I had the immense privilege of Shawn playing this for me in his Grandmother's living room (where it was recorded) before it was released. I was doing some gigs with Bobby Rock and Carl Carter and we caught up with Shawn when we went through Memphis. I've never met a more wonderful, kind and humble genius in my life. He jammed with us that night and it was absolutely mind blowing. Man, I wish he was still here.
Brett, you and Shawn lane are in the top 10 best players worldwide IMO, amazing the both of you, I have been listening to this album for ages everyday when I walk my dog, it blows me away everytime, Centrifugal Funk is also a masterpiece I listen to when I need a boost to get me playing guitar again 🙏
Wasn't in Memphis but drove out to the Kansas City Gig for the same tour with Franenstien...my god we are all so old, lol. What an amazing show and players @@ScottSudbury
@brettgarsed you are also one of the most talented and most humble guitar players out there that I've met. Centrifugal Funk is a masterpiece and you, Shawn and Frank's solos on that song are serious just legendary 😀
Shawn thabk you for everything you gave us. Pure sonic beauty. Did you know that he produced that album mainly by hinself? Learning the software and programming and mixing and all the stuff basically overnight? Shawn is up there amongst the great creative geniuses of human history. No matter how many people know your name shawn....i make sure my kids and hopefully grand kids carry you name into the future!
I knew Shawn all of my life in Memphis and a quick story about this album. Warner Bros offered to sign him and ''make him a rock star'' He refused and said he wants to do a solo record without interference and they finally agreed and gave him 400,000 and Shawn played guitar, keyboard, drum programming (except tracks 13, 14), bass (except tracks 13, 14), arrangement, engineering, mixing, production. He was such a sweet soul to. A good example of Shawn was when he was at my house and I introduced him to my dad saying Shawn is a guitar player and my dad said ''So are you any good?'' well I could have died and gone through the floor but Shawn being the sweet guy he was he smiled and replied ''I think so'' THINK SO??? 😂 One of the best on the planet. The first time I ever heard of Shawn I was in their sound man's house and he played a song called ''Thunder Thighs'' and he said the guitar was fretless from the 12th fret back,Shawn was only 12 years old . He started Touring with Black Oak at 15
This album perfectly exemplifies why Shawn Lane is a master musician above all else. All of these are wonderful compositions and they're never an excuse for him to show off his technical abilities on the guitar. When I was younger, I would be impressed by technical wizardry, but as I've gotten older.. all I care about now is quality music and compositions.
It's one of the best of all time! So diverse but stylistically, all him. Haven't listened to it from start to finish in a while and today's the day lol
My friend! This is THE ALBUM of Shawn Lane, i'm glad to hear you find it. I still remember the day i heard this wonderfull ambum 4 the first time. Powerful and beautifull
Shawn was a hometown hero who I had the honor to see playing here quite a few times. He is buried at Memorial Park on Poplar just off of I-40 if you are passing thru Memphis.
ihad never heard of him, and he was playing in my town, i met him outside the venue and told him i was broke and he put me on the guest list. i hung out with him and the band afterwards, and i asked to play his guitar. he was apparently impressed with my playing, all of his bandmates asked me for my phone number. he was super, super nice and humble. it's sad he's gone, and so young
I was guitarist in a cover band with bassist Andy Tannis in 1984 and in walks this friend of his from the Black Oak days who I had no clue who he was, he asked to sit in and you can imagine how it felt to resume my position after the sonic onslaught I had endured! Simply the most humbling experience of my performing life! Such a humble sweet soul with lightning in his hands! My favorite ass kicking received, in my life! I was served piping hot humble pie! Yum!!!
from a humble guy, too. i met shaun in the 80s at a club in central coast california. i was broke, in between paychecks, and saw him standing outside the small venue, and let him know my situation, so he put me on the guest list! I HAD NEVER HEARD OF HIM. Then i saw him do the soundcheck, FOR EVERY INSTRUMENT OF THE OTHER PLAYERS, and he was amazing on all the instruments, and how handy for the other players who went out into the audience area to gauge their sound. afterwards, i hung out with them, and asked if i could play shawn's guitar, while i was playing, he turned to his bandmates and gave them this 'get a load of THIS guy', afterwards, they all clambered for my phone number, saying that i must be good, if shawn gave me that look. i was really into allan holdsworth at the time, and had translated most of allan's solos, but i don't do jazz or fusion anymore, ironically, i'm into pop and EDM, haha
I met him a few times at some gigs when he was playing with Jonas Hellborg, Jeff Sipe and Kofi Baker. Super nice, down to earth guy. And yes, you almost needed to see him live to believe what you were hearing.
