OH on May 11, 1981 and Randys solo in Montreal in July of 1981, continued to earn him recognition as a guitar virtuoso.

Ozzy Osbourne's first two solo albums featuring Randy Rhoads have sold over 6 million copies combined.

Randy Perry's Randy Rhoads Biography

Randy's Rhoads Web Page http://www.flash.net/~ulknatme/

Ritchie Blackmore biography

RITCHIE BLACKMORE A MUSICAL HISTORY...

1967 - RITCHIE BLACKMORE - who has previously played with such bands as the Outlaws, Screaming Lord Sutch, and Neil Christian & The Crusaders - is invited by ex-Artwoods/The Flowerpot Men keybordist Jon Lord (who was invited by The Searchers ex-drummer, Chris Curtis) to form a new band. Other musician's would be auditioned from a Melody Maker ad in Deeves Hall in Hertfordshire.

1968 - In February, the group would form as Roundabout, consisting of the three (with Chris Curtis on vocals) along with Dave Curtis on bass and Bobby Woodman on drums. After only a month of uncompromising rehearsals, BLACKMORE and LORD would be the only two remaining, bringing in vocalist Rod Evans (formally of the groups M15 and Maze), bassist Nick Simper (ex-Johnny Kidd & the Pirates) and drummer Ian Paice. In April, the band would change its name to DEEP PURPLE, and forego the name Concrete God. Using Vanilla Fudge as its model, the group records an album and is signed to EMI in the United Kingdom and Tetragrammation (Bill Cosby's label) in the United States. A few months later, the band performs its first major UK performance at the Sunbury Festival. In September, the band would release the first single from the album, "Hush", which reaches #4 on the US charts. The album, itself, Shades of Deep Purple, would reach the Top 25. In December, the band would release their rendition of Neil Diamond's "Kentucky Woman" a single which would also experience considerable chart success.

1969 - Early in the year, the band would release The Book to Taliesyn which would feature a revival of Ike and Tina Turner's "River Deep, Mountain High." In July, the band would release their self-titled album, Deep Purple. Shortly thereafter, their record label would go under and Rod Evans and Nick Simper would both leave the band. They would be replaced by singer Ian Gillan and bassist Roger Glover, who were both previously members of the group, Episode Six. The two would add a dynamic chemistry to the band, complimenting BLACKMORE, who was quickly rising as one of most omnipotent British lead guitarists around. In September, the band would perform what many believed to be their most adventurous album to date, Concerto For Group And Orchestra, which featured The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

1970 - By August, the band's newest album, Deep Purple In Rock, would stay on the UK charts for over a year, and hit #4. To this day, the album remains a landmark of sorts in heavy rock, with Gillan's screeching vocals pitted against BLACKMORE'S fierce guitar playing. Such Deep Purple classics as "Black Night," and " Child in Time" were featured on the album which mainly generated interest in the UK.

1971 - In July, Deep Purple would tour the United States with The Faces. Two months later, the band would release, Fireball, an album that would also go Top 40 in the United States and be their first chart-topping album in the UK. The band would form their own label, Purple (distributed by EMI) in October before heading to Montreux to record. On December 3rd, the band is recording in the Montreux Casino in Switzerland when it burns down during a set by Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention. The rest is history, as RITCHIE BLACKMORE and the group immortalize the incident in the song, "Smoke on The Water," which would appear on the bands next album.

1972 - Deep Purple release Machine Head, which would also top the UK charts (and go to #7 in the U.S. charts) and feature such worldwide rock classics as "Smoke on the Water," "Space Truckin'," "Lazy," and "Highway Star." The band - who now had a monstrous live set only second to Led Zeppelin - would remain on the road for 44 weeks of the year mainly in support of Machine Head (as well as a compilation album on Warner Bros. Titled Purple Passages). Twenty five years later, Machine Head is still considered one of rock's all-time greatest albums.

1973 - Made In Japan - an album that would result from live recordings of their summer tour in '72 - is released in January and reaches #6 in the United States. However, prior to its release, it would sell huge quantities as an import. Another album, Who Do We Think We Are, is released virtually simultaneously and reaches #15 in the U.S. charts. In the middle of the year, Gillan and Glover quit the band just prior to "Smoke on the Water" reaching #4 on the singles charts and selling over a million copies. In September, David Coverdale (who would be performing as the vocalist for a band called The Fabuloser Brothers and would later go on to form Whitesnake five years later) and bassist Glenn Hughes (ex-Trapeze) would both answer an ad placed by Purple.

1974 - In March, the band releases Burn, which features the new line-up consisting of Coverdale and Hughes. The change wouldn't affect the band's stride as the album reaches the Top 10 in the U.S. charts. Deep Purple would release another album toward the end of the year titled, Stormbringer, that would make the Top 20. Also in November, an impostor posing as BLACKMORE borrows a Porsche in Iowa City, IA, and wrecks it, having already conned food and shelter from several Deep Purple fans, BLACKMORE is actually with the band in San Francisco. The impostor is arrested and charged with misrepresentation.

1975 - In April, RITCHIE BLACKMORE would depart Deep Purple to form a new band, RAINBOW. He teams up with the core of the American band Elf, which contains Ronnie James Dio on vocals (who along with BLACKMORE, would become one of the main songwriters), Mickey Lee Soule on keyboards, Craig Gruber on bass, and Gary Driscoll on drums. Prior to this formation, BLACKMORE recorded "Black Sheep Of The Family" with Elf (on Purple Records) which had toured as the support band for Deep Purple. In May, the band would record Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow at Musicland Studios in Munich, Germany. As the album escalates up the charts (reaching #30 in U.S.), Soule, Gruber, and Driscoll would depart the band, and BLACKMORE would recruit ex-Hariot bassist Jimmy Bain, ex-Blessings keyboardist Tony Carey, and ex-Jeff Beck Group drummer Cozy Powell.

