M N O P Q R

Yngwie Malmsteen Yngwie Malsteen is one of metal's most respected guitarists, combining heavy classical and Blackmore-inspired influences in his work. He's a huge fan of Blackmore, having even hired Joe Lynn Turner to be a vocalist in his band! You can't be a bigger Blackmore fan than that. (Very Big Grin) The official Yngwie Malmsteen homepage is hosted at Lewis Entertainment...

Frank Marino (and Mahogany Rush) Frank Marino is a guitar god, whose awesome axework can make you think Jimi Hendrix stopped by his body and taught him more than just a few tricks. Frank Marino appears with and without Mahogany Rush in his album by-lines, but it's still guaranteed 100% rock and roll: good, mean, and hard. For albums to buy of his, I would say you should start with his great Mahogany Rush Live and What's Next. If you have to choose, go with both of them and find some other way to make ends meet. Once you hear "You Got Livin'" from "What's Next", you'll know what I mean. Audial fire. The website for fans of Mr. Marino and the Mahogany Rush is http://www.wildwilly.com/marino1.html.

Megadeth Megadeth is one of the finest HM bands around today, and retain that title through both talented playing and ever-evolving songwriting. Their early stuff had a lot of demons and stuff in it, but the true edge of Dave Mustaine & co. showed through on their less mystical and more personal tracks like "Wake Up Dead" and "Peace Sells (But Who's Buying)". Now a mature band that wields tremendous powers, check out their licks on albums like Countdown to Extinction and Youthanasia. The official Megadeth website is (got your pencil and paper ready, kids?) http://www.megadeth.com.

Metal Church You'd figure with a name like Metal Church, these guys would play metal. Well, you'd be figuring right, because that's just what they do. Re-united with original singer David Wayne, this is a grossly underappreciated band that truly deserve your attentions. They covered "Highway Star" on their first album, Metal Church, and do some amazing stuff on their sophomore release, The Dark. Need more information? Go to http://www.metalchurch.com and you won't be disappointed.

Metallica First off, the link: http://www.metallica.com. Next up, the good news: their best stuff is on the albums Ride the Lightning and Master of Puppets. No true metalhead should be without these classic, seminal works. Now, the bad news that will probably alienate more than one reader of this page: I think they've been dead from the neck up since about 1992 or so. I really don't like the direction they've taken as a band. It seems the more popular they got, the worse they sounded to me. Those of you who like them, you got the link and my overwhelming recommendations for their 2nd and 3rd albums. That's all you get, though. If you're a true die-hard fan of theirs, just pity me and move on...

Mighty Mighty Bosstones These guys play ska-core. That's a clever blend of ska and hardcore punk stylings in some infectious little tunes. If you liked the horns DP used on Live at the Olympia, you should really check these guys out. Pick up their albums Let's Face It and Question the Answers to see what I mean. I love their stuff and really appreciate this band. They've got a tight, distinctive sound I just can't get out of my head. Go to their website, http://www.bosstones.com for sound clips and a whole lot more.

Steve Miller If you're Jesse or Frank James, you'll appreciate his gangster ways, but he doesn't use violence: he's a gangster of love. He's Steve "Guitar" Miller and that's your wife in the back seat of his car because he's a gangster... a gangster of love... OK, seriously, this guy knows how to write one great pop song after another. My favorite albums of his are Sailor and Joker. Get them and have yourself a ball. Mr. Miller and his band are out and about, and you can keep in step with him at http://www.stevemillerband.com

Motorhead If these stout fellows were to move next door to you and serenade the neighborhood with their lovely madrigals, your lawn (and all things in it) would die. Guaranteed. This band plays tough, twisted, punked-up metal that can easily hurt your ears if played at any volume. They are great, obviously, and perfect for clearing a room of non-headbangers in 30 seconds or less, or your brains back! I tried looking for their website, came up with one that claimed to be The Official Motorhead Website, but it hasn't been updated since late 1998 when I checked last in March, 2000. If you have any news on updated info for them, let me know, and I'll fix things up here.

Mountain Leslie West is considered to be one of the best guitarist's guitarists around, and his stuff really shows in Mountain. Mountain is an awesome band and has had a stormy past, but a legacy of powerful music. Best known for Leslie West's killer riffing on their big hit, "Mississippi Queen", Mountain's other key players should not be overlooked, nor their other material be ignored. Felix Pappalardi was one of the best bass players around and Corky Laing is a top drummer. My personal favorite from their catalog is the live version of "Nantucket Sleighride" from their live LP, Twin Peaks. Newcomers to this excellent band would do well to pick up the double CD anthology, which includes their best studio stuff, some savory live recordings, and new material by the rejuvinated band. Mountain's style can be best categorized as loud. They definitely did heavy metal numbers, but could also set up a wonderful, atmospheric, dream-like sound that would make the spacey grooves of Robin Trower sound right at home. The official Mountain website used to be at http://www.lewisentertainment.com/mountain/mtnhome.htm, but it's not there anymore. After grinding through some searches, I came up with some good hits at UBL.com: The live ones seem to be the Felix Pappalardi dedication site and the new Leslie West homepage. They are both current and I hope they keep going, as both those guys deserve recognition and remembrance for their music.