Thx a lot, lost the cd, not available on Play Music, SL was huge, RIP, such a loss, sure he had awesome technique, but I I listen to him the same way I listen to Allan Holdsworth or Eric Johnson, for their music So happy to hear the 3rd track again, so uplifting!
Im here because of Buckethead. I consider Bucket to be one of the greatest guitarists if not the greatest but Buckethead himself that Shawn was hands down the greatest of all time. So sad Shawn and Bucket didnt have a chance to make an album together like they wished before God took him home.
Titanic. Shawn Lane was on another planet. I had the beautiful opportunity to see him at a local nightclub in California. My buddy and I were standing ten feet away from him. It was unbelievable and a cherished memory.
Shawn's music wafts through the mystical space-time continuum effortlessly...unbounded. It has always filled me with joy. Now it also makes me sad because I'm reminded of someone who is no longer in my life.
I have wanted to buy this album for so long but can't. I asked Shawn's mum Diane because I know his family were handling merchandise. Still, no success. Thanks for the upload.
I did the same thing...I wanted "powers of ten" on CD but it wasn't available ..It was crazy that some people were asking ridiculous prices..Thank god we can now openly share his masterpiece
I paid alot of money for my cd copy it cost me £80 still never been reissued and not on any streaming outlets superb album.I have seen copies of the cd go for crazy amounts.
I think any shred guitarist can take a lot from a performer like Shawn. I have heard plenty of talent over the years that can melt your face off, but without direction and feeling the shredding can become overwhelming and will tend to lose its grasp on the listener. That is why artists like Shawn, Buckethead, and Steve Vai really resonate with me. You can tell their music is coming from their soul and it seems to tell us a story in sound. Shawn's spirit lives on. Thanks a lot for uploading this masterpiece.
i used to watch this man play in Memphis from 15 feet away. to see him live is an experience that very literally CANNOT be communicated. and on top of all that....he was super nice, humble, loving human being. RIP Shawn.
He was a big fan of Eric Johnson. Lots of his 5s playing were taken from Eric's playing, but he took it to the next level, doing it descending and ascending sequences.
Dont really see this constant need to compare between two artists: both are amazing and very unique and different players in their own right. I enjoy not only listening but have also learned plenty from both, and consider them both geniuses in their own very unique and original ways, Anytime people go ahead and compare guitarists "skills" i feel like like they are comparing between dick sizes, unless YOUR sleeping with them who cares....
This is my honest opinion if this Powers of Ten etc… I’ve been on guitar for nearly 35 years … This Album is Great ..However does not give the guitar world what he is truely capable of at all…..Shawn’s true talent is playing live.. Shawn while a great composer and pianist etc… He is the greatest guitar player to have ever lived..still to this day years and years later players still catch catch up..his live playing is from Gods chair..!
I been playing for 35+ years, 30 professionally. I generally don't like ranking musicians.. but Shawn is the exception. He's was, is and always will be without a doubt, THE greatest guitar player of all time.
This album is mind blowing. As a fellow composer I was immediately stuck by the eccentric harmonic changes as they move around in and out of keys shaping new ideas endlessly surprising the listener. Shawn's compositions catch you out because the ideas are so rich and dynamic. Dynamic ideas just flow and morph dancing shaping into unpredictable brilliance. Such a masterful sound scape artist. Never anything like it. Bravo I just loved this hidden masterpiece.
Rules of the Game makes me literally tear up every time..... That melody pulls at all your heart strings, its a beautiful melancholic sound that only Shawn lane knew how to create.
This is actually the 1992 version with the 93 GYB and WSB. The real 93 version has a totally different running order and different version of Esperanto.
