Savatage () was an American heavy metal band founded by brothers

Jon Jon is a shortened form of the common given name Jonathan, derived from "YHWH has given", and an alternate spelling of John, derived from "YHWH has pardoned".Criss Oliva in 1979 in Tarpon Springs, Florida. The band was first called Avatar, but, shortly before the release of their debut album '' Sirens'' (1983), they changed their name to Savatage, as Avatar was already taken by another band. Savatage is considered a significant member of the American heavy metal movement of the early-to-mid-1980s and has been cited as a key influence on many genres, such as

power metal Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional heavy metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. Generally, power metal is characterized by a faster, lighter, and more uplifting sound, in contra ...

progressive metal Progressive metal (sometimes shortened to prog metal) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified guitar-driven sound of the former with the more experimental, cerebral ...

speed metal Speed metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that originated in the late 1970s from new wave of British heavy metal (NWOBHM) roots.K. Kahn-Harris, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'' (Berg Publishers, 2007), , p. 31. ...

thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...

death metal Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, fe ...

and

symphonic metal Symphonic metal is a cross-generic style designation for the symphonic subsets of heavy metal music subgenres. It is used to denote any metal band that makes use of symphonic or orchestral elements. The style features the heavy drums and guita ...

. Savatage has released eleven studio albums, two live albums, four compilations and three EPs. The band first reached substantial commercial success with its third studio album ''

Fight for the Rock ''Fight for the Rock'' is the third full-length album by the American heavy metal band Savatage. It is their first album with new bass player Johnny Lee Middleton. Released in 1986, it is largely regarded as the band's worst release by both fan ...

'' (1986), which peaked at number 158 on the ''Billboard'' 200. Its next four albums—'' Hall of the Mountain King'' (1987), '' Gutter Ballet'' (1989), '' Streets: A Rock Opera'' (1991) and '' Edge of Thorns'' (1993)—were also successful but more critically acclaimed than ''Fight for the Rock''. On October 17, 1993, six months after the release of ''Edge of Thorns'', guitarist Criss Oliva was killed in a car accident. Following his death, Jon (along with producer Paul O'Neill) decided to continue Savatage in memory of his brother. The band released four more studio albums, and went through several line-up changes before going on an extended hiatus in 2002. During the years—partly even before the hiatus—members founded various new bands such as Jon Oliva's Pain,

Trans-Siberian Orchestra Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) is an American rock band founded in 1996 by producer, composer, and lyricist Paul O'Neill, who brought together Jon Oliva and Al Pitrelli (both members of Savatage) and keyboardist and co-producer Robert Kinkel ...

, Circle II Circle and

Doctor Butcher Doctor Butcher was a side project involving Jon Oliva and Chris Caffery of Savatage which released one major self-titled studio album in 1994. The original album title, ''A Living Hell'', was changed at the last minute. The project was born whe ...

. On August 2, 2014, Savatage announced that they were reuniting for the 2015

Wacken Open Air Wacken Open Air (, abbreviated as W:O:A) is a rock music festival, held annually since 1990 on the first weekend of August in the village of Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Almost all styles and subgenres of hard rock and metal are ...

; despite having discussed the possibility of more shows and new music, the band went on hiatus once again. Although Savatage technically remains inactive, half of the members of the band claimed in interviews during throughout 2020 and 2021 that they have been working on new material for a possible follow-up to ''

Poets and Madmen ''Poets and Madmen'' is the eleventh studio album by American heavy metal band Savatage, released in 2001. It was their last album before their 12-year hiatus, which lasted from 2002 to 2014. The album has a loose concept inspired by the career ...

'' (2001).

History

Early days (1979–1986)

Criss Oliva and his brother

Jon Jon is a shortened form of the common given name Jonathan, derived from "YHWH has given", and an alternate spelling of John, derived from "YHWH has pardoned". from the ashes of their former bands Tower and Alien respectively. In 1980, the duo met up with

Steve "Doc" Wacholz Steve Wacholz (born November 5, 1962) is an American heavy metal drummer. He is best known as the drummer of Savatage from 1977, 1979–1994. His hard-hitting playing style earned him the nickname "Doctor Hardware Killdrums" (simply "Doc") by h ...

and practiced in a small shack behind the Oliva home that was dubbed "The Pit" by the band. Wacholz originally tried out to be part of Jon's band, Alien, but when the first Savatage line-up was taking shape, Jon, who was originally on drum duties, was relieved of them by Wacholz. They also gave Steve a nickname that would follow him throughout his career: "Doctor Hardware Killdrums", often shortened to just "Doc" or "Doc Killdrums", which referred to Steve's hard playing style. Criss, Jon and Steve played

Tampa Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough C ...

(where they had moved with their family in the late 1970s) and Clearwater area clubs for many years. In 1981, Keith Collins joined them to relieve Jon of bass guitar duties. In late 2006, footage was released onto the internet of an early performance by Avatar at a gig in a Clearwater, Florida parking lot and was prominent in featuring an early version of the song "Holocaust", which would later be released on Savatage's first album and a cover of

Van Halen Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead gu ...

