''Road Games'' is an EP (or, according to its vinyl sleeve, a "specially-priced 6-cut mini album") by guitarist

Allan Holdsworth Allan Holdsworth (6 August 1946 – 15 April 2017) was a British jazz fusion and progressive rock guitarist and composer. Holdsworth was known for his esoteric and idiosyncratic usage of advanced music theory concepts, especially with respe ...

, released in 1983 through Warner Bros. Records originally on vinyl only; a CD edition was reissued through Gnarly Geezer Records in 2001.Patterson, John W
"Road Games - Allan Holdsworth"
'' AllMusic''. RhythmOne. Retrieved 14 April 2020. Holdsworth is joined on the album by former Cream vocalist Jack Bruce (who sings “Was There?” and “Material Real”), his former Bruford bandmate, bassist Jeff Berlin, and then current

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by wikt:nonconformity, nonconformity, Free improvisation, free-form improvisation, sound experimen ...

drummer Chad Wackerman. Former Juicy Lucy and Tempest frontman

Paul Williams Paul Williams may refer to: Authors * Paul O. Williams (1935–2009), American science-fiction author and poet * Paul L. Williams (author) (born 1944), FBI consultant, journalist * Paul Williams (journalist) (1948–2013), American founder of mu ...

sings the title track. Holdsworth claimed to have received no royalties from either release, naming it as one of his least favourite recordings due to numerous creative differences with executive producer Ted Templeman. ''Road Games'' nonetheless received a nomination for

Best Rock Instrumental Performance The Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance was an honor presented to recording artists for quality instrumental rock performances at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Award ...

at the

1984 Grammy Awards The 26th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 28, 1984, at Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles, and were broadcast live on American television. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1983. Michael Jackson, who had been recove ...

."Bio & History"
therealallanholdsworth.com. Archived fro

on 16 February 2012. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
Rock on the Net. Retrieved 14 April 2020.

Critical reception

John W. Patterson at AllMusic awarded ''Road Games'' four stars out of five, describing it as "fusion-rock bliss" and Holdsworth's guitar work as "amazing". He also praised Chad Wackerman's "tastefully poised" drumming and Jeff Berlin's "killer" bass work.

Track listing

Personnel

– guitar, production *

– vocals (track 2) * Jack Bruce – vocals (tracks 5, 6) * Chad Wackerman –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

* Jeff Berlin –

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

*Joe Turano – backing vocals * Paul Korda – backing vocals Technical *Jeremy Smith – engineering *Jeff Silver – engineering *Gary Skardina – engineering *Robert Feist – engineering, mixing * Mark Linett – mixing *John Matousek – mastering *Joan Parker – production coordination * Ted Templeman – executive production *Tom Voli – executive production (reissue) * Eddie Jobson – executive production (reissue)

Awards

References

External links

Road Games
at therealallanholdsworth.com (archived)
Allan Holdsworth "Road Games"
at Guitar Nine {{Authority control Allan Holdsworth albums 1983 EPs Warner Records EPs Albums produced by Ted Templeman Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance