Creating guitar sound for Whitesnake 87 - Bob Rock, John Sykes - complete story

This is my new story which I wrote on how the guitar sound for the legendary Whitesnake 87 album was created by Bob Rock and John Sykes. My good old friend Shawn Staples from California made the introduction video and narrated the story. I wrote this review using known facts. My stories and reviews represent a great value for guitar players, musicians and rock fans. I do my best to create original and interesting content. Hope you enjoy it guys!

[@tboysrocknroll9252]

I can attest to John Sykes as being one of the coolest "rock stars" I've EVER met as well...met him in 89 in Toronto at a Blue Murder show...my friend and I talked to him for about an hour about Thin Lizzy and he was absolutely enamored with Phil Lynott...it was SO GREAT....when the show ended and he was leaving the stage he came right up to my friend and I and hugged us and said words that I will never forget...he said "Phil was here tonight!!!" ...we were both blown away!!! John actually remembered us from earlier in the evening!!!...it was one of, if not the best encounters I've ever had....my friend has since passed on so I'll dedicate this post to him... I'll always love ya Jim!!!...rest in peace my friend!!!

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Thank you so much for sharing this story here!

[@1971caz38]

Would have loved to see Blue murder

[@eugenemitchell9231]

your friend would love this your comment on this. RIP

[@cymro6537]

What a great post ! RIP to your friend and God bless John Sykes

[@STORMSC0UT]

What a nice story!

[@neillenet291]

John Sykes is definitely criminally underrated. For anyone who hasn't heard them I strongly recommend listening to Thin Lizzy's thunder and lightning album and the 1st blue murder album. Sykes also doesn't get enough credit for his singing voice.

[@ametalman66]

I agree Neil! Thunder and Lightning simply Kicks Ass!!!

[@neillenet291]

@@ametalman66 that was a great album. Such a shame that most people only know Thin Lizzy from "boys are back in town."

[@johnfoster4244]

Strong guitarist, writer, and singer.

[@tboysrocknroll9252]

Thunder and Lightning is one of those rare "back to front" albums....you know, every song is killer!! I've probably bought it more than I should because I've either worn it out or it was stolen out of my collection...but it's worth it!!!

[@neillenet291]

@@tboysrocknroll9252 I completely agree, that is a phenomenal album that hardly anyone has ever heard of. The song Cold Sweat alone is one of the hardest rocking songs ever.

[@alanjamesh.zamorano1677]

The best thing that happened to David Coverdale was meeting John Sykes. Great songwriter and killer guitar player.

[@dr0117]

i wanted so bad just one more album with these guys... i remember finding a cd 1987 after 10 years with two etxtra songs... i was so happy

[@jtommyprice]

Plus Cozy Powell on drums for Slide it In.

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

And Tawny Kitaen in the videos. Gorgeous!

[@chrischoir3594]

Bernie, Moody and Mel Galley wrote better songs

[@georgebarry8640]

@@jtommyprice Hell Yeah!!!! Cozy BROUGHT it!!

[@guitarherocallahan3510]

As for Sykes suggesting bringing in a new vocalist and carrying on without Coverdale, Sykes thirty years later denied that. This is what John Sykes said: "Now I want to correct a rumour that I know has been out there for a long time. It's been said that when David was having his troubles, I went to Geffen and urged them to bring in another singer to replace him in Whitesnake. That's rubbish. How on earth could you ever have anyone fronting Whitesnake apart from David Coverdale?".

[@PhilJakes]

What ive heard is Sykes suggested singing himself

[@justinclark8867]

@@PhilJakes That's the rumor. However, when it came to Blue Murder (after Whitesnake), Sykes was still looking for a frontman, even trying out Ray Gillen, Tony Martin, both from Black Sabbath. When Martin bailed out, the band began recording the main body of the instruments for Blue Murder's debut, while still trying out singers. It wasn't until Geffen's A&R John Kalodner, and his bandmates, Carmine Appice and Tony Franklin all persuaded Sykes to do the lead vocals, as they all preferred his voice on the songs, compared to everyone else.

[@koolerm4806]

John Sykes Is Phenomenal.

[@johnboforsyth5970]

One of the best for sure!

[@liontone]

No one touches him, in that style.

[@markn4526]

Yup!

[@danyeo]

When Sykes left Whitesnake he brought the sound of the 87 Whitesnake album with him. The Blue Murder album sounded like 87 part 2. Loved Sykes Mesa Boogie tone he got back then.

[@Lonewolve1988]

❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@timbennett6644]

Blue Murder were Magnificent

[@michaelmassey5741]

They were amazing

[@gtrman69777]

You couldn't ask for a more talented group. They were the epitome of the power trio.

[@bazzbling1]

I had the pleasure of recording and staying with Phil Lynott. I used to sleep i the dungeon (Phil's Dark room for photos) Lots of Black and white photos of John Sykes. I met John when we played at the point depot(O2 arena) 96 10th vibe for Philo. We were at the bar and i told John about the dark room and the question i asked Phil " Why so many photos of John Sykes ? Phil Lynotts reply was "Because he is the finest guitar player to ever play with Thin Lizzy!" John Smiled and bought me a pint straight away! Nice Guy. Watched him all the way from the Tigers of Pan Tang! Boss of the guitar!