's "Eruption" and VH's version of "You Really Got Me". In 1982, Avatar took part in some heavy metal compilations, most notably "The YNF Pirate Tape", a promotion by Tampa rock radio station 95ynf for local Florida bands. Shortly after its release, "Avatar" was forced to change its name due to copyright issues. Combining the words "Savage" and "Avatar", the band decided on Savatage. Their first album, '' Sirens'' and the following EP '' The Dungeons Are Calling'', were released on Par Records, an independent label. In 1984, they signed a contract with

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most im ...

and released their second full-length album ''

Power of the Night ''Power of the Night'' is the second studio album by the American heavy metal band Savatage and was released in 1985. This record was produced by Max Norman, who later went on to produce Megadeth's 1992 hit album ''Countdown to Extinction'' ...

'' in May of the following year. ''Power of the Night'', which was produced by Max Norman, who would go on to produce

Megadeth Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal along wit ...

's 1992 album ''

Countdown to Extinction ''Countdown to Extinction'' is the fifth studio album by American thrash metal band Megadeth, released on July 14, 1992, through Capitol Records. It was the group's second studio release to feature the "classic" lineup of Dave Mustaine, Marty Fri ...

'', showcased the band's unorthodox approach to metal, which included Jon's liberal use of keyboards on songs like "Fountain of Youth" and Broadway-style song structures like the kind employed on "Warriors". It was well received by critics but fell short of sales expectations. Atlantic budgeted to provide funds to make a video for "Hard for Love", on the condition that it be retitled "Hot for Love" for broadcast purposes. The band refused to change the song and consequently a video was not released. In promotion of ''Power of the Night'', Savatage embarked on the Monsters of the Universe Tour with Rogue Male and Illusion, and also played with

Mötley Crüe Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1981. The group was founded by bassist Nikki Sixx, drummer Tommy Lee, lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil. Mötley Crüe has sold over 100 million albu ...

, Quiet Riot,

Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * E ...

Raven A raven is any of several larger-bodied bird species of the genus '' Corvus''. These species do not form a single taxonomic group within the genus. There is no consistent distinction between " crows" and "ravens", common names which are assigne ...

, Overkill and

Armored Saint Armored Saint is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1982. Since 1990, the band has consisted of John Bush on lead vocals, Joey Vera on bass, Jeff Duncan on rhythm guitar and the Sandoval brothers (Gonzo and Ph ...

. In 1986, after the release of their third album, ''

'', a failed attempt at a commercial approach imposed by the record company which the band themselves called ''Fight for the Nightmare'', Savatage toured with

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

KISS A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...

and

Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock band formed in London in 1975 by Lemmy (lead vocals, bass), Larry Wallis (guitar) and Lucas Fox (drums). Lemmy was also the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band are often considered a prec ...

. The band were not happy with the record, with pressure from the label to include two cover versions. Jon Oliva had been retained to write material for other artists on the Atlantic label, such as John Waite and other pop-rockers. Later, the label demanded Savatage record the material themselves. In a choice they would later regret, the band agreed. Not only did it destroy them in the press, it nearly destroyed the band and sent Jon into his early alcohol and drug problems. Jon recently admitted however the album did have strong points, including the band's cover of Badfinger's " Day After Day". During this time, original bassist Keith Collins left the band, and Johnny Lee Middleton joined the band. Since 1987, Johnny has been the only consistent member of Savatage, performing on every album (except '' Handful of Rain'').

Rise to popularity and death of Criss Oliva (1987–1993)

In 1987, Savatage released their first commercially successful album, '' Hall of the Mountain King'', which became the base for the band rising into a more mainstream arena. The band recorded their first music video for the album's title song, which received extensive air play on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

's ''

Headbangers Ball ''Headbangers Ball'' is a music television program that consisted of heavy metal music videos airing on MTV and its global affiliates. The show began on MTV on April 18, 1987, playing heavy metal music videos from both well-known and more ob ...

'' and was followed up by a video for the song "24 Hours Ago". A world tour in support of the album in 1987-1988 followed, playing with a variety of bands like Dio,

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harr ...

, Testament,

Sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a sa ...

, Pandemonium, Nuclear Assault,

Heathen __NOTOC__ Heathen or Heathens may refer to: Religion *Heathen, another name for a pagan *Heathen, an adherent of Heathenry Music *Band of Heathens, a North American rock and roll band *Heathen (band), a North American thrash metal band * The He ...

, Forbidden, and Helstar. ''Hall of the Mountain King'' not only found a new audience for Savatage, but also introduced a new musical style, featuring symphonic elements, strongly influenced by their new producer, Paul O'Neill, that would shape the band's future recordings. O'Neill contributed most of the lyrics for the rest of their career and gave them a more conceptual edge starting with their next album, '' Gutter Ballet''. '' Gutter Ballet'', which was released in 1989, has been considered the band's true turning point. This album saw the band adopt a more progressive style, writing longer songs with more complex melodies and differing vocal styles, rather than the more straightforward power metal style that was apparent in earlier works. The change to a more progressive,

operatic Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libret ...

