Wanna see what a billion notes looks like?

Achilles said:
Grew up in real time to Hendrix/Beck/Page/Blackmore and thought that was top of the mountain.
Then came Mahavishnu, Return to Forever, and UK and the top got a bit higher.
Malmsteen, Vai, And the entire 80s crew moved it up another few thousand feet.
Then came the ones who made the 80s guys look a little pedestrian and I figured the mountain can't get any higher.

Early 2000s and watching a Rusty Cooley video and he mentions this guy Shawn Lane (missed him entirely in the 90s)
who blew him away. :oops: WTF?

Picked up the CD Personae and listened for the first time while driving somewhere.
By the time it got to the extended solo in Rice for the Angels I'd started hyperventilating and had to pull over.
100% serious.

At one point I owned every audio and video boot ever made of him via his long time bud.
Have worn out the albums and read everything I could find on the guy.
Spoke on the phone with his mother and daughter a few years after Shawn passed.

Was part of a Lane forum back then and when he died ALLAN HOLDSWORTH signed up specifically
to share a few bits and pass along his condolences. Dude seemed genuinely upset by it.

Brain still gets a bit twisted over than one! :oops:


Greatest electric guitarist to ever walk the planet.
Click to expand...
I loved Shawn too, sounds like you went pretty deep into his story. I first heard of him in '91 I think, or possibly '92 when I first started playing. Of course as a beginner it was awe inspiring because I'd never heard guitar like that, but was very familiar with classic guitarists and was even listening to guys like Satch and Vai at the time. But Lane was different, and that's what appealed to me. Unfortunately there was a time I got distracted and missed his later years as they were happening, then found out he died and it broke my heart.
 
duzie said:
I don’t think you can dance to this 😂
Click to expand...
just feel it bro.


Dance Dancing GIF
 
FuzzyAce said:
I loved Shawn too.
Click to expand...

He was a classic 'idiot savant'. Never drove a car, couldn't balance a checkbook, and lived with his elderly grandmother most of his adult life.
Also a bit paranoid schizo, one time he had her throw away every bit of food in the house cause he was convinced a local was trying to poison him.
And sadly he was taken advantage of his whole life by hangers on.

Yet.....

Barry Bays, his long time friend and bassist talked about the day Shawn got the $10K advance from Warner Bros. to record Power's of Ten.
The two of them cashed the check then drove to the big music store in town and loaded up on new gear, including a home recording setup and sampling keyboard. All pretty new tech at the time that came with big, thick manuals.

They dropped off the gear in Shawn's bedroom, went out for the night, and Barry brought him back home pretty late.

He went back the next day and Lane had stayed up all night, taught himself how to use all of the gear, and already recorded two tracks for the album.

:oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops:

Another time he became obsessed with butterflies and Bays found him home surrounded by every book he could find on the subject and could talk it up like an expert.

Not sure many know this:
Shawn's debut album resulted in him winning the award for best new talent in Guitar Player magazine that year.
He also finished in second place in Keyboard Magazine for his piano work!!





tl;dr

The OCD is strong with this one..............
 
Last edited:
Achilles said:
He was a classic 'idiot savant'. Never drove a car, couldn't balance a checkbook, and lived with his elderly grandmother most of his adult life.
Also a bit paranoid schizo, one time he had her throw away every bit of food in the house cause he was convinced a local was trying to poison him.
And sadly he was taken advantage his whole life by hangers on.

Yet.....

Barry Bays, his long time friend and bassist talked about the day Shawn got the $10K advance from Warner Bros. to record Power's of Ten.
The two of them cashed the check, drove to the big music store in town, and loaded up on new gear, including a home recording setup and sampling keyboard. All pretty new tech at the time that came with big, thick manuals.

They dropped off the gear in Shawn's bedroom, went out for the night, and Barry dropped him off late.

He went back the next day and Lane had stayed up all night, taught himself how to use all of the gear, and already recorded two tracks for the album.

:oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops:

Another time he became obsessed with butterflies and Bays found him home surrounded by every book he could find on the subject and could talk it up like an expert.

Not sure many know this:
Shawn's debut album resulted in him winning the award for best new talent in Guitar Player magazine that year.
He also finished in second place in Keyboard Magazine for his piano work.





tl;dr

The OCD is strong with this one..............
Click to expand...
I've heard a lot of similar stories over the years. Dude was a genius in the classic sense, so it's not surprising (although sad in some ways) his career didn't reach a much larger audience.
I loved his debut album, that's when I became a fan. Still listen to it on occasion. It was very different considering what other guitarists at the time were doing. The arrangements, the synth sounds (i know a lot of people gave him shit for that) and compositions I loved. But I enjoy eclectic and unexpected music so it was up my alley. The fact he can play piano just as well as guitar is crazy. EJ is another that's awesome on piano but most wouldn't know that because he doesn't showcase it much in his albums.
 
Achilles said:
Shawn may have been EJ's biggest fan.
Note how he quoted that alternating run Eric did in the Cliffs of Dover in that Rice with the Angels I posted?
Click to expand...
What's great about both of them imo is they're very humble and gracious too.
 
FuzzyAce said:
I loved his debut album.
Click to expand...

Not sure I've mentioned this here before.

Back mid 2000s I had to meet up with a a customer in China so they could check out the factory we wanted to place a big project with for them. and he and I ended up flying back from China to LA together. Turns out he's a bit of a guitar fan and thinks Satriani and Vai are gifts from the Gods - I agree! - so I ask him if he's heard of Shawn (no) and then give him my headphones to check out track 1 of POT.

Plane's semi quiet by now. Eyes closed he's bopping his head along to what must have sounded at first to just another Satriani clone.
Then I start hearing his breathing pick up and even little grunts as the solo starts. :rofl

Eyes were as wide as saucers when it was over and he handed back the phones.
Was so fucking awesome to witness it in person as it as was happening to someone else! :rofl

 
Last edited:
Achilles said:
Not sure I've mentioned this here before.

Back mid 2000s I had to meet up with a a customer in China so they could check out the factory we wanted to place a big project with for them. and he and I ended up flying back from China to LA together. Turns out he's a bit of a guitar fan and thinks Satriani and Vai are gifts from the Gods - I agree! - so I ask him if he's heard of Shawn (no) and then give him my headphones to check out track 1 of POT.

Plane's semi quiet by now. Eyes closed he's bopping his head along to what must have sounded at first to just another Satriani clone.
Then I start hearing his breathing pick up and even little grunts as the solo starts. :rofl

Eyes were as wide as saucers when it was over and he handed back the phones.
Was so fucking awesome to witness it in person as it as was happening to someone else! :rofl

Click to expand...

That's one of my favorite solos of any artist. Grey Pianos Flying is another. The way he could milk vibrato with blazing speed was something else.
 
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