Albert King called him “the greatest white blues guitarist I’ve ever seen.” Rightfully so, his own unique style in a genre that innovation is hard to come by is recognized by thousands of adoring fans 20 years after his death in Alpine Valley. After a show where he played with his brother Jimmie, Eric Clapton, and Robert Cray, Stevie Ray Vaughan walked off stage the final time and onto a heaven bound plane in the middle of the night.

He was barred from local guitar competitions in his native Texas because he was deemed “too good” by the competition holders. He was the lead guitarist of one of the 90’s most influential heavy metal bands in Pantera. He too had a style all his own topped off with his trademark harmonic squeals and shredding style. Cowboys from Hell, Cemetery Gates, Mouth for War, and Walk showcase his work to perfection. His career and life ended with a bang in Ohio when a deranged fan shot and killed him on stage. Pardon the dark pun please, I’m just trying to lighten the mood. Darrell Lance Abbott known to the music world as “Dimebag” has been and still is unreplacable.

His incredible bass solos and riffs fooled two members from Metallica into believing what they heard was a guitar solo. Rather, it was the shredding of Cliff Burton. Renowned as one of the greatest bass guitarists metal has ever seen, he was with Metallica from 1983-86, their period of complete greatness and utter world domination. He provided the gut churning riffs and rhythm that has been the basis of “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” “Master of Puppets,” “Seek and Destroy,” and his famous bass solo “Anesthesia.” In the middle of the night, on their Master of Puppets European tour, he was thrown out the window of the tour bus as the bus hit a patch of black ice. He was crushed under the weight somewhere on the road by Ljunby, Sweden.Read More »