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Amazing!

[@funzjag]

Get out of town!!! That's friggin' fantastic......thanks for sharing your experience. One of my favorite Thin Lizzy albums is "Thunder and Lighting." That's the first time that I heard Sykes guitar. Stay Blessed, Barry. 🙏

[@codacreator6162]

Nice! I’m glad someone of Phil’s immense talent and stature recognized what a lot of us mere mortal players suspected the moment we first heard John Sykes’ guitar. My only regret is that John Sykes doesn’t have the catalog of so many other, better known guitarists have (like Van Halen). In my mind, we really need MORE Sykes - and Vivian Campbell, too.

[@ej_8888]

My personal fav album I grew up on Whitesnake '87 But John SHOULD of toured with them on that album ! He is an amazing guitarist and song writer. I'm a huge fan of his my fellow UK brother. His guitar solo on " Crying In The Rain" almost left me speechless. That guitar is like a drug. Thanks for the vid.

[@justinunsworth1170]

Nice video. So I opened up for Thin Lizzy with the band I was in at the time. This was in around 2002 or 2003 I believe. For me it was Marco Mendoza on bass who was really cool to me. He was interested in playing my 5 string Rickenbacker bass. And watching Tommy Aldridge sound check on his drums was amazing. The gig was in Santa Ana, Ca. John Sykes was singing lead and playing guitar in that band!!!

[@remmingtoncruzoe8282]

I remember when I heard Lizzy's "Thunder&Lightning" for the first time (while being accustomed to their classic sound) and though "Whoa! Who's this demigod on the other guitar?". Was hooked on John Sykes ever since! PHENOMENAL guitarist! \m/

[@michaelrichardson8343]

I'm going to go way back with Sykes and mention Tygers of Pan Tang...check out the Spellbound album. The dude was born a guitar god!

[@gabrieljohannson6777]

Oh Yes.

[@deanstanley5799]

A criminally underrated band !

[@Gath8mm]

Amen brother. John Sykes is the real deal. Huge influence to me.

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Bruce Fairbairn was also a great producer who worked with Aerosmith, AC/DC and Van Halen. So 4 great record producers were working at Vancouver's Little Mountain Sound Studios at that point. Amazing!

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Bruce Earl Fairbairn (December 30, 1949 - May 17, 1999) was a Canadian musician and international record producer from Vancouver, British Columbia. He was active as a producer from 1976 to 1999, and is considered one of the best of his era. His most successful productions are Slippery When Wet and New Jersey by Bon Jovi, Permanent Vacation, Pump, and Get a Grip by Aerosmith, The Razors Edge by AC/DC, and Balance by Van Halen, each of which sold at least five million copies.

[@guitarherocallahan3510]

@Robert Sapolsky Oh really Rat Bat Blue? Do you believe that? Blackmore's riff? Believe me, the riff is 100% John Sykes

[@guitarherocallahan3510]

@Robert Sapolsky Forget Blackmore, it's John Sykes!

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

​@Robert Sapolsky I heard something like that, but I don't think so. I think the riff doesn't sound like any Blackmore's riff. And many guiatrists used the blues scale to write hard rock riffs in the 70s and 80s. I know that Coverdale says that it's kinda reworked version of an old Blackmore's riff, but I don't believe that. Anyway, Rat Bat Blue is on "Who Do We Think We Are" album and it's Ian Gillan who sang on that album. David Coverdale came after.

[@wesbeach69]

@Robert Sapolsky rat bat blue sounds like moby dick to me.

[@540chevhell9]

Yes John is without doubt "a phenomenal player" !!! For pure skill and flair I would put him in top 5 in the world. Add his ability to sing at the same time and he is off the charts.

[@timbarker3312]

"They Called Him Public Enemy Number One, But Their The Ones Who Don't Know Whays Going On"

[@soundexperience5179]

I used to hang out with Tony, Carmine, and John at their apartment they leased on Beach Avenue in Vancouver while recording at Little Mountain Sound.

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Amazing!

[@tangerinerose3724]

Super jelly

[@WineSippingCowboy]

Great! + lucky! At that time, I was in a different part of Vancouver. I missed them by that much! 😖

[@tangerinerose3724]

@@WineSippingCowboy ya same here. I lived in Vancouver at that time too. So close yet sooooo far. Lol

[@WineSippingCowboy]

Before home recording + The Internet, Vancouver was a hot bed! Bc of relatives, I often travelled there from San Francisco. 🌁 Great times! ❤🇨🇦😃

[@cymro6537]

Whitesnake's '87 album is so cool in every single way- even the artwork Rocks! As for Sykes? Good God! He had it all: *Incredible* guitar player! He could also sing ,compose, arrange - and he was so good looking. Some of those attributes must've made Mr Coverdale a little bit twitchy .......

[@grahamgray2421]

This is Great!!!! Many Thanks!!!! Hope John works again be fantastic to see him play live in the UK!!!

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

You are very welcome, thank you!!

[@keithwegiel5902]

Agree! SYKES is probably the best guitar player ever... the combination of skill, sound, and composition are unmatched.