1976 - In July, the band would release their first album with the new line-up, Rainbow Rising. Beginning in August, the band would tour the U.S. , Japan, Europe, and Canada for the remainder of the year.

1977 - Early in the year, ex-Uriah Heep bassist Mark Clarke would replace Jimmy Bain in the group. In May, shortly after the band begins to record a new album Tony Carey and Mark Clarke would depart, and BLACKMORE would concentrate instead on a live album. Their replacements would be David Stone and Bob Daisley, respectively. On Stage - the double-live album that BLACKMORE has been concentrating on - is released. It would feature the line-up of BLACKMORE, Dio, Carey, Bain, and Powell. A single from the album, "Kill The King," would be RAINBOW'S first charting single. Later in the year, the band would begin recording at Paris Studios to complete their third studio album.

1978 - Beginning in January, the band would tour both the U.S. and Japan throughout most of the year. Long Live Rock'n'Roll would be released in May, and enter the Top100. In November, after ten months of touring, BLACKMORE becomes disillusioned with the current line-up, keeping only Cozy Powell in the fold (Dio would become a member of Black Sabbath). A month later, he plays at London's Marquee club with ex-Deep Purple colleague Ian Gillan, and recruits keyboardist Don Alrey to RAINBOW.

1979 - RITCHIE BLACKMORE adds singer Graham Bonnet (who had formerly recorded with The Marbles) and one-time Deep Purple bandmate Roger Glover, completing the line-up. The Glover-produced Down To Earth is released in September, and the first single "Since You've Been Gone" (written by ex-Argent singer Russ Ballard) would reach considerable success before the end of the year.

1980 - In March, a single written by BLACKMORE and Glover, "All Night Long," is released, reaching #5 in the UK charts. In August, the band would headline the first annual Monsters Of Rock festival in Castle Donnington. Powell and Bonnet depart for solo careers shortly thereafter. Vocalist Joe Lynn Turner and drummer Bob Rondinelli would join band. In the mean time, original Deep Purple vocalist puts together a bogus line-up and tours as Deep Purple. BLACKMORE and Glover need to take legal action to preserve credibility of band and keep Evans from using name. Deepest Purple / The Very Best of Deep Purple would be released. Toward the end of the year, a Deep Purple live album, In Concert, would be released featuring tracks recorded between 1970-72.

1981 - In February, RAINBOW would release Difficult To Cure, which would spawn their highest charting UK single to date, "I Surrender," also written by Ballard. Polydor UK recognizes buzz and reissues the band's first hit single, "Kill The King," as well as its parent album, Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow. In December, the band releases a compilation album, The Best Of Rainbow.

1982 - In April, the band would release Straight Between The Eyes which would feature newest addition, keyboardist Dave Rosenthal. The first single from the effort, "Stone Cold," goes Top 40, while the album, itself, goes Top 30. The band goes on an extensive world tour (excluding the UK) to promote the album. Deep Purple Live in London - originally recorded for BBC Radio in 1974 - would be released in the UK.

1983 - Bent Out of Shape - which would feature the line-up of BLACKMORE, Glover, Turner, and newest addition, drummer Chuck Burgi (formally of Brand X). The video for the single, "Street of Dreams," would be banned from the newly-formed MTV as it visually demonstrates hypnosis. In October, the band tours UK for the first time since 1981, mostly in support of the recent album. A month later, the album would generate interest in the States, subsequently reaching #34 in the album charts. Despite MTV banning the single, it does well without their exposure.

1983 - Blackmore gets nominated for a Grammy for his soulful instrumental "Anybody There"

1984 - RITCHIE BLACKMORE decides to put the band on hold as both he and Roger Glover are approached to join the most successful line-up of Deep Purple (with Gillan on vocals, Lord on keyboards, and Paice on drums). The band begins a world tour. Prior to the trek, RAINBOW performs its final tour in Japan with its final live show accompanied by a Japanese symphony orchestra. The set includes BLACKMORE'S adaptation of Beethoven's "Ninth Symphony." In November, Deep Purple signs to Mercury Records in the States, and releases Perfect Strangers. It would go to #17 on the U.S. charts.

1985 - In January, Deep Purple would release the first single from the album, "Knocking At Your Back Door," following it up with the title track, "Perfect Strangers." In July, a Deep Purple double compilation, The Anthology is released in UK.

1986 - A double compilation album, Finyl Vinyl, is remixed for release by Roger Glover, containing many unheard live tracks by RAINBOW, in addition to scarce tracks previously only on singles B-sides. The release is considered a successful coda to the band's career.

1987 - The Deep Purple album, The House of The Blue Light, is released in February and reaches Top 10 U.K. and Top 40 U.S.. The band tours Europe extensively.

1988 - Nobody's Perfect - recorded live during the band's 1987 tour - is released in July, and Deep Purple would embark on a two-month "Nobody's Perfect " U.S. tour.

1989 - In July, Ian Gillan quits the group citing "musical differences."

1990 - Deep Purple - now comprised of BLACKMORE, Glover, Lord, Paice, and former RAINBOW vocalist, Joe Lynn, Turner - would sign with RCA Records. The resulting album, Slaves & Masters, would be released in November.

1991 - Deep Purple will tour in support of Slaves & Masters, encompassing the United States, S.America, Europe, England, Japan, Greece, Israel, Hungary, and the Pacific Rim.

1992 - Upon RCA Record's request, Ian Gillan replaces Joe Lynn Turner prior to the band entering the studio again. The result is an album called The Battle Rages On, which is produced by Roger Glover and Tom Panunzio.

1993 - Deep Purple - now with Gillan at the helm - tours Europe. In the midst of the tour, BLACKMORE makes it known that he's not pleased with the performance of Gillan thus far, and plans to depart at the end of the European leg. The band would complete the tour in Japan with guitarist Joe Satriani. Once BLACKMORE returned to the States, he would begin recruiting musicians for the formation of RITCHIE BLACKMORE'S RAINBOW.

