The next day we all met up at Mick’s house. This was going to be the best show a guitarist could ask for. Yngwie Malmsteen’s Rising Force at the San Jose Civic. Even the opening act was gonna be killer. That would be Billy Sheehan and his band Talas. Billy Sheehan’s style reminded me of what it would sound like if Eddie Van Halen played bass. He played super fast leads on bass and even did a lot of 2 handed fretboard stuff that Eddie was known for. It was cool and different to see someone approach the bass like that.

Yngwie did most of the songs from his first album. There were a couple songs I hadn’t heard before including one called “I Am A Viking”. He liked to do this trick where he would swing his guitar over his left shoulder. Then it would swing right back up around under his right arm in time for him to play the next chord. He must have practiced it a lot because he would do it during songs and would never lose his place. One highlight of the show was when Yngwie and Billy Sheehan jammed together. That was the ultimate.

This has been an excerpt from the book:
In Search Of The Perfect Buzz: An 80s Metal Memoir
Please see the following links to read more.










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