[@mikal]

In a just world, the Whitesnake legacy would've followed John Sykes over to Blue Murder, making them the biggest band in the world. According to Carmine, it was their lack of management that was the biggest problem in them not becoming what they were destined to be.

[@Matt-fs1yy]

Blue Murder is way overrated, and nothing they ever recorded rises to the level of '87 or even Slide It In. That Blue Murder debut is cheese.

[@isaiahmarquez9717]

@@Matt-fs1yy I don’t want to be super critical of Blue Murder but I don’t like ANY of those songs. I think that Land of Egypt song or whatever it was called was a weak first single. I was never a fan. I love John Sykes’s playing with Whitesnake and Thin Lizzy but I think Blue Murder never quite got there. The song writing was weak. Maybe that’s why he’s refused to put it back together?

[@Matt-fs1yy]

@@isaiahmarquez9717 Yes, that song is called "Valley of the Kings" and the hokey lyrics are the least of it's problems. There are too damn many parts on that song. You are correct about the lack of songwriting 100%.

[@tomsevgarage8397]

No, That genre of music faded. I never thought John got the credit he deserved.

[@lavendarguitar5517]

Thank you for this. John's soul is heard coming thru his fingers... He is an absolute legend. His control of his notes is just jaw dropping....

[@swordmonkey6635]

Blue Murder had ridiculous amounts of talent. They could out-Whitesnake Whitesnake and then bring the musicality up to a new level. Carmine and Tony were great musicians and John shredding on the guitar AND singing only showed what a force John was.

[@shawnstarks1743]

Everything you said is true! However, Blue Murder album sales sucked. Blue Murder had a cup of coffee. That's it. And Sykes really didn't do much after that. Was the 87 album his masterpiece? No doubt! And he lived off that moment and (for people who care) continues to live off that memory of what he accomplished on the 87 album. Sad but true.

[@gabrieljohannson6777]

Sykes was & is my fav rock guitarist. Such a ferocious player.

[@theonlyredspecial]

Sykes guitar sound on that album has stood the test of time. 1987 is a cracking rock album. Blue murder was a great band. Didn't do very well sadly. Can't wait for sykes album this year 2021. The song already released is great.

[@adamsherley-dale9503]

Gates of Hell? It’s outstanding

[@trilogyopus]

@@adamsherley-dale9503 Dawning of a brand new day 2021.

[@markmiller4013]

Studio phenom, Dann Huff, was brought in to play on some songs because Sykes was struggling

[@bobbbobb4663]

@@markmiller4013 Other than the solo on the radio edit of Here I Go Again, I highly doubt Huff played on any other songs on the 87 album. Sykes had a Jackson with a whammy bar. Listen to it on Standing in the Shadows 87 edit.

[@scottwhite2757]

John and Cozy are Epic musicians two of my all time favorite Rockers .. Great upload Love it !!!

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Big thanks Scott, I appreciate!!! When I first heard Still of the Night, I was a teenager, that was like a mixture of Metallica and Led Zeppelin II. For me Still of the Night is Whole Lotta Love 2.0. Awesome!

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

I know that Metallica also used Mesa Boogie amps in the 80s. Great metal sound!

[@scottwhite2757]

@@karsguitarchannel6088 2.0 for Sure !!! Mesa Boogie Amplifier used by John and other musicians with Great sound now I know why,, Very Cool... Thx :)

[@sn95_mustang_garage]

Sykes is the reason I took up guitar. The first song I've played from start to finish was "Is This Love" including the solo after 1 year of picking up the guitar. I think the 1987 Album is a masterpiece. The guitar is so amazing and I thought I'd get to see him on tour, I got Steve Vai and Vandenberg, not a bad lineup. I really like Sykes though and the first Blue Murder album was extremely good.

[@roderickhager8154]

Both John and Bob are the best at what they do! Kings of their craft!!!🤘💪🎸

[@DMetal-yv6gl]

You did not not mention his time in Tygers of Pan Tang, were he was as was all the members of this group fantastic. Seen him with them in 80/81.Some great tracks which Tygers are still playing today. I also loved his periods with Whitesnake and Thin Lizzy.

[@guitarherocallahan3510]

Awesome story, very informative! Thanks

[@bathtubgeorge]

Sykes is an incredible talent, I still find it hilarious that Coverdale sacked him from the band, after all it was Sykes who put Whitesnake on the map in the US. you can find a million guitar players, but how many have the writing talents of John Sykes? Sykes could have been Coverdale's Joe Perry, his Keef. Coverdale robbed the fans of an album with that line up of Murray / Powell / Sykes... But alas. How that debut Blue Murder album did not sell a few million is beyond me.

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Yes, Aynsley Dunbar plays drums on Whitesnake 87

[@funzjag]

I like Whitesnake and I like Coverdales' voice. Coverdales' ego , however is another matter entirely. Coverdale wants to hit it big in the US. He fires Moody and all of the quality musicians. They don't have the sexy look for the US Whitesnake. So, you find Sykes, who is a phenomenal guitarist and a good looking guy.....bonus he can write as well. Instead of making it a long term partnership that could benefit them both......Coverdale gets rid of Sykes. Does anyone remember what Coverdale had to do to join Deep Purple ? He had to "loose weight and clean up the acne!" Apparently, Coverdale doesn't recall his humble beginnings!