1994 - BLACKMORE holds auditions for the new incarnation in upstate New York. by the end of the year, the new band would consist of Scottish singer Doogle White (ex-Praying Mantis) on vocals, keyboardist Paul Morris (ex-Doro Pesch), bassist Greg Smith (Alice Cooper, Blue Oyster Cult, Joe Lynn Turner), drummer John O'Reilly (Ritchie Havens, Blue Oyster Cult, Joe Lynn Turner) and singer Candice Night ( who would go on to co-write the first single, "Ariel," ) on background vocals.

1995 - The band would begin recording songs earlier in the year, and by September, the new album, Stranger in Us All, would be complete. BMG International releases the album, and within the first week of its availability would sell over 100,000 copies in Japan. This remarkable sales feat would be assisted by Burrn! magazine heralding RITCHIE with no less than seven reader's poll awards. Including "Best Guitarist," "Best Songwriter," "Best Live Show," and "Best Song of the Year" for "Black Masquerade." Similar accolades for RITCHIE would occur in Germany as he's named "Best Guitarist" in a magazine poll. Shortly after the release of Stranger in Us All, the video for the single, "Ariel," would be played heavily on MTV Europe, further promoting album sales. Toward the end of the year, RITCHIE BLACKMORE'S RAINBOW would tour Europe. Chuck Burgi - who originally joined RAINBOW in 1983 - would replace John O' Reilly to tour with RAINBOW as John sustained a soccer injury just after completing the album.

1996 - RAINBOW will play sold-out shows in such locations as Chile, Argentina, and Brazil. After that successful solo tour of South America, the band would perform in front of hundreds of thousands during a European festival tour in support of such bands as ZZ Top, Little Feat, and Deep Blue Something. The largest crowd of the tour would be 40,000 fans. After one of the RAINBOW concerts in Germany, Pat Boone - best known for his white shoes - would call RITCHIE to ask if he'll contribute some guitar work on his upcoming album of metal covers, Pat Boone : In A Metal Mood. Amused and flattered at the same time by the project, RITCHIE provides the guitar licks for Boone's rendition of "Smoke On The Water." In addition to this tribute, RITCHIE records the song "Apache," for the Hank Marvin and The Shadows tribute album titled Twang. Although destined but not eligible for induction yet, BLACKMORE gets a display at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio. He also makes "his impression" by being inducted to Rock Walk in Hollywood, California. Devoted fans of BLACKMORE point out that he appears in the blockbuster movie, "Twister" (RITCHIE is performing on TV during one of the tornado chases). In October, BLACKMORE begins to record his acoustic Renaissance album titled, Shadow Of The Moon which will not be a RAINBOW project... Instead, the new band will be called "BLACKMORE'S NIGHT," incorporating the imagery of the two main participants - BLACKMORE and vocalist/lyricist Candice Night. The album will feature four songs taken from authentic Renaissance music, with new lyrics and brought into a more contemporary sound. Jethro Tull front man Ian Anderson guests on one of the songs, "Play, Minstrel, Play." In December, BMG Japan records a "making of " documentary video as well as three performance videos for various proposed singles.

1997 - RITCHIE BLACKMORE'S RAINBOW tours the United States in support of Stranger In Us All beginning on February 20th. The Rainbow U.S. tour coincides with the release of the debut BLACKMORE'S NIGHT CD, Shadow Of The Moon, featuring lyricist and lead singer Candice Night. The album is released in Japan in late April, and would go on to sell an overwhelming 100,000 copies in just a matter of weeks. It would debut at #14 on the Billboard Album Charts in Japan. On May 31, Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow would headline the Esbjerg Rock Festival in Denmark, performing to over 30,000 fans. In early June, SHADOW OF THE MOON is released in Europe and would immediately chart. It remained on the charts for 17 weeks in Germany.

July 1997 - Deepest Purple goes gold and silver simultaneously in the U.S.

1997 - Ritchie takes his new Blackmore's Night band on his first acoustic/electric SHADOW OF THE MOON TOUR. They play to sold out venues in Japan and Europe.

February 17, 1998 SHADOW OF THE MOON is released in the U.S.

March 1998 - 'NO SECOND CHANCE ' a radio single from Shadow of the Moon is released in Brazil, and spends three weeks at chart position 5 on Brazil Radio.

May 8, 1998 'WISH YOU WERE HERE' the first radio single release.

May 1998 Shadow of the Moon is awarded Gold Record status for Japan. In the U.S., Shadow of the Moon reaches number 1 on the Gavin Up and Coming AC charts.

June 1998 Candice Night and Ritchie Blackmore return to the studio for the recording of the next Blackmore's Night album.

September 25, 1998 - Blackmore's Night headlines the International Rock Award Ceremony in Athens, Greece.

September - October 1998 - Blackmore's Night returns to Europe to play in Churches, Synagogues, Castles and Theaters for enchanted evenings of musical concerts.

November 1998 - Ritchie Blackmore and Candice Night film a special show for Chrysalis TV in London

December 14-20, 1998 - Blackmore is guest speaker on Kevin Bacon's radio show Guitar Legends

January 1999 - Back to the studio to finish recording Blackmore's Night newest project - "Under A Violet Moon" due for Spring 1999 release with Strawbs frontman John Ford contributing guest vocals on Wind In The Willows.

Spring 1999 - Rhino Records released the complete Deep Purple box set..

Spring-Summer 1999 - Ritchie Blackmore and Candice Night are featured on VH1's, "Where are they Now" - this segment is one of the "best of VH1" and runs continuously through 1999.

Spring 1999 - Polygram releases the complete re-mastered Rainbow albums.

April 1999 - Under A Violet Moon is released in Japan and immediately charts at #2 in Japan and #12 on the International Billboard Charts.

April 1999 - Rainbow and Deep Purple are charted in the top 10 rock bands of all time by Chrysalis TV Special.