style was also precipitated by Jon, after seeing a performance of '' Phantom of the Opera'' in Toronto. The songs "Gutter Ballet" and "When the Crowds Are Gone" are examples of this influence from that album, as was the next Savatage's release (which even included "Opera" in its title). Many additional songs already written, before the decision of this change of style, were unused and subsequently published as bonus tracks, in the ''Sirens'' and ''The Dungeons Are Calling'' 2002 reissues, some of them were also re-worked and published by Jon Oliva's Pain. ''Gutter Ballet'' proved to be another success for Savatage, with the title track and "When the Crowds Are Gone" receiving considerable airplay on ''Headbangers Ball'' and album-oriented radio stations. The album was once again supported by a grueling tour, which took place in much of 1990, touring North America with Testament and Nuclear Assault, and Europe with King Diamond and Candlemass. They also toured the US with

Trouble Trouble may refer to: Film and television * ''Trouble'' (1922 film), an American silent comedy-drama film directed by Albert Austin * ''Trouble'' (1933 film), a British comedy film * ''Trouble'' (1977 film), a Soviet drama film * ''Trouble'' ...

. Chris Caffery, who had been playing with Savatage in the previous tour performing rhythm guitar and keyboards offstage, officially joined the band in 1989. He never played on the ''Gutter Ballet'' album, even though he was credited with guitars and keyboards and was pictured in the album's booklet "both to prepare the fans for the line-up they'd see on tour and confirm his permanent member status".liner notes from ''Gutter Ballet'' 2002 re-issue. Despite this, Caffery left the band after the ''Gutter Ballet'' tour for personal reasons, but kept writing music with Jon Oliva and would later return to Savatage during the second half of the 1990s. In 1991, the band created their first rock opera ''Streets'', featuring the story of a fallen rock star called DT Jesus who has hit hard times. The record did not sell as well as the band would have liked however, as it was released around the time that

grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock genre and subculture that emerged during the in the American Pacific Northwest state of Washington, particularly in Seattle and nearby towns. Grunge fuses elements of ...

exploded into the mainstream music arena, but a video for "Jesus Saves" was recorded and again got airplay, drawing a new audience to appreciate the band. Over the years '' Streets: A Rock Opera'' has become one of the most appreciated and a landmark album in Savatage's career. Originally, this record was intended to be a double album, but Atlantic Records did not like the idea, so it was trimmed down to 17 songs. The album was then going to have spoken tracks in-between all the songs but that was scrapped also. The final version scrapped the 17th song "Larry Elbows" and erased all the spoken tracks except for the intro to Jesus Saves. The cover had the story explained in it to make up for the lost spoken tracks. Atlantic somehow over the years managed to lose the master tapes to Streets so the left over songs truly are lost. Many of the riffs from these songs showed up on the next album '' Edge of Thorns''. Another interesting detail about the album is that "Jesus Saves" was originally written as a midtempo song, not the rocker it became on the finished album. In 2013, a narrated version of the album was re-issued with the title: ''Streets: A Rock Opera - Narrated Version''. The world tour in support of ''Streets'' began in October 1991 in Europe, with support from Vicious Rumors. The next several months were spent touring relentlessly in North America, with the likes of

and

Fates Warning Fates Warning is an American progressive metal band, formed in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1982 by vocalist John Arch, guitarists Jim Matheos and Victor Arduini, bassist Joe DiBiase, and drummer Steve Zimmerman. There have been numerous lineup ...

, followed by their first shows in Japan. After the ''Streets'' tour ended in the spring of 1992, Jon Oliva left the band to concentrate on his side projects

and his Broadway-bound musical ''Romanov'', as well as continuing co-writing Savatage material with his brother Criss and producer Paul O'Neill. However, as of 2013, only one instrumental track from the ''Romanov'' project was released under the moniker

on the ''Dreams of Fireflies'' EP. After this EP, together with a Broadway version of ''Streets'' named ''Gutter Ballet'' (including mainly songs from both these albums), even ''Romanov'' is planned as a future Trans-Siberian Orchestra album. On June 13, 1992, during the Jon's Farewell Show at Rock-It Club in Tampa, 28 songs were played to cover all the main highlights of the band. This show was not intended, recorded or filmed for any sort of live album. The new lead vocalist, former

Wicked Witch The Wicked Witch of the West is a fictional character who appears in the classic children's novel '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' (1900), created by American author L. Frank Baum. In Baum's subsequent ''Oz'' novels, it is the Nome King who is t ...

singer Zachary Stevens, was discovered and introduced to the band by Criss's best friend and guitar technician Dan Campbell. The band recorded their follow-up to ''Streets'', '' Edge of Thorns'', in 1993. Drummer Steve Wacholz decided to record the album but he was not interested in touring, even though he stated he intended to return to the band in the future, and hand-picked his replacement as well in drummer Andy James. For the first time, Savatage began to enjoy mainstream recognition, including increased radio play and a world tour which gained international press as "the best Savatage has ever sounded live". However, tragedy struck when founder and lead guitarist Criss Oliva was killed by a drunk driver on October 17, 1993. Jon chose to continue the band, although he has since admitted that the band was pretty much over after Criss's death, but only kept going because of his memory and to "keep his music alive".