Whoever the 11 thumbs down people are, I suspect when they grow up they’ll eventually get it. Shawn Lane is /was the Coltrane, Parker, Byrd of the guitar. Pure musical passion.
Same here. I'm a lead guitarist going on 45 years playing now and I see Shawn Lane as the absolute Gold Standard by which all other virtuoso guitarists are judged.
I can't believe that some people speak almost exclusively about SL's guitar playing (which is stupendous!!). Listen between the piano lines. There's so much more to hear. To those who hear/feel the whole package, what an experience, eh?
It's like a Christopher Cross ( I know he plays guitar too ) kinda tone, I'm talking about the overall sound you hear on Chris first album, that Michael Omartian production. Shawn's guitar sound is smooth has rich tone and is very ear pleasent. His playin' is soft, emotional or ferocious and fast as light when it needs to be. To the best of my knowledge nobody ever achieved this status. I go to tears everytime I hear Get you back. I sadly miss him. Greetings from Portugal.
@@chriskrausesmovie you should check the Gjika 10n amp. Robert Gjika is currently making them again in a more manageable format (a regular head instead of the rack mounted stereo monster that Shawn Lane had).
Wonderful, Thanks so much for sharing this .. lost my CD years ago.. His work was worthy of Grammy Award...his writing was as good and sensitive as his chops..
For those who don't know - Shawn Lane played the drums on this album with his fingers on a keyboard. "The drums I played rather in the manner of Future Man with Bela Fleck. I’d seen them play a lot and instead of playing on the Synthaxe, I did it on the drums, on the keyboards. So I played the drums with my fingers, on the keyboard keys."
The flamming snares at 28:36 are just too sick over that hauntingly beautiful progression. Would love to hear this played by an orchestra, so whimsical yet melancholy.
Holy God! Daniel, thanks for saving and sharing this. What an artist Shawn was... I am amazed, particularly the piano piece -- orchestrated! God bless! This is some incredible music.
Heard about him for ages. This is my 1st time hearing him. Wow. It is all so uplifting ! Most of his material reminds me of the stuff Steve Morse usually writes. Although Morse is a fine Guitar player, his velocities ,for the most part cannot reach Lane's technical prowess. Otherwise, they sound similar to me.
The. Best. I used to go watch him play at Murphy's on Madison in Memphis. With DDT. I'd sit there til i couldnt stay awake any longer and i had to work the next day.
As a guitarist and musician, Shawn knew absolutely no boundaries! If any of us had a fraction of 1% of his talent, then maybe we'd be able to say something substantial as musicians! He truly was on another level above and beyond us mere mortals! God rest his soul.
A lot of comparison between him and Jason Becker, Guthrie Govan, Steve Vai, but in my opinion, and i've just heard this today for the first time, but he integration between different styles, blows them all away! I'm floored by his compositions ... almost reminds me of the Return to Forever super-group (Al Dimeola, Chick Corea, Stanley Clark, Lenny White), but with some modern shred!! Sad to see he left this earth too early....
Such a great talent and master of melody and tone. Couldn't agree more about his diversity beyond the others mentioned. I make a closer comparison to Eric Johnson in that regard. But, make no mistake, Shawn was his own unique player and composer.
This album is one of the best for me. The melody is wonderful, and the range is wide and interesting. 30years ago first time I had heard, I had shocked....Im japanese and sorry my English skill is no so good.thx.
42:28 totally inspired buckethead, you can hear so much inspiration from shawn in his early work, that is a perfect example. Check out cobra strike 13th scroll and you'll see what im talking about. Absolutely insane.