May 1999 - Under A Violet Moon is released in Europe and charts on the Billboard International Charts at #20

July 1999 - Under A Violet Moon is released in the United States.

June-July 1999 - Blackmore's Night is back in Europe for the Under A Violet Moon Castle tour. This sold out tour is a groundbreaking castle tour throughout Europe.

September 1999 - Ritchie and Candice tape upcoming show for CNN World Beat, and the Christmas Special - Airing dates - Christmas day. They also tape a segment for a "medieval special" to be aired in 2000.

October 1999 - Blackmore's Night commences the first leg of the US tour - bringing the Under A Violet Moon tour to the Midwest/New York area. Blackmore's Night will perform two charity shows in October to benefit the Saltare foundation to bring Performing Arts to underprivileged children - also a charity benefit show was performed for abused and homeless animals - donating their time and proceeds of their Halloween show to Best Friends Society and the North Shore Animal League.

December 1999 - Daily Telegraph Sunday Edition feature article on Ritchie Blackmore and Candice Night.

January 2000 - Blackmore's Night returns to tour Italy.

January/February 2000 - Blackmore's Night will continue to tour Europe and Japan, and return to the castle tours in the summer of 2000.

May 2000 - CNN Worldbeat airs a special on renaissance music featuring Blackmore's Night

Summer 2000 - Blackmore's Night returns to Europe for castle tour.

June/July 2001 - Fires At Midnight by Blackmore's Night is released in Japan and
Europe, entering the International German Billboard charts at No.9 and the International Japanese charts at No. 20, Austrian charts at No.34, Czech Republic charts at No.21, and Slovakia charts at No. 26.

July/August 2001 - Fires At Midnight German Castle tour - Sold Out Venues
Hamburg Charity Performance - All Blackmore's Night proceeds benefit Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

August 2001 - Fires At Midnight reaches Number 7 on the New Age Voice US radio charts.

August 2001 - Blackmore's Night Guest Appearance on Fernsehgarten Garden-German TV, performing artist on Vabank and the Ice Hockey Stick of the Year Program for Czech Nova TV and Blackmore's Night live performances on the BingoLotto TV Show in Sweden.

September 2001 - Fires At Midnight video reaches Number 6 in Canadian MusicMax TV charts.

Sept/Oct 2001 - England, Holland, Denmark and Sweden - Fires At Midnight Tour - Sold Out.

October/Nov 2001 - Times They Are A Changin' video from Fires At Midnight wins the Number 1 TV video award three weeks straight and takes Number 2 for fourth week on Nova TV Czech Republic.

Nov. 2001 - Fires At Midnight remains high on Russian charts - on " Open Radio" in Moscow "The Times They Are A Changin'" remains 9 weeks in the top 20 hit list. "I Still Remember" enters rotation in top 20. Show business agency "Intermedia" reports that Fires At Midnight is one of the top 10 International pop bestsellers during Sept and Oct.

Dec 2001 - Charity Benefit performance of Blackmore's Night - All Proceeds go to North Shore Animal League and Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Utah to feed and shelter homeless animals.

March 2002 - Blackmore's Night special guest performance at the Czech Music Award Ceremony-filmed by Nova TV. Blackmore's Night performs at Angel Music Award Ceremony in Prague. They received an Eso Award from NOVA TV for their number one video The Times They Are A Changin.

August 2002 - Ritchie records an amazing electric guitar solo on Die Geyers album. The song is called: Goettliche Devise.

Home Again (radio cut), 'All Because of You', 'Waiting Just For You' remix, and 'Home Again' album version is released as a single and the the proceeds are donated to the Red Cross to help the victims of the terrible floods that occurred in Eastern Germany and the Czech Republic.



June 2003 - All For One from Ghost of A Rose is used as the theme song for the Japanese syndication of the popular American program "Third Watch".

July 2003 - Ghost of a Rose is released and is in the charts. #11 in Germany, #14 in Japan. Czech charts #2, Swedish charts #39.

2004 - Blackmore's Night tours all over Europe, the Ukraine, Turkey, and Russia.

July 2004 - Ritchie and Candice meet the Burgermeister of St Goar! See newspaper clipping from July 2004.

September 2004 - Beyond the Sunset - The Romantic Collection with additional DVD tracks and bonus holiday songs is released.

The Finest Collection of Blackmore's Night - All For One" is released in Japan on Yamaha Music.

Blackmore's Night tours the north east of the USA.

October 2004 - Blackmore's Night tours Japan.

All Because of You released as a single.

Beyond The Sunset is at number 3 on the New Age Reporter charts in the USA!

November 2004 - 2 BN tunes, Gone With The Wind and Shadow of the Moon, are chosen for the soundtrack compilation of the German TV series - The magical Story of the Rings: Die Nibelungen the Ring of the Nibelungs
www.ring-of-the-nibelungs.com | www.sat1.de/nibelungen

December 2004 - Christmas Eve by Blackmore's Night is released as a single.

December 2004 - Number 1 for 2004!!!!!! Beyond The Sunset - The Romantic Collection won the award from New Age Reporter for Vocal Album of The Year!!!

December 2004 - Cozy Noses and Warm Hearts: Our Renaissance Festive Holiday Dinner was a huge success with representatives from 12 states. We were able to raise over $1200 for Save A Pet and Little Shelter animal rescue centers on Long Island.

December 2004 - Ritchie is voted the #1 guitarist in Italy in a poll done by Chitarristi Magazine.

December 2004 - Japan - The popular TV show Third Watch uses "All For One" from the Ghost of A Rose album by Blackmore's Night as its theme song.


2004 - Double Gold albums in the Czech Republic. Fires At Midnight and Ghost of a Rose were awarded gold records at a special ceremony held at Cartouche in Prague.

January 2005 - Beyond the Sunset - The Romantic Collection, wins the New Age Reporter award for the #1 New Age Vocal Album of the Year!