After Criss and second era of the band (1994–2000)

A short while after Criss' death, the band held a tribute show for the late guitarist, with the same line-up as the Streets tour but without Criss. Lead guitarist Alex Skolnick temporarily joined Savatage in 1994 for the release of their ninth album '' Handful of Rain'', written by Jon Oliva and Paul O'Neill. Although the album is technically a Jon Oliva solo album, with Jon handling all instrumental duties except for vocals by Zachary Stevens and lead guitars by Alex Skolnick, the record was released under the Savatage moniker with bass and drum credits given to Middleton and Wacholz respectively, as drummer Andy James had left the band following the death of Criss Oliva to pursue other projects. The song "Chance" was the first Savatage song to contain the usage of

counterpoint In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more musical lines (or voices) which are harmonically interdependent yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. It has been most commonly identified in the European classical tra ...

vocals, a style which they continued to use on following albums. The album's final track, "Alone You Breathe", was a tribute to Criss Oliva. When the band were preparing to tour in support of ''Handful of Rain'', drummer Steve Wacholz announced his official departure from the band. Jeff Plate, a former bandmember of Zak Stevens' old band, was hired to replace him. Jon Oliva agreed to do the tour to perform keyboards and rhythm guitar, and a live CD/ VHS entitled '' Japan Live '94'' (in later releases it has been retitled ''Live in Japan'') was released at the conclusion of the very short tour with Skolnick's three-piece band Exhibit-A and power metal band Tempo Tantrum as supporting-acts. After this tour, Alex Skolnick left the band to pursue other interests. In a 2011 interview, Skolnick had this to say about his time with Savatage: While Skolnick adapted Criss Oliva's solos to his own style, former guitarist Chris Caffery, who had left after the '' Gutter Ballet'' tour, was convinced he could do them better. He then told Jon Oliva that he would rejoin the band to pay tribute to his friend and mentor Criss Oliva on the condition that he would play all of Criss' solos, which the band accepted.

, however, wanted a second, more well-known guitarist to join the band, and

Al Pitrelli Al Pitrelli is an American guitarist, best known for his work with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Megadeth, Alice Cooper, Joe Lynn Turner, Asia and Savatage. Career Early career (1982–1995) Pitrelli attended the Berklee College of Mu ...

was chosen. Pitrelli was known for his previous work with

Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guilloti ...

and

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

, among others, and would play the majority of the lead parts of the band's new material. In 1995, Savatage released their second rock opera '' Dead Winter Dead'', an even more ambitious undertaking than its predecessor, Streets. They also achieved cross-over success with " Christmas Eve Sarajevo 12/24", which received heavy rotation on multiple radio formats during the Christmas season. While they toured

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

, the group forwent an American tour to work on their new project, '' Christmas Eve and Other Stories'', recorded by the

(TSO), comprising Savatage and a large orchestra. Jon Oliva has since admitted that he was annoyed to see the success of TSO with what was originally a Savatage song, leading him to believe that the biggest barrier to success as Savatage was the name. Also in 1995, another live album '' Ghost in the Ruins – A Tribute to Criss Oliva'' was published with old recordings taken during the ''Gutter Ballet'' tour. This release is titled ''Final Bell'' in Japan and ''Ghost in the Ruins'' elsewhere. ''Ghost in the Ruins'' was one of the titles the band previously considered for the album ''Streets''. The eleventh studio album, ''

The Wake of Magellan ''The Wake of Magellan'' is the tenth studio album released by the American heavy metal band Savatage. The album was released in September 1997 in Europe and Japan, and in April 1998 in the US. This is the first Savatage album to have the same ...

'', was released in 1997 after a break to deal with the huge success of TSO, and dealt with such concepts as the worth of a life,

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and ...

and drug abuse, drawing on real-life events such as the Maersk Dubai and the murder of Veronica Guerin. Savatage parted ways with long-time label

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

after this release and eventually signed on with a much smaller organization,

Nuclear Blast Nuclear Blast is a record label and mail order record distributor with subsidiaries in Germany, the United States and Brazil. The label was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Germany. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label move ...

(although

albums would in the future remain on the Atlantic/Lava imprint). Jon Oliva said that this was a good move, as

"loved the band and they know our songs and everything!". Due to Jon, O'Neill and Savatage's long time engineer Robert Kinkel's songwriting, the main differences between Savatage's last two albums and

are the usage of a real orchestra and the fact lead vocals are not played only by Oliva and/or Zachary Stevens, as in Savatage, but by a huge number of guest singers.

Hiatus and side projects (2001–2013)

Savatage continued to focus on their

project for a while, releasing ''The Christmas Attic'', but the release of ''

'' in 2001 was highlighted by Jon Oliva's return as lead vocalist in studio, replacing

Zak Stevens Zachary Trussell (born March 5, 1966), known professionally as Zachary "Zak" Stevens, is an American singer, best known as the second lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Savatage. He currently performs with the heavy metal band Circle II Circl ...