[@peevee605]

Sykes blamed DC for Blue Murder not selling. With record companies, there will be Politics. DC comes across as more smooth than John in the business realm. Kalodner was involved and DC and him were close. The devil is in the details. It’s also a timing issue when you release the album. As for the 1987 album, DC was just a split hair from bankruptcy when the album took off and started to sell. Sykes is a monster player and it’s sad he doesn’t come out anymore. Wish to God he would.

[@Mr.Brightside8810]

I agree with you about how iconic this riff is. I'm 40 now but I grew up with a father that was a HUGE whitesnake fan. So this is deeply ingrained in me.

[@klextacy]

Great video!! John is one of my absolute guitar heroes!

[@jodylowe8476]

The guitar on Still of the Night is epic in my opinion. Its a shame he never got the full recognition he deserved for that work.

[@guitarherocallahan3510]

By early 1986, much of the record had been recorded. When it came time for Coverdale to record his vocals though, he noticed his voice was unusually nasal and off-pitch. After consulting several specialists, it was revealed that Coverdale had contracted a severe sinus infection. After receiving some antibiotics, Coverdale flew to Compass Point Studios in the Bahamas to resume recording. However, the infection resurfaced which caused Coverdale's septum to collapse. He required surgery, followed by a six month rehabilitation period. John Sykes disputes this and maintains that Coverdale was just suffering from "nerves", and that he used "every excuse possible" not to record his vocals.

[@GordonHeaney]

A collapsed septum sounds like too many drugs up the nose

[@f.d.english5080]

Watching John sing and play guitar at the same time is just wow. How does he do that? I love Blue Murder

[@recoswell]

by writing it in a way that he could do it --- dummy

[@1971caz38]

Love the song Sexchild

[@rafaelcoli4797]

Major truth... one of the best rifs ever. John Sykes rocks!

[@sirkayda7205]

Bob Rock is one of the greatest living producers

[@markn4526]

No doubt about it!

[@doublestrokeroll]

Damn rights. And a very talented song writer in his own right. If you like 80's pop, have a listen to Eyes of a Stranger by the Payolas. Amazing song. What a lot of people don't know was that Bob got his start working at Little Mountain Sound as an engineer. Vancouver had a pretty good punk scene at the time (late 70's; bands like DOA and the Subhumans) and Bob would produce many of those bands late at night at the studio. The guy is a full on legend. Too many people listen to moronic Metallica fans, and have no clue.

[@marco.loschiavo]

John's performance at Rock in Rio was biblical!!!

[@chellj8175]

John Sykes sooooo awesome!!

[@xxx6802]

Jelly Roll is one of the best songs from the 80's, ever. John Skyes was one of the reasons (if not the main reason) Whitesnake took off the way they did in the 80's, They never were able to duplicate that success like they did from that '87 album nor the Slide It In album And there has never been a guitarist to replace Sykes in that band since!

[@mikeraz594]

Pretty much all the guitar player in Whtesnake after 87 are better than Sykes. Most of them before 87 were better too. Vai, Vivian, Vandenburg and Joel Hoekstra are all better player technically.

[@jamminjohn]

@@mikeraz594 but none of those guys are on that 87 album, except a Vandenburg solo put on after the initial recording

[@mikeraz594]

@@jamminjohn right and the point is other than one song 87 album is pretty bad

[@venomagent76]

@@mikeraz594 but not as creative, or not the same feel!

[@steviemoff]

Campbell beat Sykes to the guitarist position in Dio. They both auditioned however Ronnie thought Vivian had more about his playing. Both great players but just shows that who is the bester player is subjective.

[@image30p]

Cool! Thanks for sharing that! JS is one of my favorites. I wish he'd done more stuff with DC. They were a great team. Sound-wise anyway!

[@pablodebiddlybo3771]

Sykes was shat on from a great height . His talent knows no bounds and those in the know understand the ‘87 album was pretty much all his work. The Blue murder stuff was great but so short lived IMO

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Hey guys, Still of the Night is Whole Lotta Love 2.0. Great mixture of Metal and Led Zeppelin II!

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Actually, Sykes played those riffs and David Coverdale sang some Led Zeppelin stuff over them. That's how they wrote that song.

[@NR-tr4tq]

Yup. Immigrant song is in there too.

[@guitarherocallahan3510]

@Robert Sapolsky And you can add Speed King to that list as well. Do you really believe that? Blackmore's riff? The riff sounds 100% original.

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

​@Robert Sapolsky Where did you get that information? Who told you that it's Blackmore?

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

@Robert Sapolsky When I first heard Still of the Night, I heard a big influence of Led Zeppelin II in that song. I said that for me it sounds like Whole Lotta Love 2.0, because of the lyrics first of all. The both songs are about wanting making love to a very attractive woman. Plus Coverdale's vocal sounds like Led Zeppelin. Then both songs have a middle section. You see, the structure of the song Still of the Night is very similar to Whole Lotta Love. The solo goes after the middle section. Then the riff which is based on E chord is pretty close to the Whole Lotta Love riff. But that's just what I personnaly feel when I listen to Still of the Night.