January 2005 - Die Burg commercial featuring Blackmore's Night song Lorelei.

February 2005 - Blackmore's Night tours the west coast of USA for the 1st time!

February 2005 - Fender and Hewlett Packard announced the completion of the first HP/Fender commercial. The commercial aired for the first time during the Academy Awards on ABC. After the trials and tribulations of the new guitar players, you can hear the master playing the riff for "Smoke on the Water".


April 2005 - Ritchie Blackmore was voted the #2 guitarist of the year in Japan's Burrn Magazine, April 2005 issue.

May 2005 - The DVD Castles and Dreams enters high in the charts in Europe.
Sweden - # 2 ,Germany - # 3 , Austria - # 4 , Italy - # 8 , England -# 23

December 2005 - Blackmore's Night Holiday single "Christmas Eve" hits the Adult Contemporary Billboard Charts at #38! The 1st time that Ritchie Blackmore has been on the A/C charts and the 1st time Blackmore's Night has charted in Billboard for the USA!

January 2006 - Blackmore's Night Castles and Dreams debuts on WLIW as a 1 hour special to help the fund drive for public television. Ritchie and Candice are live in the studio and the other band members even take turns answering the fund drive phones for Public Television Stations. The special continues to be aired throughout America into 2007.

January 2006 - Blackmore's Night "Street Of Dreams" was chosen as the ending theme song for "Junk Sports" broadcast on Fuji TV, Japan's biggest TV station. Guests include famous sports personalities such as Tiger Woods (golf), David Beckham (soccer) & Maria Sharapova (tennis).

January 2006 - Castles and Dreams debut on American television. PBS specials run throughout the year of 2006 nationwide.

January 2006 - Village Lanterne is released in Japan.

January 2006 - Village Lanterne moves to #6 in the Japanese Oricon charts for domestically released international artists!

January 7 2006- Blackmore's Night enters the Billboard Adult Contemporary charts at #38 with their holiday single Christmas Eve

March/April 2006 - Village Lanterne released in Europe and USA reaching various high chart positions worldwide.

March 2006- USA/Canada: “The Village Lanterne” debuts at Number 5 on the New Age Reporter Radio Top 100 Airplay chart.. For April the cd moves up to Number 2

March 2006 Within three weeks of release The Village Lanterne has goes gold in Russia and in the Czech Republic it goes to Number 3 on the international Charts

April 2006 - Burrn Magazine Reported: Burrnin Albums Charts: Blackmore's Night Village Lanterne ranks Number 2, and Burrnin DVD's Charts Castles and Dreams ranks number 1.

May 2006 - “The Village Lanterne” places Number 2 on the NewAgeReporter.com Top 100 Airplay chart for the month. www.newagereporter.com

May 2006 - Blackmore's Night Village Lanterne enters the Czech charts at number 3!

June 2006 - Village Lanterne charts on NAR at #3 in the USA

Summer 2006 -Dark Kingdom: The Dragon King debuts on the SCI FI Channel in the USA and releases the soundtrack cd which includes 2 Blackmore's Night tracks : Gone With the Wind and Shadow of the Moon.

November 2006 - Winter Carols entered the radio charts at number 4for Public Radio Stations and College Stations throughout the USA.
New Age Reporter November 2006 Top 100 Airways Chart

December 2006 - Winter Carols by Blackmore's Night still in top 8 on USA Billboard charts three weeks straight!!! Thank you to our fans!!! (Dec 9 chart)

December 2006 - USA Radio Media charts, " Christmas Eve" # 30 on Adult Contemporary Radio Charts!!!!

December 2006 - "Christmas Eve" gets played throughout Disneyland! On their Disney Village Radio (Hotels, Restaurants, Bars, dans la rue du Disney Village, le marché de Noël and in the streets and the Christmas market of the Village etc. in France.

December 2006 - Save A Pet and Blackmore's Night: Thanks to all who made donations for Save a Pet at our charity show. We collected over $1000 and many dogs and cats had a good holiday.

December 2006 - Winter Carols debuted at #7 on USA Billboard New Age Charts!! Click here for chart.

December 2006 - Blackmore's Night staying power in Billboard charts! Winter Carols spends 5 weeks in the Billboard New Age charts- TOP 10 in USA.

January 2007 - "Winter Carols" remained in the top of the charts for first week of January at #15 in Billboard.

April 2007 Ritchie's most famous riff does it again! Smoke on the Water Dodge commercial.
June 2007: Ritchie's famous riff breaks the world record!! Read about it on MSNBC, on CNN or in Guitar World.

January 2008 - The DVD/Cd box set, Paris moon, reaches #1 on the NAR charts. Christmas Eve, the holiday single, was #26 on the German radio charts

January 2008 - Blackmore's Night gets triple nominations for Paris Moon by NAR: Best Vocal Album, Best Album and Best Celtic Album.

July 2008 - New cd release Secret Voyage

http://www.blackmoresnight.com

John Lecompt biography

Date of Birth
10 March 1973, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA

Birth Name
John Charles LeCompt

Most people probably know John LeCompt as "the other guitarist for Evanescence." Which he is, but there is so much more! You see, he is also "the sexiest man alive"... at least thats what the liner notes to Origin say. So who are we to argue?

John has been part of the Little Rock metal scene since the late 90's.

His first commercial effort was in a band he put together called Mindrage. He pulled double duty as lead vocalist and lead guitarist. He enlisted Nick Williams to play bass and Chad Wilburn to play drums. Together in June of 1998 they recorded the album Sown In Weakness, Raised In Power. For their second album, (a collaboration with the band Nailed Promise) Justin Carder (now with Hap Hazard) took over on drums.