, who left the band citing family reasons, and the departure of

, who accepted an offer to join

in 2000. Pitrelli did record solos for some songs prior to his departure. Another very limited US tour followed, supported by

in the early shows, and then Nevermore for the remainder. Around this time, Caffery chose Zak's replacement in the form of the singer Damond Jiniya (Diet of Worms), who was once again brought to the band from long-time friend and Circle II Circle manager/co founder Dan Campbell. Damond sang the song "''Edge of Thorns''" as his audition song. Damond performed Zak's parts on tour, with Jon having an increased vocal role in proceedings. Jack Frost auditioned for the role of rhythm guitar player, and got the gig. He played with the band for a majority of the tour, but was mysteriously asked to leave the band after the tour, although it could be said that Frost's commitments elsewhere drove him from the band. For Summer festival appearances in 2002, the band was joined by Annihilator's Jeff Waters. Savatage have remained inactive since that tour, with band members concentrating on other projects such as Trans-Siberian Orchestra and Jon Oliva's Pain. This has not pleased everyone, with Chris Caffery in particular citing his anger at Savatage not recording a new album in almost five years . Trans-Siberian Orchestra continues with their releases and Savatage's members are mostly split up between its two touring line-ups, but during the European tours in 2011 and 2014 Pitrelli, Caffery, Middleton and Plate were all featured together on stage. Year by year more Savatage songs were included in the TSO setlists, among them also ''Gutter Ballet'', ''Believe'', ''All That I Bleed'' and ''Chance''. Jon Oliva usually doesn't play on stage with Trans-Siberian Orchestra while Paul O'Neill, in recent years, started to do it very often during some selected songs. Jon Oliva formed his own band, Jon Oliva's Pain, and released their first album in 2004 entitled ''

'Tage Mahal ''Tage Mahal'' is a 2004 release by Jon Oliva's Pain. It was the first non-Savatage related release by Jon Oliva since 1994's ''Doctor Butcher''. Ironically, just like Savatage, the band faced a problem with its name. Oliva originally wanted ...

''. Through the years Jon Oliva's Pain, also called JOP, published many records and their live concerts always feature Savatage's songs from the albums with Criss Oliva. Additional material, taken by Jon from his brother's unused stuff, was used to write several Jon Oliva's Pain's tracks as described in the album's credits. Lead guitarist Chris Caffery also recorded solo albums while former front man Zak Stevens was approached by long-time friend and Savatage stage manager Dan Campbell to co-found a new band Circle II Circle and their first record entitled '' Watching in Silence'' was released in 2003, produced by Jon Oliva and featuring a guest appearance from Caffery. After a dispute with the management during the tour, Zak's entire band left and joined Jon Oliva's Pain band. Zak regrouped with new members and release other new records. Since 2011, the band included more and more Savatage songs (from the records with Stevens at vocals) in their setlists, and in 2012 also the entire ''The Wake Of Magellan'' album was played. Their 2013 European tour included the complete ''Edge Of Thorns'' album due to its 20th anniversary while the 2014 European tour included the complete ''Handful of Rain'' album for the same reason. In addition to his work with Trans-Siberian Orchestra, drummer Jeff Plate performed with electric violinist Mark Wood and joined

Metal Church Metal Church is an American heavy metal band. They originally formed in San Francisco, California in 1980 and then relocated to Aberdeen, Washington the following year and briefly using the name Shrapnel. Led by guitarist and songwriter Kurdt ...

. He also reformed

with Zak Stevens, renaming the band Machines of Grace, and releasing a self-titled album in 2010. Never involved with Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Steve Wacholz formed a new band in 2010, named Reverence, with guitarist Pete Rossi, vocalist Todd Michael Hall (formerly of

Jack Starr's Burning Starr Jack Starr's Burning Starr is an American heavy metal band from New York City, formed in 1984. The band was founded and guided by former Virgin Steele guitarist Jack Starr and enjoyed limited success in the US during the explosion of hair metal ...

and currently in Riot V) and former

Tokyo Blade Tokyo Blade are an English heavy metal band, active since 1982. Tokyo Blade is one of the many acts considered part of the new wave of British heavy metal (NWOBHM) movement, which lasted from the late 1970s to the early 1980s. Tokyo Blade hav ...

members guitarist Bryan Holland and bassist Frank Saparti.

Criss Oliva 10th anniversary memorial concert

On October 17, 2003, at The Masquerade in historic

Ybor City Ybor City ( ) is a historic neighborhood just northeast of downtown Tampa, Florida, United States. It was founded in the 1880s by Vicente Martinez-Ybor and other cigar manufacturers and populated by thousands of immigrants, mainly from Cuba, Spai ...

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough ...

, fans were invited to remember and celebrate the life and contributions of Criss Oliva at a 10th anniversary memorial concert. It featured Circle II Circle, Jon Oliva's Pain and

as supporting acts and, as headliner, a special one night only band (composed of Jon Oliva, Johnny Lee Middleton, Steve "Doc" Wacholz, Chris Caffery and John Zahner) who played only selected songs from the albums with Criss Oliva. Many Criss parts were executed by Jon himself using keyboards. This show was not intended, recorded or filmed for any sort of live album.