[@jasonparkergimplifedisable684]

So cool learning about music history 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

You are very welcome, thank you!!!

[@kurtsepter]

Blue Murder was great! To think they auditioned singers!

[@1sotheary]

If you could describe a guitar tone and style as sexy, it would be Sykes tone and style.

[@JCSYKER]

Awesome!! love to hear Sykes stories

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Many thanks Syker, I appreciate!!!

[@nickhewitt6344]

Thank you for posting this John Sykes has been my favorite Guitar player since I was 11 i am 39 now his sound is a thing of beauty!

[@scottwhite2757]

I agree Beauty is a great way of describing John’s Guitar playing & sound .. :)

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

@@nickhewitt6344 You are very welcome Nick!!!

[@DevinRyanVitek]

Syker, your covers of Sykes’ works are amazing. Please post some more videos!

[@JEFFWEEE]

I'm watching this because in 1987 my parents gave me Whitesnake 87 as a Christmas present. I had never really listened to them much before. John Sykes guitar/sound blew my fkn mind

[@DutchDixon94]

Excellent video. I love John Sykes. The Thunder and Lightning album he did with Lizzy was fucking incredible!

[@minnesotajack1]

I have a pseudonym Guy Gadbois with a similar photo. That is a very esoteric reference

[@williamdecastroferreira5617]

Crying in the rain 87 and its solo are a piece of art and appice in human being beside of great pyramid, monalisa

[@eslsupertips2243]

I was around 15 years old...back in 1992, already playing guitar for two years, when a friend from school showed me a video of Whitesnake's 1985 concert at the Rock in Rio, he had on a VHS tape. How lucky was I??? At such a young age, in Brazil, to get my eyes on such a powerful performance from John Sykes on that concert, literally changed my life. Thanks for sharing this and God bless John Sykes.

[@felicelococo9226]

John used a Mesa Boogie mark 3 Colosseum head. Awesome sound Tony Iommi used the mark 2b colosseums on mob rules and live evil. Those ate 2 of the best Boogie sounds ive heard.

[@jasonstallworth]

Dude, I love John Syke’s style! I also record 2 rhythm guitar tracks and then I hard pan each. This gives you more of a lively sound and makes everything sound bigger!

[@thoras1297]

What a great Video ! Thank you, i am also a huge John Sykes Fan ! Not only his studio guitarsound was huge. Also his Live sound. If you search for "Still of the Night 8/20/89 Japan" his Live sound blew me away :)

[@steverherb]

Great story! I had heard that Coverdale got pissed at John because it took so long to get his sound and track the guitars. In my experience, guitars are always the most difficult to capture in the studio (also drums can be very tough).

[@warrengauthier4699]

The guitar on the entire Thunder & Lightning album is SMOKING.

[@ModernMountainLiving]

After leaving Dangerous Toys I stayed in LA, no band, no money till the record dropped. I got a job with A&S Flight Cases an SIR company. I delivered the road cases for the first Blue Murder tour to where they were rehearsing in the valley. Since they were running thru the set I stuck around till they took a break. Being a wide vibrato, Black LES PAUL Custom player myself I was blown away. Not as a Fan but as a Player. I recognized the Firm's bassist Tony Franklin and remember how John Sykes gave him "the Look" when he played a bad note on his fretless. As for the band they were all very down to earth when we talked. Ego was not in the building but I knew my place and ranking of who was the better player and I drove the Box van back to my day job.

[@samfisherv30]

I saw Dangerous Toys at the Irvine amphitheater in '87, you were opening for the biggest act in hard rock. I'd say you were more of an equal if anything. You guys needed a singer. On a side note, Cinderella's singer actually surprised me that night, I thought he'd be all studio magic, but he sounded just as good live!

[@ModernMountainLiving]

Sam, always good to hear the stories through someone else's eyes. Funny is Jason was singing for my guitar techs cover band when they did "Shake Me" I asked him to join Toys cause Keifer's voice was the next best thing to an ACDC sound.@@samfisherv30

[@zandig666]

The 80s was my hay day !!! Thunder and lightning !!! the bars were absolutely rockn !!!!! Sykes rules !! Nice to hear he was using a dirty fingers, I'm using a 500t right now and feel pretty good about it !! 🤟🤟🤟🤟

[@WineSippingCowboy]

John Sykes belongs in Top 20 rock guitarists. 🎸 John is in monk mode now. Bob Rock started his band Payola$. Underrated outside of Canada. Late Bruce Fairbairn (RIP) had Bob as his caddy/engineer for Prism (another underrated 🇨🇦band) + Loverboy before going further. Bob, Bruce, Mike, David Foster, Jim Vallance, Bryan Adams know each other. The Golden Age of Lower Mainland music in the 1980s + 1990s. 🇨🇦 Bob Rock widened his producing with Cranberries (RIP Dolores) + Michael Buble. 🇨🇦

[@bophoenix9441]