Some time later John joined forces with the guitarist for Living Sacrafice, Rocky Gray, and together created a band called Kill System. They got Chad Moore from Soul Embraced to play bass, and Lance Garvin the former drummer from Living Sarafice as the drummer. The Kill System project has still had no official distribution deal, but the time may come when John & Rocky still move forward with it. Kill System is much more melodic than John's other heavy metal efforts which makes this a big fan favorite.

John joined Rocky one more time with the band he played lead guitar for called Soul Embraced. John is the featured vocalist on the song "Seems Like Forever" on the 2003 album Immune.

After Wind-Up Records signed Evanescence, they turned to some old friends from Little Rock to fill out the spots in the band for when they began to tour. John joined as the second guitarist and Rocky joined as the drummer. On Ev's major label debut Fallen, John even had part in writting the song "Taking Over Me". And the duet "Bring Me To Life" on Fallen was with Paul McCoy from the 12 Stones, but ever since that time, John has performed the vocal parts on "Bring Me To Life" giving the song an edge you can trace right back to his roots in the Little Rock metal scene.

Also John has a new song (from a different side project - because he just doesn't already have enough of those) that he did while they had a break. He is still working on the mastering to meet his high standards.

lanvall biography

Birthday:
August 16th

Zodiac:
Lion

Favourite
bands:
Royal Hunt, Shadow Gallery, Dream Theater, Valentine, Fair Warning, Threshold, Marillion (only with Steve Hogarth), Pride of Lions, Survivor, Journey, Abba

Favourite
musicians:
Anton Bruckner, Robby Valentine, Andre Andersen, Vangelis, Steve Hogarth , Jim Peterik, John Petrucci

Best
concert:
Pride of Lions - Ludwigsburg 2005, Dream Theater - 2005 Linz, Marillion - 2004 Vienna,
Celine Dion - 2008 Vienna

Hobbies:


Motorsports (Formula 1)
Skiing, Cross-Country Skiing, Mountain hiking
Swimming

Movie, Serial:
Star Trek - The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Lord of the Rings, 24

Actor/Actress:
Robert De Niro, Patrick Steward, Harrison Ford, Al Pacino, Robin Williams , Johnny Depp

Color:
Blue

Animal:
Koala, Marmot, Penguin

Food:
Sea food, fondue, Pasta in all variations

Beverage:
Beer, Apple juice with mineral water, Earl Grey tea

Best song:


Valentine`s Overture part 1 + 2
(Robby Valentine)
The spirit carries on (Dream Theater)
Six degrees of inner turbulence (Dream Theater)
Live like horses (Elton John)
Dream holidays: The Tyrol (Austria)

Life philosophy:
Don't dream of life, live your dream.

E-mail:
lanvall@edenbridge.org

Biography:
1994

... Lanvall signed a deal with the German label WMMS Music is Intelligence. Shortly after the first CD Melolydian Garden was released. An album of symphonic guitar instrumental music, which could achieve outstanding response by the international press. Lanvall (guitar / keyboard) was supported by Ulbi Ulbricht (bass) and Thomas Schaufler (drums).

Commentaries of the press:
"... completely in the tradition of the first albums of the ingenious Vinnie Moore or Tony MacAlpine ... a marvelous work" (Heavy oder was?)
"... some really beautiful compositions ... eventful and very interesting" (Rock Hard)
"... dreamlike flowing, guitar-based instrumental music" (Empire)
"... emotional piano melodies and well thought out guitar-runs complement one another and result in an album of high class" (Freak)
"... the ideal music for dreaming and relaxing ..." (Carpe Diem)
"... intensive rock music which gets under your skin ..." (Spellbound)
1995


... Lanvall met the international successful, Austrian musician Gandalf and played with him on a tour through Austria and the Netherlands.

1996


... the second CD Auramony was released, a concept album about the colors of the human aura. Among the rhythm section named above, Lanvall invited Gandalf (sitar / guitar), Peter Aschenbrenner (flute) and a big choir to play some guest parts on the album. A big progress and extension of influences resulted in the following commentaries of the press:

"... wonderful harmonies, fascinating melodies, pearly interludes, prickling emotions are spreading in its whole beauty, skidding the listener in a state of higher perceptive faculty ... an unbelievable dream" (Rock Hard)
"... lyrical rock poetry, melodies full of ideas and compositions that leave nothing to be desired ... a multi talent" (X-Act)
"... unbelievable masterpiece..." (Metamusica Brazil)
"... a must for every dreamy romanticist..." (Spellbound)

In the same year Lanvall played again a tour with Gandalf in Austria and the Netherlands.
1997

... the third album The Pyromantic Symphony was released and was again a big progress.

Some commentaries:
"... inexhaustible richness of ideas in harmony, melody and dynamics ... Castles In The Air is an indescribable hymn beyond space and time ..." (Rock Hard)
"... a musical treat of exquisite quality ... one of the best instrumental acts" (Heavy oder was?)
"... I don't know any other musician, who combines classical influences with electric guitar so well ..." (Spellbound)

1999

... Si Wan Records re-released Auramony in South Korea with a new booklet.
2000


... Melolydian Garden and The Pyromantic Symphony were released in South Korea by Si Wan Records. Lanvall put his solo-project on ice, according to the works on Edenbridge. Nevertheless new songs were written, combining Lanvall's typical guitar playing with complete arrangements for orchestra.
2001

On March 16, 2001 Lanvall played on the 20th anniversary concert of Gandalf in the Viennese etablissement Ronacher, where ex-Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett took part too.
2005

Lanvall's first solo album
"Melolydian Garden" (originally released 1994)
will be re-released on September, 26th
by Massacre Records.

The album comes in a remastered version with new cover, new booklet and
extensive liner notes by Lanvall

Link:www.edenbridge.org

rusty cooley biography

Rusty Cooley is an adroit, altogether exciting six-stringer from The Woodlands, Texas (U.S.A.) who reveals his style as instrumental hard rock with a bit of neo-classical metal and a large dose of 7-string insanity, as one can clearly experience on his latest album, "Rusty Cooley". photoHis favorite guitars consist of an Ibanez RG7 and an Ibanez UV777 BK. Cooley has played guitar since 1983, and freely acknowledges his career aspiration, "In 5-10 years I hope to have released many instrumental CDs as well as music from OutWorld, my band."