Reunion rumors

In an interview to Aardschok, a Dutch Magazine, in June 2006, Jon Oliva announced that he wants to record one more Savatage album, with a live CD and DVD to follow it, before ending the band. He did not specify a release date for a new album, however. Chris Caffery then said in an interview in October 2006 that if a new Savatage album was to be recorded, then it's likely that Alex Skolnick would be involved, as well as original drummer Steve "Doc" Wacholz. In a November 2006 interview to Greek website, MetalTemple.com, Jon Oliva himself shot down all rumours of the return of Savatage, claiming that it never made him any money, but instead it cost him one million US dollars to keep the band going over the years. Jon also said that his new band, Jon Oliva's Pain, is basically Savatage reincarnated, so it could co-exist with the more successful

. He did however state that a one-off anniversary tour featuring Skolnick, Wacholz and other past Savatage members is being planned with Paul O'Neill as a final send off to the band. Zachary Stevens has made it clear that he will participate in a 25th anniversary festivities with the band. Jon Oliva then said about the band "Well, it's over but it's not over, you know what I mean? It's over right now because no one's doing anything. We haven't disbanded or anything. We have plans to do something in the future." Jon also announced that he is doing "some video compilation stuff, and editing old things for a bonus DVD to go with it, that has a ton of live Criss stuff in concert, a lot of backstage frolicking about, and going to castles in Europe". In 2007, Jon denied any rumours of a Savatage reunion and tour, as the ''Trans-Siberian Orchestra'' has become a year-round commitment, adding that Jon Oliva's Pain is "as close to Savatage as you can get". Despite Jon's earlier denials, in October 2008 the band launched an official MySpace page, hinting that 2009 would see some activity under the Savatage banner. The line-up listed on official MySpace is: Jon Oliva,

, Chris Caffery,

, Johnny Lee Middleton and Jeff Plate; signalling that Stevens would return as lead vocalist in a reunion. In December of the same year, a brand new Savatage web site was unveiled. However, Jon Oliva has since denied these reunion rumors saying: In 2013, in support for Jon's first solo album titled '' Raise the Curtain'', Jon has been giving many interviews, and during at least one he mentioned the possibility of new Savatage music is something he's considering. While discussing the success of TSO and the decision to cease activities as Savatage with Dr. Metal on 6/30/13 he had this to say about the idea of new Savatage recordings:

One-off reunion, death of Paul O'Neill and second hiatus (2014–2019)

On August 2, 2014, it was announced that

would be performing live on stage at

2015, followed immediately by a Savatage reunion gig. It was announced as Savatage's only live show in Europe in 2015, which led to speculation that it would be a one-off reunion show, or the band had planned to continue performing in the future. Asked in a December 2014 interview if Savatage would do any more live shows or record new material, guitarist Chris Caffery replied, "I'm gonna put it this way: for 12 years, 13 years, I've been waiting for my band to play again. We're playing again. I don't know what's going to happen after that aughs but there were people that were putting a fork in it, and we're getting up and not just running a marathon, we're running in the Olympics with this festival being what it is. I'm not going to make any predictions, but let's just say there's a possibility that something more will happen after Wacken—that's all I can say. And nothing would make me happier." On the future of Savatage, frontman Jon Oliva explained, "As far as that goes, the whole Wacken thing came up, and I was, like, you know what? If we're going to do anything, we have to do it now. I don't want to do it when I'm 60 years old. I mentioned that to Paul. He said to me, 'We're going to do the Wacken thing, but let's just wait until the winter tour is over and then you and me we're going to sit down in January and discuss what we're going to do. Jon also said that Savatage has "already gotten offers" to play in "certain areas of the world, America being one, Greece, South America, places like that", and added that he does not rule out the possibility of any more shows. Though Oliva said he does not know what the future holds for Savatage, he said, "I just wish that everything works out good and then we'll see what happens down the road. I'll never say no to anything anymore, because every time I do, I get rained on." The Wacken started with a performance of Savatage on the Black Stage, featuring Gutter Ballet as first song. After seven songs the band left the stage, and on the True Metal Stage TSO began to play with Pitrelli and its non-Sava members. Caffery, Middleton and Plate replaced them on several songs, and Stevens had a duet with Andrew Ross in the song "The Hourglass". This set was followed up by simultaneous play by both bands, featuring also Savatage and TSO songs, ending up with O'Neill's appearance on guitar in "Christmas Eve (Sarajevo 12/24)" and "Requiem (The Fifth)". In October 2015, Zak Stevens confirmed the intentions of starting a new phase for Savatage, adding that (from November 1 on) there would be meetings to take decisions on the details, possibly a tour or a new album, since Jon Oliva is inspiredly writing new music. When asked in April 2016 about Savatage's future, drummer Jeff Plate (who had recently released an album with

) stated, "This really is a question for Jon and Paul. We had a tremendous time last year when we performed at the Wacken Open Air Festival. It truly was great, and magical, to perform with that band again. I would love to put the '' Dead Winter Dead'' band back on the road again, but this is not my decision to be made." In April 2017, it was announced that Savatage producer, lyricist and co-composer Paul O'Neill had died at the age of 61. When asked in August 2017 about a possible reunion with a classic Savatage lineup (with Chris Caffery filling in for the late Criss Oliva on guitar), original drummer

mentioned a Savatage tour taking place in 2018. However, he stated, "I really can't imagine them having TWO drummers on stage, so Jeff will be doing the drumming duties on his own (which he does a great job), although I would love to finish what I started with the Olivas so long ago. That would be a great accomplishment, but I do not see it happening." In a September 2018 interview with Bill Louis of WNCX radio, Plate stated that he would "really love to see" a Savatage reunion, but added that O'Neill's death and the success of Trans-Siberian Orchestra were the reasons the band has been sidelined since their 2015 reunion show at Wacken Open Air. He explained, "There's always been that thought. We did get back together for the Wacken show in 2015. There was a lot of talk after that show, because it was very well-received. When the band got back together, it's just so interesting how when a certain group of guys get together and play music, it's just different than plugging other people in. There's a real chemistry there with the six of us — Jon Oliva, Chris Caffery, Johnny Middleton,

