It feels like losing an old friend you lost touch with but used to run with back in the day. I first encountered John in Newcastle in the early 80s. The Tygers of Pan Tang were local heroes who we used to see at Mingles Rock Club in Whitley Bay and we all thought they were great and would go on to big things. Then John joined and we’d never seen anything like it.
I recall seeing them somewhere local, quite small, I can’t recall now exactly. There were so many dark, sweaty, boozy rock nights back then, standing in the front as he played astonishing solo after solo. I didn’t know it then but it was the future of rock guitar. Fast and dynamic but also lyrical, it was amazing. Truly amazing and it was no surprise he moved on to a big band, transforming a flagging Thin Lizzy. Their valedictory live album shows off his brilliance, just casually dropping great riffs on songs like Cold Sweat.
Then, of course, there were the two records with Whitesnake. Some people didn’t like the shift from blues-rock to a more metal sound but I loved it. It was the soundtrack to 1987/88 and displayed his supreme technique and speed.
Blue Murder followed and their debut album was epic, thunderous stuff but it didn’t sell as well as it should’ve getting to #45 in the UK and #69 in the USA. Since then there have been sporadic releases but John perhaps didn’t climb the heights of commerciality his talent deserved. Even so, he leaves a legacy of great records and many boozy hot nights in Newcastle in the early 80s.
