Yngwie Johan Malmsteen is a Swedish guitarist. He first became known in the 1980s for his neoclassical playing style in heavy metal, and has released 22 studio albums in a career spanning over 40 years. In 2009, Time magazine rated Malmsteen as number 9 among the 11 greatest electric guitar players of all time.
Trial by Fire: Live in Leningrad is the first live album by guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen, recorded over several dates in February 1989 in Saint Petersburg, and released on 12 October 1989 through Polydor Records. The album reached #31 on the Swedish albums chart and #128 on the Billboard 200. A VHS video of the concert was released on 11 July 1991 through PolyGram, and a DVD edition was reissued in Japan on 12 December 2006 through Universal Music.
Jonas Hellborg is a Swedish bass guitarist. He has collaborated with John McLaughlin, Ustad Sultan Khan, Fazal Qureshi, Bill Laswell, Shawn Lane, Jens Johansson, Anders Johansson, Ginger Baker, Michael Shrieve, V. Selvaganesh, Jeff Sipe, Mattias IA Eklundh, Public Image Ltd, and Buckethead.
Shawn Lane was an American musician who released two studio albums and collaborated with a variety of musicians including Ringo Starr, Kris Kristofferson, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Reggie Young, Joe Walsh, Jonas Hellborg, Anders Johansson, Jens Johansson and many others. After studying the piano, he learned to play the guitar, which he played with exceptional speed.
Jens Ola Johansson is a Swedish keyboardist and pianist who currently plays in the Finnish power metal band Stratovarius and Ritchie Blackmore's rock project Rainbow. He is notable for his high-speed neoclassical and fusion style.
Inspiration is the ninth studio album by guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen, released on 14 October 1996. It is a tribute album consisting entirely of covers of various bands who influenced Malmsteen. Featured on vocals are Jeff Scott Soto, Mark Boals and Joe Lynn Turner, all of whom performed on Malmsteen's first four studio albums.
Trilogy is the third studio album by guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen, released on 4 November 1986 through Polydor Records. The album reached No. 44 on the US Billboard 200 and charted within the top 60 in the Netherlands and Sweden. In the liner notes, Malmsteen dedicates the album to the memory of the late Swedish prime minister Olof Palme, who was assassinated on 28 February 1986.
Crystal Planet is the seventh studio album by guitarist Joe Satriani, released on March 3, 1998 through Epic Records. This was his first album to be released on Epic, whereas his previous six albums were released through Relativity Records. Crystal Planet reached No. 50 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and remained on that chart for eight weeks, as well as reaching the top 100 in five other countries. "Ceremony" was released as a single, reaching No. 28 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart and featuring Satriani's first recorded use of a seven-string guitar, namely the Ibanez Universe. "A Train of Angels" was nominated for Best Rock Instrumental Performance at the 1999 Grammy Awards, Satriani's ninth such nomination.
Brad is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington in 1992. Their sound was influenced by the wide variety of influences brought by its members, including Stone Gossard of Pearl Jam, Regan Hagar, Shawn Smith, and Jeremy Toback.
Anders Johansson is a Swedish musician, best known as the former drummer of HammerFall and Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force. He currently plays in the power metal band Tungsten. He is the son of jazz pianist Jan Johansson, and brother of Stratovarius and Rainbow keyboardist Jens Johansson.
Episode is the fifth studio album by power metal band Stratovarius, released on 22 April 1996 through Noise Records. It is the first Stratovarius album to feature keyboardist Jens Johansson and drummer Jörg Michael, both of whom would form part of the band's most stable line-up for nine years. The album reached No. 21 on the Finnish albums chart and remained on that chart for six weeks.
Powers of Ten is the first studio album by guitarist Shawn Lane, released in 1992 through Warner Bros. Records. A second edition was reissued in 1993, with a revised track listing and alternate versions of "Get You Back" and "West Side Boogie". In a 2009 article by Guitar World magazine, Powers of Ten was ranked seventh on the all-time top ten list of shred albums.
I Know You're Married But I've Got Feelings Too is the second full-length album of Canadian-American singer-songwriter Martha Wainwright. It was released in Australia on May 10, 2008, with other countries to follow. The 14-track album features 12 original tracks and cover versions of Pink Floyd's "See Emily Play" and, as a bonus track in some countries, the Eurythmics' "Love Is a Stranger".
Premonition is the fifth studio album by guitarist Tony MacAlpine, released in 1994 through Shrapnel Records.
Heavy Machinery is a collaborative studio album by guitarist Allan Holdsworth, keyboardist Jens Johansson and drummer Anders Johansson, released in 1996 through Heptagon Records (Sweden), and on 12 August 1997 through Shrapnel Records and Pony Canyon (Japan).
Centrifugal Funk is the second and final studio album by the Mark Varney Project (MVP), released in 1991 through Legato Records; a remastered edition was reissued in 2004 through Tone Center Records. This line-up of the group features guitarists Frank Gambale, Brett Garsed and Shawn Lane. The album consists primarily of covers of existing jazz fusion compositions, save for one track performed by Lane—"Lane's Blitz"—which he later dismissed as an impromptu warm-up rather than a planned solo, and thus his dislike for it. Varney has disputed Lane's version of events, but the track was omitted on the remaster.
Collection: The Shrapnel Years is a compilation album by guitarist Tony MacAlpine, released on March 14, 2006 through Shrapnel Records. It includes tracks from six of MacAlpine's studio albums.
Elysium is the thirteenth studio album by power metal band Stratovarius, released on 12 January 2011 through Victor Entertainment (Japan) and on 14 January through Edel AG (worldwide). It is the last Stratovarius album to feature longtime drummer Jörg Michael, who left the band in 2012. Elysium reached No. 1 on the Finnish albums chart, as well as reaching the top 80 in five other countries. "Darkest Hours" was released as a single, reaching No. 4 on the Finnish singles chart.
Jigsaw is the fourth studio album by guitarist Mike Stern, released in 1989 through Atlantic Records and reissued on July 17, 2007 through Wounded Bird Records. The album reached #12 on Billboard's Top Contemporary Jazz Albums chart in 1989.
Sheol is the third studio album by Swedish black metal band Naglfar. It was released on 24 March 2003 through Century Media Records and New Hawen Records. It was their first full-length album in five years, after Diabolical (1998).
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