, myself and

. Of course, there's always interest, but when we lost Paul, it had to get pushed aside. There's always conversations, and personally, I would really love to see it. We would love to make that happen, but with everything that's happened over the past couple of years, there's a lot going on there. Once all the business end of this whole scenario gets sorted out here and we all get in a room and really talk about some things... It's going to take a little time — none of this stuff is easy — but I would love to see it happen. I know a lot of people would, and I know a number of guys in the band would really like to see it happen too. But Trans-Siberian Orchestra, that's the focus — that has been our success, and this is what our careers have become. If we can somehow squeeze some Savatage music or some shows in there around all this, that would be fantastic." When asked in December 2019 about the current state of Savatage, Stevens said: "You've always got Savatage lurking out there that we really don't know for sure either. Basically the same answer that I get from them is what I'm giving for Circle II Circle — 'You know what? It's not ever gone, but we just have to figure out what

o do O, or o, is the fifteenth letter and the fourth vowel letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''o'' (pronounced ), plu ...

and the answer will come.' When the right situation appears, that's when I think things will happen... It needs the right thing to come along. I like the fact that TSO has five Savatage songs in the last half of the set this year, so something's brewing... I don't really have any more answers after that, but something seems like it's going on. We're going to find out one way or the other at some point, but the right situation has to come along, I think."

Recent events and possible second reunion (2020–present)

In November 2020, when commenting on the possibility of a full-time reunion of Savatage, guitarist

revealed that Jon Oliva "is always working on new music, constantly sending imnew songs and new ideas", and added, "We always talk about doing something, I would like more than ever to get the band back together and back on tour." Pitrelli also stated that there has not yet been any discussion of a tour with the agents or promoters, and concluded, "What I do know is that we all talk about it often, particularly now that we have a lot of time to talk. The conversation is still open, I spoke to Chris Caffery... Jeff Plate, Johnny Lee, we all talk about it all the time, it's just a matter of saying, 'Okay, let's leave this pandemic behind and focus on the important things in life!'" In December 2020 interview with '' Brave Words'', guitarist Chris Caffery hinted at Savatage releasing a new album in 2022. When asked about the possibility of the band carrying on without their late friend and producer Paul O'Neill, he said, "I mean we've been speaking about it for the last 20 years now, since the last record. It's always able to happen and something else stops it - you've got Haley's Comet coming around once in a while, and every hundred years you have a pandemic, and once every 20 years there's a Savatage record. It will be 20 years in 2022 so maybe that's when it will show up. I'm kind of hopeful that it does, I know I've done a lot of writing, and Jon has, and Al always has a lot of music, so we could make a record. Things would never be exactly the same without Paul, but they were never exactly the same without Criss Oliva either, but we still managed to do '' Dead Winter Dead'' and '' Wake of Magellan'' and ''

''." Caffrey also offered an update on the state of Jon Oliva's health, saying, "He's doing much better, because a couple of years ago he had a bit of an incident. So he hit a bump in the road with something inside of him. I see the masked mountain king every day and probably the last four five years he's looked the best he has to me." In February 2021, Savatage announced that their first album '' Sirens'' and the EP '' The Dungeons Are Calling'' were released to streaming platforms in the US for the first time. In a statement issued by the band, they wrote, "This is just the start of many new exciting things we have in store for you this year"; this had led to speculation that there would be Savatage-related activities in 2021. After months of rumors that a reunion and new album from Savatage were planned, vocalist Jon Oliva confirmed in a March 2021 interview with "80's Glam Metalcast" that he, Caffery and Pitrelli had indeed been working on new material together: "Since avatage'sWacken eunionshow in 2015, Chris Caffery, me and Al Pitrelli, we've been trading song ideas for a possible Savatage thing over the phone. I go, 'Hey, this is great. This is great. This is cool.' But I've been writing Savatage material since 2003, and I could do a quadruple double album, if I wanted to. So, yeah, we're trading off things, and we're looking at that." As for a possibility of a full-time reunion, Oliva stated that he would "love" to do it, adding that "it's very possible": "If it's gonna happen, we'll make an official announcement, but we have been working together, just because with the pandemic and all that, we're bored; there's nothing to do. So we've been trading ideas through e-mails and on the phone. Me and Al wrote three or four things together. Me and Chris Caffery have worked on a few things together. What else are we gonna do? There's nothing to do. So, yeah, we'll see what happens." In June 2021, Oliva reiterated that he has enough material for three new Savatage albums and all the band members "would all love" to work on new material, but added that "there's no deal with a record company to do it" and there are currently no plans to go into the studio. In a December 2021, Caffery offered an update on new possible music from Savatage to That Metal Interview: "We've been writing and talking about it now. It's the first time in a long time where I actually have been trading riffs and songs with Jon over the phone, and I have some really cool things. I have this one song that I wrote that he really likes and it's kind of one that I think would be a good lead-off track for Savatage. e'rejust calling it 'The Dungeous Are Calling Again' and it's a really, really, really cool metal song. We'll see what happens. I know a lot of people would like to see a new Savatage record. I think the cards are lining up. Whether or not it's gonna fall into place, we'll find out. I always tend to stay really positive and optimistic about it — I have for 20 years. So hopefully it does wind up happening. We're not getting any younger."