John Norum Swedish guitar-hero that originally started with Europe,but jumped off before they struck big. He thought they had gone commersial, and they really had. Have done a Cd called Face The Truth, which includes our old friend Glenn Hughes on some songs, very nice! Also a Lizzy cover, "Opium Trail." (Mikael Ahlberg)

Ozzy Osbourne After leaving Black Sabbath in the late 1970's, Ozzy went on to a highly successful solo career, finding himself in several bat and landmark-related controversies along the way. Although he has made amends with bat-lovers and the city of San Antonio, Texas, he hasn't stopped rocking. Personally, I prefer his work with Randy Rhoads and Jake E. Lee, but that's just me. Most will agree, though, that his albums Blizzard of Ozz and Diary of a Madman are true metal classics. Go to Ozzy.com for his official site.

Jimmy Page Jimmy Page is one of the greatest guitar greats around. He's played many a session, as well as real stints with The Yardbirds, Roy Harper, The Firm, his solo act, Coverdale/Page, Page/Plant, and currently on tour with The Black Crowes. Oh, yeah, he was also in Led Zeppelin. I once interviewed the guy, and only because he called me at my student newspaper because of the difficulty in getting the connection set up right. He's a true gentleman and a warm person. Go listen to his stuff. Pick anything at random except the second album from The Firm and you should be in some tasty grooves.

Pink Floyd The Pink Floyd have produced some powerful work over their history as a band. At times, it is whimsical, at times strange, at times deeply disturbing. Their albums The Wall, Dark Side of the Moon, and Wish You Were Here are icons of rock, and belong in every serious collector's pile of records. Their home site is http://www.pinkfloyd.com/, strangely enough.

Robert Plant Robert Plant's solo work outside of Led Zeppelin and his collaborations with Jimmy Page has leaned more on the non-heavy side. My favorites from his solo days are his first three albums, in particular The Principle of Moments. Later on, he got more of a pop edge, but kept making music one critic called, "as lush as a Kleenex forest." Whatever that means. I always thought it explained Plant's distinctive musical stylings, even if I never understood it.

Quartermass This band has DP alumnus Nick Simper in its lineup, and once had former IGB/Gillan sidemen John Gustafson and Mick Underwood, as well. OK, so Mr. Underwood is in the current lineup, too. It's getting late and I'm not making sentences like I'm used to... Anyway, the current lineup has a CD out that is receiving great reviews and is worth checking out for yourself. I couldn't find a homepage for them, but going to Google and querying on "Quartermass" and "band" got a fair number of web pages that didn't deal with the "Quartermass" series from British television.

Queen Ever hear "Bohemian Rhapsody"? That song with the opera-sounding stuff in the middle that's so much fun to sing to? No? Well, run, don't walk, run on out to your closest CD-selling website and get your hot little hands on Queen's A Day at the Races and enjoy! These guys were once among the hardest rockers around and have left a legacy all DP fans should be able to enjoy. Their official site, Queenonline, is pretty good, but the fans should head for http://queenworld.com/ and treat themselves to a fansite that goes on for days.

Queensryche I've always been a Queensryche fan. Their music is as sophisticated as their lyrics, and Geoff Tate's vocals are always electrifying. I absolutely love their albums Operation: Mindcrime and Empire. This is another band that can be found at a website by their name.

Rainbow Once upon a time, Ritchie Blackmore left Deep Purple. He formed a band that had Ronnie James Dio, Cozy Powell, Jimmy Bain, Toney Carey, Bob Daisley, Don Airey, Roger Glover, Joe Lynn Turner, and Bobby Rondinelli all in it at one time or another. The first three albums with Dio are a metallic paradise, and live work with Dio is not to be missed from this period. Blackmore steered the band in a more pop-sounding direction in the 80's, and much of the DP Reunion style can be heard in the music from that period of Rainbow. If you could only get one Rainbow album, get Rainbow Rising. It just flat-out rocks, dude. If you already have it, you know what I'm talking about.

The Ramones If you haven't heard the pure punk energy of The Ramones, you haven't lived. You can go to their official site, but it still won't give you the full impact of their 2-minute masterpieces. They only played 3 chords, but they were the right three chords.

Rimsky-Korsakov Why this guy? Well, he's the composer of "Scherezade", a magnificent orchestral piece. Why is that special? Well, listen to that piece and then DP's Book of Taliesyn, and you'll see why. Jon Lord really drew a lot of influence from Rimsky-Korsakov on that album. For a classical dude, this guy was really rokken... his home page is http://www.geocities.com/Vienna/3606/, although I think it's someone else keeping it up instead of him or his management... he hasn't made many recordings lately, either, come to think of it...

Todd Rundgren Let me spend a moment or two regarding Mr. Todd Rundgren... He releases records into instnat cult-status obscurity. Hardly anyone knows about the guy, but those who do can't get enough of his stuff. He's multitalented, witty, smart, innovative, and tall. No matter how many times I put on a TR record or a Utopia record, I get a little surprise I didn't hear before. He's got a good fansite in The Todd Rundgren Connection, which is a nice complement to his subscription site, TR-i.com. Newbies could get into him by selecting his Something/Anything, Hermit of Mink Hollow, or Utopia's Adventures in Utopia, which I consider my favorites among his catalog(s).

Rush These Canadians sure made some good music, most will agree. Some things changed, nobody is exactly sure when, but their fan base got divided into camps of those who preferred the earlier concept-metal of 2112 and Farewell to Kings and those who liked the more techno-sounding Grace Under Pressure and Power WIndows. Rush brought back much of its estranged fanbase in the 1990's with their release, Roll the Bones. Personally, I'm an "Early Rush" guy, preferring their live set All the World's a Stage and Moving Pictures. I went looking for their official homepage, but found no one site that fit that bill. http://www.floras-hideout.com/music/ had a bunch of useful links, so I'll include it here as a good starting point for getting information on this band.