...Ace Frehley!

No, just kidding.

I'm talking about JOHN SYKES!

From the Tygers of Pan Tang to Thin Lizzy to Whitesnake to Blue Murder this guy has been stellar!

The big blow to his career came when David Coverdale fired him just prior to the completion of Whitesnake's 1987 album. Whitesnake was never that good again, and Sykes never reached the heights of success that he would have had Coverdale not gone brain dead with that move.

But Sykes has still had one hell of a career, and is a great Guitar Player/Singer/Songwriter!

Sykes playing "Still of the Night" in 1995
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCM6fBx5WgM (part 1)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5LqY_853-M (part 2)

Cold Sweat (while with Thin Lizzy, a song he co-wrote with Phil Lynott)
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With Tygers of Pan Tang (1981)
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A Sykes solo from 1984:
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I've been a big fan of Sykes since he first joined Thin Lizzy. He is a really aggressive lead plyer - and one hell of a great songwriter (and a darned good singer)!

Another vague thread title!

Another thread full of YouTube vids!

I really liked his late '80s band, Blue Murder. I think they only released one album, but I still listen to it from time to time. It's a great album!

I remember the Blue Murder videos.

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Valley of the Kings (embed disabled)

You betcha!

Seriously, though, I've found that when talking about someone who isn't a household name that a given thread will be ignored if you say, "So and So, great songwriter," as the thread title. Those threads are usually ignored - even by people who may find that the artist in question is someone they would really like.

And what's a conversation about music without examples?? Empty. Sad. Sterile.

That's why I love it when people reply and add their own favorite clips/songs when discussing the artist or album.

And John Sykes is just so much damned fun to watch and/or listen to!

Holy crap! I've tried to remember the name of that song/band for years! Nobody I know seemed to have any idea. It came out my freshman year of college and holds some cool memories.

Muchas gracias!

Another thread that could have been tacked on to the original Great Guitar Player thread.

Personally, I hate those threads because individuals get lost and discussion about one particular subject is much more difficult (in between comments about 20 or 30 other subjects).

I prefer more specific threads that allow for more in depth discussions about the subject without distractions.

But that's just me...


Back on topic, as I noted I became a big John Sykes fan when he joined Thin Lizzy. I picked up the Tygers of Pan Tang (his pre-Thin Lizzy band) album Spellbound a year or so later and didn't really like it. I don't know why, but it rubbed me the wrong way at the time.

8 or 10 years later I ran across Spellbound on CD and picked it up. After further review it turned out that I LOVE that album, and I have no idea what it was about the album that turned me off when I was 15. If you have a chance to get it I highly recommend it. It is the peak of the Tygers career, IMO...