(Very end of the signal chain) DUAL PITCH SHIFTER. RIGHT SIDE - panned hard right, +8cents, 4.1ms delay. LEFT SIDE - panned hard left, -8cents, 5.2ms delay. Mix in the DRY CENTER MONO signal to taste. BONUS DELAY(s) - 50% level, Panned hard right, 400ms 60% feedback. Another 50% level, panned hard left, 600ms 40% feedback Mad Deceit Arizona - bringing world-class sound to dive bars all across the planet lol

[@erictripton]

Yep, thats why I use Roland SDE 1000 and SDE 2500 Digital Delays that have modulation in a WET DRY rig. Kids today are clueless and can't get it with pedalboard delays. If you don't know how to set a delay at 20ms with the right setting with modulation, well.. you are missing out on one of the best rock guitar sounds that is timeless....no matter what guitar, or what amp. The wet dry Digital Delay modulated is the secret.

[@scothays4354]

Such an underrated guitarist.

[@anthonypeters44]

I saw blue murder at the bayfront center in st.petersburg fla.the album with jelly roll on it and they jammed and john sang some whitesnake songs that he co wrote

[@flashy5150]

I don’t agree that John’s Blue Murder stuff is better than his Whitesnake stuff, but I will totally agree that he is one of Rock n Roll’s best guitarists, he is my second favorite idol and mentor of Guitar. He was awesome in Thin Lizzy and playing his solo shows, when he played Thin Lizzy and sang Philip’s parts. The one song that separates John from all other guitar players, is his performance of “Still In Love With You” on his LIVE solo album. That guitar solo, is the best guitar solo that I have ever heard, and I hope John reads this. That solo had more emotion and feeling than anything I ever heard. John, you made love with that guitar. It was sexy, tight and romantic, the kind of solo that this song needed. God bless you John, I really wish that you and David Coverdale could have got along, his voice and your playing were awesome.

[@davidhill7234]

I love these stories 🤩😎

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Thank you David!

[@Upperair1]

Phenomenal stories and narration. I learned a lot. Thanks.

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

You are very welcome Bryan Evans, I appreciate!

[@DykyKryl]

Love that LP collection behind 😁

[@timothyvonvictory7105]

Man this is great info. Thankyou for sharing. I had no idea rock was involved with that white snake album. So cool.

[@47279J]

Top work. A big fan of Sykes with a very particular sound and there were some fantastic insights in here.

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Big thanks, much appreciated!

[@394pjo]

John always had the very best Hair of any guitarist of that time.

[@tangerinerose3724]

Johns a Leo, he's always had a great mane.

[@racerdeth]

This is a great insight, but the awe at double-tracking rhythm parts is a bit weird - that's super standard practice (and was prior to 87). Really nice info about the signal splitting and modulation though, thanks.

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Big thanks Nick, you are very welcome!

[@rogersommers1129]