@@Johnnysmithy24 I think it's just Buckethead is not well known or loved as great as he is technically. You will never see him mentioned by people as one of their fav or one of the goats. Perhaps if he hadn't stick a KFC bucket on his head he would have been more popular. It just seems like a novelty and makes no lasting impression when missing the human element
@@joshmuz9018 Um you could say the same thing about Shawn, in fact he is way less known than Buckethead. And I do often see him mentioned as one of their favs and one of their goats by people in the guitar community, so that’s wrong. He has very dedicated fanbase that praises him highly. I don’t why that’s relevant tho
I was just watching an interview with Shawn when he played with Andy Timmons and he really liked this remastered 1993 version due to the fact that his Adat masters were not copied, and copied generations out to keep its mid / instrument quality & while i do love this version i had the 1992 version and i really like the sound on the 1992 version too. To me i hear Shawn's ambience he created with the micro second delay between amps better in the 1992 version, but i am a guitar head so what do i know lol - This version really does hold a different quality & i can hear what Shawn was speaking to now. It took headphones, & his interview though :D
He leaves everybody else behind. This is no longer a “guitar instrumental”. We all know how those go, they go low they go high they go fast they go slow. This is real music, it hooks you in the heart thru Melody, real Melody. I find these songs to be deeply emotional. His struggles with his health and his talent and the horribleness of the music business all come through for me. Bless you man, you are out there, shining bright.
He lived next door to Eric Johnson. Then he moved and Steve Morse was his neighbor. He was also ubducted by fast playing aliens who taught him everything they know. Very rare musician indeed.
What an amazing, underrated talent. Possibly the best guitarist of all time in terms of fluency and technique. It is so sad to not be able to buy his music from anywhere online. Thank you so much for posting!
Thanks Dan. One of my faves too. Love Westside Boogie! He was amazing and definitely on the spectrum as no ordinary human could play 82 notes per second.
Que este guitarrista es mejor que steve vai, o que es mejor Holdswort blablablabla... Escuchen el maldito disco, hemos sido testigos de un genio musical y sus hermosas composiciones. Cuál es la idea de comparaciones estériles... Cada músico tiene su propio mundo y estilo. Shawn, un maestro digno de admiración que para muchos de nosotros, fué uno de los guitarristas mas geniales que el mundo pudo tener. Un héroe de la música, un guitar hero 👏🏻🙏🏻
I heard a lot of music in my life and usually it is hard to get something really impressive that can catch your ear, even the new wave of super technical players. I heard Esperanto on YT in some clip, I was floored and then I thoguht it cannot get any better and I fired this up, I had goosebumps after first song, something I haven't felt about music in a long time. This is beyond anything.
Such an amazing and beautiful sense of melody in these songs; rarely are songs so uplifting. And that's all aside from the unbelievable technical prowess. Shawn was a rare gift to the world.
Forever coming back to this album. Was just enjoying the new Plini album and some of his licks just made me want to listen to Powers of Ten. Vinyls, cds, Spotify. This album needs to be somewhere else. One of the greatest instrumental albums to this day. To this day! In that deontay wilder voice.
@@BenCaffrey What's your problem you spaff slurper, check out his catalogue before coming out with comments like that. Epilogue for Lisa for example, his tone,phrasing and control are off the charts man,you fuckin helmet
I wrote it as tribute to Shawn, who is a big inspiration for me , hope you like it Fingertips that were once sore, Is the creator of the best melody I have heard All the pain you had inside, Written meticulously on the fretboard How many ways a story can be told! Breathing , even that must have hurt for you What your brilliant mind had in store, Was far beyond anyone on this earth could grasp You laid out some in the form of music, For us to discover and absorb The joints in your body gave you immense pain And your music eases the pain in mine. You went through all of it, And now thousands of us , who are filled with pain Can forget about it for a while and enjoy what you have given us. Not many songs of you around, To forget the pain for the rest of the life You gave us the chance to feel ours And create something remotely similar You are an inspiration Shawn To go through what you did, Our body would give up way sooner Thank you for having lived in the same world we do Through your music you made yourself immortal I hope you knew this, you must have..
I love Shawn. However, I must say that this album is quite mediocre. Most of Shawn’s best playing was never captured on record, I believe. Very unfortunate.
Brilliant melodic album. Shawn Lane could shred like the best but he has musicality and melody. Lots of speed shredders don't have that. Plus he was just an amazing musician not just a guitarist
I stumbled on to this man’s music this morning… I’ve been sat with my jaw on the ground through everything I’ve heard. You can tell that every single note comes from a place of love, I’ve never heard such hopeful music! This man was a master