When requested to reveal his ultimate effect for the guitar, Cooley answered back with, "Delay," and then brought up his musicial goals, "To constantly get better every day." He fervently hopes to one day study theory, classical composition and master jazz improv (but in the context of his own music), and is at this time listening to George Bellas, Symphony X, Magnitude 9, Todd Duane and lots of classical music. His primary fulfillment? "Seeing the results of hard practice paying off, like a new lick that was physically impossible finally becoming usable," he affirms conclusively.

photoCooley concludes by mentioning continuing and future undertakings succinctly, by saying, "I will be appearing on the Guitar 2001 and Ballbuster compilation CDs. But most importantly, finishing up my solo record and starting to work on the material for my band OutWorld."

Guitar Nine Records visitors have compared the playing style and/or musical approach of Rusty Cooley to guitarists such as Buckethead, Francesco Fareri, Paul Gilbert, Jason Becker, Yngwie J. Malmsteen, Nuno Bettencourt, Michael Angelo Batio, Michael Angelo, John Abercrombie, Yngwie Malmsteen, John Petrucci, Tom Hess, Michael Romeo, George Bellas, Shawn Lane, John 5, Gianni Rojatti, Marty Friedman and others.

Cooley's discography (available here at Guitar Nine Records) includes one solo album ("Rusty Cooley") and participation on a number of other recordings (The Alchemists "The Alchemists", Jason Becker Trib. "Warmth In The Wilderness Vol. II", Book Of Reflections "Book Of Reflections", Generation Ibanez Project "Across The Miles", Guitar 2001 "Lick This", Shawn Lane Remembered "Volume 1", Rogosonic "Leave The World Alone").

Guitarist Rusty Cooley received his first guitar on his 15th birthday and never looked back. Unsatisfied with local Instructors, Rusty began teaching himself through Doug Mark’s Metal Method and various other instructional books and video’s. During High School he took music theory classes and also attended the National Guitar Workshop. Rusty performed solo guitar in high school talent shows. He performed such pieces as Van Halen’s “Eruption” and Randy Rhoads “Revelation Mother Earth” solo. During his senior year he was offered his first teaching job at the same store that just three years earlier, he had bought his first guitar.

Some of Rusty’s early influences included: Rhoads, Malmsteen, Becker, Gilbert, Holdsworth, Paganini, Bach, Vai, Gambale, Moore, MacAlpine, Taffolla, Friedman, Howe, Kotzen, Firkins, and Housholder. He was also influenced by many styles including: Jazz, Classical, Funk, Blues and even Country if you can believe that. There where times when Rusty was pulled in so many different directions by music, he didn’t know if he wanted to be a Classical Conductor or a Jazz guitarist.

After graduating High School, Rusty continued studying Music Theory at the local college, as well as Music History and Class Piano. In 1989, Rusty joined local rock band Revolution. Revolution wrote, performed and recorded all original music. They became one of Houston’s top drawing bands. Revolution opened for national acts like Badlands, Nitro, Every Mothers Nightmare, and South Gang. In 1992, Revolution released a four-song EP. Revolution’s music was once described as Skid Row meets Yngwie Malmsteen. Revolution made two appearances on a local TV show called “Metallurgy” and “Metallurgy Unplugged”. Rusty also taught guitar on a college TV show called “Stay Tuned”. In 1993, Rusty quit the band due to musical differences and started a new band Dominion. Dominion wrote and performed locally as well but was short lived and broke up in 1995. Also during 1995 Rusty entered and won the “Guitar Master Series” winning the title of “Best Guitarist” in Houston.

1996 marked the beginning of a new direction. Rusty bought his first 7-string guitar and decided it was time to go for it on his own. Rusty went back to the woodshed and started working on his guitar playing intensely pushing himself to new levels. Along with this came a whole new list of influences that fueled the fire….Shawn Lane, Derek Taylor, Buckethead, Todd Duane, Scott Stine and Haji’s Kitchen. It was during this period that Rusty began to work on instrumental guitar compositions. These songs represented his desire to record an over-the-top guitar instrumental release featuring state of the art chops and strong melodic content. Rusty was also selected as a runner up in the AIM "Jason Becker Scholarship Search." Rusty hosted three episodes of a local cable show called "World Class Guitar Techniques," which aired in the Houston area. Rusty taught for the National Guitar Summer Workshop in 96, 97, 98 at the Austin and Connecticut Campuses.

In October 1997 the band Outworld was formed to record and perform instrumental music. The band consisted of Darren Davis on drums, Brent Marches on Bass and Bobby Williamson on Keys. Soon after, Outworld decided to take their music to the next level and added singer Kelly Carpenter. In March 1998, Rusty was invited to join Shrapnel recording artists Haji's Kitchen, but had to decline due to relocation problems.

In 2000 Rusty released an instructional cd rom “Shred Guitar Manifesto” and gained endorsements with Jackson Guitars and Seymour Duncan pickups. Rusty also started doing guitar clinics as well. Rusty’s presence on the Internet was growing and his music started getting great reviews, which followed with interviews and instructional columns. His music was featured on several compellation cd’s as well. Outworld performed at the internationally acclaimed “Bang Your Head Festival” in Houston, and was featured on Robb’s Metal works a San Antonio, Texas Heavy Metal TV show. In August 2001, Rusty left Outworld and Houston to move to Alpharetta Georgia. After a short time in Georgia, two more instructional cd roms “Extreme Pentatonics” and “The Art of Picking” where released. Soon after, Rusty was asked to headline Jemfest in Orlando, Florida in 2002. Additional endorsements followed: EMG pickups, VHT Amps and Digital Music Co. In late 2002 the instrumental cd was finished and Rusty began looking for a record label. He also had a custom 8 string guitar hand made by Bill Conklin of Conklin guitars.