Nice work both Kar and Shawn. All aspiring aspiring record-makers (younger folks especially...) as well as the generations who were fortunate enough to be around when this music/these records were being made need more great content like this. so please keep it coming. However, there may be a few pieces missing. No one will have the equivalent of the 'Rosetta Stone' from those sessions to know exactly what every aspect of the guitar to amp(s) and mics to mic pres, to EQ's to desk summing, to tape and where the room mics were placed (Bob Rock is all about room mics...) but I have a hunch there's more to it, and for those who are into knowing the intimate details of 'record-maker nerd stuff' like this (yes, I was, and still am afflicted - spent 30 + years working in studios in L.A.) , well... maybe I can offer a bit more insight, or at least some interesting clues. If it was possible to get Bob Rock, Mike Fraser AND Ron Vermeulen (a.k.a. Ron Obvious) together in the same Zoom call, it might be possible to verify and augment, or modify the critical details to satisfy the obsessive 'tone-chasers" out there. You'd need Ron Obvious (as he preferred to be called) as he was the chief tech/mad-scientist, genius studio tech (super talented musician as well) at Little Mountain in those years and later was involved with The Armory (Bruce Fairbairn's studio) The Warehouse (Bryan Adam's place) and put Bob Rock's Maui place partially together. That "split" that you referred to would no way have been a passive split with a 'Y -cable', 'mult' or primitive A/B A+B box from the period, the lack of electrical isolation between the front end of the amps would have destroyed the tone. So the split would almost certainly have been helped out by some custom circuitry (on a breadboard maybe) using very high-quality audio transformers. Bob Rock would have been experimenting with this style of early/primitive active guitar splitting, as that's the kind of thinker he always has been, and would have been on Ron Obvious to build, and continue improving/refining something along these lines. Another innovative Canadian studio tech guy, Kirk Elliot, who was the Ron Obvious equivalent at Phase One in Toronto, built a handful of amazing 1 in x 6 out units called a GBX-95 boxes that did exactly this a few years later. Kirk had been working on his circuitry for quite a few years, so it's also possible that there was some "East coast input", who knows. I got one of these GBX-95 units through Garth Richardson in '93 or maybe early '94 and it never let me down, it was wonderful. When we were fortunate enough to have Bob Rock as a client at Royaltone (I was chief Engineer from '94 until we sold to Linda Perry in 2005) I knew he used the same device, loaned him mine on occasion and discussed with him the fact he had been actively splitting guitar signals to multiple amps in this manner starting back in the 80's. These days, a box like that is common, Radial Engineering does a good one, Jonathan Little (Little Labs ) makes a great one, plenty of others out there, but in 1987 this was on the cutting edge. I would essentially willing to guarantee that something along these lines was involved. And that would have had an effect on the tone, most likely a favorable effect (audio transformers usually make things sound better). And... that there was more to the recording signal chain. But that's a more in-depth discussion. And as alluded to above, I was always a huge fan/student/admirer of Bob Rock's work and know him to be a staunch proponent of room mics on just about everything. I would be shocked to learn that no room mics were recorded. Keith Olsen would have used them at mix (GNLA had very sparse outboard processing 2 SPX-90's an EMT 140 an Echoplate III and that was about it). Did I work on the '87 record , no. But I was staff at Record Plant starting right about that time and began working in my spare time for Keith Olsen, whom I'd met during the ill-fated , inferior "Slip of The Tongue" follow -up (no John Sykes on SOTT, so already we have glaring shortcomings...) in both a technical and engineering capacity, so I know a great deal about his contributions as not only the person who mixed the record, but also someone who produced many, many overdubs throughout, including a zillion more guitar tracks. Indeed the photo of Sykes with the “San Dimas era Charvel” (7:34 to 7:52) shows him at the rear of the control room of Goodnight L.A., in front of one of the Studer A-80 ½” 2 -track machines, sitting in a chair I sat in many times. (That Studer 2-track was a finicky beast and needed constant attention, and probably had its shining moment doing the gorgeous analog tape flange on the Joe Walsh song, "The Confessor"... worth a listen). I have had direct experience with most everyone on the production/engineering/studio side mentioned in the video, and was fortunate enough to learn something, and in many cases a great deal about how all of them work. So if you tone-chasers and fans of record making craft want more info, then let me know in the comments and I will try and put more together, but it will be an even longer, more verbose post than this, one and everything is 'TL:DR" these days. But before I stop typing, If I have potentially offend anyone by seeming to contradict them solely for the purpose of being a self-aggrandizing jerk, please accept apologies and allow me to express the following: “TONE COMES FROM THE HANDS”. John Sykes’ work sounds the way it does and has the uniqueness of style and tone not because of the gear but because of HIM. Sure, the amps and the boxes and the speakers and the custom splitters, the room and the desk, and the mics and the discrete class-A Neve 1081’s and all of the other stuff in the various signal chains, the amazing staff at Little Mountain and Bob Rock’s amazing skills all contribute… But, at the end of the day, even if those of us who have been playing guitar since we were kids (yep, I have “that disease” too…) could have been handed that exact guitar, driving that exact rig and signal chain on that exact day, and even if John Sykes had given us a full day’s coaching on exactly how he plays those parts, none of us could have sounded like John Sykes playing those parts if our lives depended on it. Hope this stream of consciousness from my misspent youth (and adulthood) is helpful or at least somewhat entertaining. Cheers...

[@moonwork4378]

Loved Thin Lizzy line up when John was in Thin Lizzy before Phil passed away. Brian Downey great drummer. Still big Blue Murder fan as well, both albums. I used to listen to Still of the Night as loud as I could. Still have the album on vinyl and the cassette tape for the car. Then, CDs! Love Animal Drive’s version of WS’s “Judgement Day” from 89. Talk about some tasty bass and drums. Yum, yum. ✌️💀✊🏼🎸🎶🎶🥁🎸🎶🎶🙏

[@RotterStudios]

GREAT VIDEO! GREAT INFO! John Sykes was the first to inspire me to play.

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Big thanks, much appreciated!

[@marioarodrigues3281]

John Sykes is amazing. Love Whitesnake

[@ManosHalividis]

'The tone was heavy but clear' Words of wisdom!! Awesome video, Awesome info!! Keep it up man!! (oh, I want that LP Custom! haha...)

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Big thanks Manos, I appreciate! Rock on

[@dbsimmz4116]

Thank you Kar/Shawn for producing this accurate & entertaining piece of work. Congratz, there's so much on the interwebz that not only iz far from accurate but more then anything iz ego driven garbage with zero factual basis. Kinda lame to be thanking u for doing what should be a given 'proper research' but I feel it was important. Hope to enjoy more productionz from your camp in the future. Cheerz -Dannyboy: John'z personal/in-studio tech during the making of BM'z Nothin' But Trouble 91'-94'

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Thank you very much DB Simmz, I appreciate!!!

[@nightly522]

Kick ass guitarist! Thank you for posting

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

You are very welcome, thank you!

[@milanovicr]

Greatest riff from '70s - Smoke on the water by Ritchie Blackmore. Greatest riff from 80's - Still of the night but from Coverdale's interview it also comes from old Blackmore's tapes while they worked together in Deep Purple. So... Blackmore is a riff God!

[@matthewpaluch777]

I was lucky enuff to see John w/both Whitesnake & Blue Murder. The BM gig was phenomenal! It's ashame he walked away from the project w/Mike Portnoy!

[@nitrobiz]

Blue Murder was freaking amazing!!

[@ericmcgivern4429]

Sykesy is a Phenomenal Guitarist!!!!!

[@LongDrivesAtNight5150]

Bob Rock/Bruce Fairburn were working in the next studio with Canadian band Honeymoon Suite...on the album The Big Prize. A great sounding 80s album with plenty of songs that I still enjoy today. Bob has a magical touch.

[@joemartucci4786]

Love Honeymoon Suite. I’ve opened for them twice in Buffalo. Great guys Derry Grehan is also a great guitarist with killer tone. I heard John Sykes was actually supposed to be the guitarist in winery dogs.

[@bang4urbux888]

Bruce Fairbairn and Bob Rock were recording Slippery with Bon Jovi at the time Whitesnake were recording 87 album. Both were recorded at Little Mountain Studios. Honeymoon Suite's 88 release Racing after Midnight was recorded at One on one studio's at North Hollywood....cool story bro 👉👌

[@bang4urbux888]

@@joemartucci4786 John was supposed to work with guys from winery, however he works at an extremely slow pace which wasn't conducive for the other guys. Explains why John has retired from music and is living comfortably from royalty cheques..good on him 🤔

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

That riff based on E chord, you play like the Whole Lotta Love riff, pretty close

[@Jmdeclue]

Pretty much every song on that album is in GM/Em. That is my most comfortable key to play in and it is most likely because I was obsessed with learning all of those songs when the album came out.

[@mikeys7536]

Great stories about the inner workings of these iconic albums. It’s awesome seeing someone with my last name who has met so many guitar greats from the 70’s and 80’s. Keep rocking Shawn! 🤘

[@shaunbritton939]

Sound-tone is very important for music

[@jamesmccormick875]

John is one of my idols. Him, Randy, Zakk, Slash and Jake E were My top 5. The first song I learned on guitar was In the Still of the Night way back when I was 11 in 1987. I was lucky enough to be a very quick learner and made sure the first popular band I played in covered a John Sykes White Snake song when we did covers.

[@fixpedalboards1969]

Learn something new everyday! Cool video! I had no idea Bob rock had anything to do with that album… I honestly thought it was all Mike Stone and Keith Olson. Totally cool!

[@humanactivated1017]

Wow I didn’t recall seeing Bob Rock on the whitesnake 87 album . And at time I was doing my sound engineering degree at Cap College in Vancouver . While Steve Vai Vivian Campbell Vandenberg are great guitarists Sykes was the guy who had the metal magic at that time . I was in a whitesnake tribute band for a while and man after I learned songs like Bad Boys ( fast accurate ryrhym ) crying in the rain ( solo was a beast to learn ) and still of the night ( beginning run of that solo was a bitch to pick out by ear .. there was no tab ) my Playing went to the next level . Little Mountain produced some jf the greatest guitar sounds including Brian Too Loud Macloud ( Headpins ) .

[@nicklebac6753]

Bob rock also produced John Sykes next album for blue murder in 1989

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Yes we said that in the end of the video

[@nicklebac6753]

@@karsguitarchannel6088 my apologies 🙏🏽

[@heavi-armed-infadel]

Blue Murder 'trouble' album is absolutely badass,

[@jodylowe8476]

Coverdale couldnt handle the competition of having a guy that looks like john sykes, plays great and sings.

[@wendygould4476]

I thoroughly enjoyed your observations and innate musicians knowledge to flesh out the technical characteristics of capturing Johns unique playing. I love your videos. Engrossed and entertained throughout. Your assessment of John as a phenomenal guitarist is spot on 💛😊

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Thank you so much Wendy for all your kind words and support, I appreciate it very much! Have an awesome rocking day!

[@wendygould4476]

@@karsguitarchannel6088 wishing you a hot Rocking day 💛😊

[@farrahfawcettmajors896]

See the hidden people behind the scenes makes a big difference...one of the reasons missing out on skid row audition really hurt....I know they had the hook up as it's called... thanks

[@pickholder6189]

John Sykes gets a bad rap - I always found him to be a lovely bloke. Over in the UK I did some work with him and also sold him a Hofner guitar. Really miss that he is not gigging.

[@joepipe1010]

Very great album The guitar sound is a killer

[@sanjugholley]

Solo from "Is this love" by Whitesnake is still a legacy....

[@paulgeary531]

Thanks for sharing your story. Very cool man!

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Many thanks Paul!

[@docgonzales]

It is fascinating listening to the cassette tape of Still of the Night coming together as a song. John Sykes went from a a bare bones blues shuffle with Coverdale shouting nonsense to the riff forming within 2 minutes.

[@Zebula77]

Great video. Always loved that '87 sound. Have to admit I was convinced he used a pedal for the leads, though. It's soooo saturated and heavily gained.

[@karsguitarchannel6088]

Well, I'm sure Sykes didn't use any distorion pedal because his tone does sound heavy but clear on Whitesnake 87. And when it sounds saturated and heavily gained, it's his modded Marshall

[@Zebula77]

@@karsguitarchannel6088 Sure is a great sounding Marshall. ;)