Rusty signed with Lion Music and the debut cd was released in January of 2003. In April of 2003, Rusty was given the honor of the “7th Fastest Shredder of all Time” in Guitar One Magazine. In May 2003 Rusty moved back to Houston. Outworld was quickly put back together with former members Bobby, Kelly, Darren and added bassist Shane Dubose. Rusty also has released a performance/clinic DVD and is now Endorsing Ibanez 7 string Guitars, Conklin 8 and 9 string guitars, Rocktron Inc. and GHS strings. Rusty now teaches an online music class called “Modes Gone Wild” at www.musicdojo.com and writes a column for Guitar Player magazine called “Metal Guru”.

Rusty has been featured in Guitar Player, Guitar One, Guitar World, Guitar 2001, Total Guitar, Guitar Techniques and Axe magazine as well as numerous on-line webzines.

“Remember to live, eat, sleep and breathe music for the mind, play from your heart and never be swayed by the current trends.” Rusty Cooley

Discography:
“Rusty Cooley” Self titled debut release January 2003
“Book of Reflections”, Lion Music April 23, 2004
“Shawn Lane Remembered Vol.” May 28, 2004. Lion Music
“Warmth in the Wilderness 2” A Tribute to Jason Becker. Lion Music
“Prog Power 4” A showcase sample
“Prog Power 3” A showcase sample
“The Alchemist” Liquid Note Records
“Fresh Blood Vol. 4” Progressive Arts Records
Guitar 2001 Magazine Presents “Lick This”
Guitarapalooza Vol. l.
Ballbuster magazine “Ball One Strike One”
Generation Ibanez “Across the Miles”
Revolution, self titled 4-song EP

Instructional cd roms:
Shred Guitar Manifesto
Extreme Pentatonics
The Art of Picking
Rusty Cooley performance/clinic DVD

Television appearances:
Stay Tuned
Metallurgy Live
Metallurgy Unplugged
World Class Guitar Techniques
Robb’s Metal Works

Rusty cooley Gear klick here

www.rustycooley.com

Joe Pass Biography

Joe Pass (born Joseph Anthony Passalaqua, January 13, 1929, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA, died May 23, 1994, Los Angeles, California, USA), was a jazz guitar player and virtuoso.

One of the greatest solo jazz artists of all time, Joe Pass ranks as one of the best guitar players of all time not only for his knowledge of the instrument and technical ability, but his ability to compose and improvise.

His early days were spent playing with bands fronted by greats such as Tony Pastor and Charlie Barnet, honing his guitar skills and learning the music business. Unfortunately, Pass picked up some bad habits from the other jazz musicians, and quickly fell victim to a long stint of drug abuse.

Most of the 1950s for Pass were spent in relative obscurity trying to support his drug habit. After his stay at a since discredited drug rehabilitation program, Synanon healing, Pass quickly proved himself as an undisputable genius on the guitar. He then spent the next 3 decades playing with all-time jazz greats such as vocal monster Ella Fitzgerald and often played with piano great Oscar Peterson, thanks to Norman Granz, the keen producer of Verve records.

Although Pass is often overlooked by the mainstream public, the jazz community embraces his genius and he is now recognized as one of the most influential and greatest all-time jazz guitar players. His solo album "Virtuoso" is a must-have for any serious jazz collector, and all his works will continue to gain notoriety as jazz moves into the 21st century.


Discography:

Solo album titles

Two For The Road
Joy Spring
Virtuoso #3
Tudo Bem!
What Is There To Say: Joe Pass Solo Guitar
Virtuoso
Resonance
Eximious
Northsea Lights
For Django
Unforgettable
Joe's Blues
CheckMate
Blues Dues-Live At Long Beach City College
Joe Pass In Hamburg
Guitar Virtuoso [Box]
Six-String Santa
At The Montreux Jazz Festival 1975
Nuages (Live At Yoshi's, Vol. 2)
Better Days
The Best Of Joe Pass
We'll Be Together Again
Duets
Ira, George, And Joe
Songs For Ellen
Joe Pass Quartet Live At Yoshi's
My Song
Chops
Virtuoso Live!
Virtuoso #4
Finally: Live In Stockholm
Best Of Joe Pass
Appassionato
I Remember Charlie Parker
Quadrant
Summer Nights
Montreux '77
Blues For Fred
One For My Baby
University Of Akron Concert
Portraits Of Duke Ellington
Virtuoso #2
Whitestone
Joe Pass almost didn't make it as a musician due to his early battle with drug addiction. But following a successful rehab at Synanon and a recording session with fellow recovered musicians entitled Sounds of Synanon, the guitarist was signed by Dick Bock to the Pacific Jazz label. Pass made several albums as a leader and sideman for Bock, though work started drying up in the late 1960s as rock dominated the music marketplace.

But it was when Joe Pass met impressario Norman Granz that the guitarist's career took off. Granz signed him to his new Pablo label in the early 1970s and recorded him extensively, as a soloist (especially the oustanding Virtuoso series), in duos, trios and as a part of many studio and concert jam sessions. By this time Pass had developed such a virtuoso technique on his instrument that he was considered the “Art Tatum of the guitar” by many critics. Pass especially excelled in his many recordings with piano great Oscar Peterson, as the two men were energized by the stimulation of playing with a fellow master, often at a ridiculous tempo.

Strangely, Joe Pass was rarely happy with his recordings, telling liner note writer Ken Dryden that “I always feel like I could have done better.” Following a single session as a leader for Telarc, Pass made one final CD with Roy Clark (of Hee Haw fame): Roy Clark & Joe Pass Play Hank Williams, though a number of previously unissued collections of his recordings would appear after his passing. Joe Pass died of liver cancer on May 23, 1994 in Los Angeles.