Musical style

Savatage and its former variations started out as a heavy metal band, incorporating Jon Oliva's powerful, sometimes screamed vocals accompanied by Criss Oliva's heavy guitar riffs and fast, melodic solos. When bassist Johnny Lee Middleton joined in 1986, the band took a step in the direction of radio-friendly hardrock due to label pressure, but to no success. In 1987, producer Paul O'Neill was brought in and added symphonic elements to the band's sound, making '' Hall of the Mountain King'' the band's first progressive metal album. Around this time, vocalist Jon Oliva also started focusing more on keyboards and piano. The band's 1991 effort '' Streets: A Rock Opera'' was, as its name implies, a rock opera, the first of many to follow. After the departure of lead vocalist Jon Oliva, his replacement Zachary Stevens brought in a very different vocal sound. The band continued on the progressive metal/hard rock path, and when Jon Oliva rejoined the band, albums would often feature a few songs with him on lead vocals. One of the band's trademarks, especially in the band's later years, were the counterpoint and harmony vocals. In Savatage's early years, guitarist Criss Oliva would sometimes provide backing vocals, but this decreased dramatically over the years so he could focus on guitar playing. The band's 1994 album '' Handful of Rain'' saw the introduction of counterpoint vocals with the song "Chance", and the subsequent albums had some of these incorporated as well. In the studio, Stevens' vocals would be layered on top of each other, but live Jon Oliva, Chris Caffery,

and Johnny Lee Middleton would all also perform vocals. Savatage's main influences include

Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in th ...

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ...

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy metal music. The band helped def ...

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock music, but their musical style has changed over the course of its existence. Originally formed as ...

AC/DC AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and heavy metal, but the band calls it ...

Rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are ide ...

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

, Rush,

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philosophical lyrics an ...

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

, Scorpions,

Accept Accept may refer to: * Acceptance, a person's assent to the reality of a situation etc. * Accept (band), a German heavy metal band ** ''Accept'' (Accept album), their debut album from 1979 * ''Accept'' (Chicken Shack album), 1970 * ACCEPT (org ...

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

and Jethro Tull.

In popular culture

The song "Hall of the Mountain King" from the album of the same name was used in the video game ''

Brütal Legend ''Brütal Legend'' is an action-adventure video game with real-time strategy game elements created by Double Fine and published by Electronic Arts for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The game was released during October 2009 in North America, ...

''. ''Gutter Ballet'' was an unpublished Broadway project Paul O'Neill wrote back in 1979. In 1989, Savatage already used this title for their previous album but decided to focus their next release, '' Streets: A Rock Opera'', on it.

reprised, in recent years, the idea to release a ''Gutter Ballet''

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwo ...

close to O'Neill original script featuring Savatage's music as well. German power metal band

Powerwolf Powerwolf, often stylized as POWERWOLF, is a German power metal band founded in 2003 in Saarbrücken by members of Red Aim. The band consists of vocalist Karsten Brill as " Attila Dorn", lead guitarist Benjamin Buss as " Matthew Greywolf", bassi ...

covered "Edge of Thorns" on their 2015 ''

Blessed & Possessed ''Blessed & Possessed'' is the sixth studio album by the German power metal band Powerwolf, released on 17 July 2015 by Napalm Records. The band wrote it during 2014 and began recording it in January 2015 at the Studio Fredman in Gothenburg, Swed ...

'' deluxe edition. The song "Christmas Eve (Sarajevo 12/24)" from the album ''Dead Winter Dead'' was used in ''

The Office ''The Office'' is a mockumentary sitcom created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, first made in the United Kingdom, then Germany, and subsequently the United States. It has since been remade in ten other countries. The original ser ...

'' in season 8 episode 10 " Christmas Wishes".

Band members

Current members * Jon Oliva – lead vocals (1978–1992, 2001–2002, 2014-present), keyboards (1981–1992, 1993, 1994—2002, 2014-present), rhythm guitar (1994), bass (1978, 1994), drums (1981, 1991, 1994) * Johnny Lee Middleton – bass guitar, backing vocals (1986–2002, 2014–present) * Chris Caffery – guitar, backing vocals (1987–1988, 1989–1990, 1995–2002, 2014–present), keyboards (1987–1988, 1989–1990) * Zachary Stevens – lead vocals (1992–2000, 2014–present) * Jeff Plate – drums (1994–2002, 2014–present) *

– guitar, backing vocals (1995–1999, 2002, 2014–present)

Timeline

Discography

* '' Sirens'' (1983) * ''

'' (1985) * ''

'' (1986) * '' Hall of the Mountain King'' (1987) * '' Gutter Ballet'' (1989) * '' Streets: A Rock Opera'' (1991) * '' Edge of Thorns'' (1993) * '' Handful of Rain'' (1994) * '' Dead Winter Dead'' (1995) * ''

'' (1997) * ''

'' (2001)

References

External links

Official website
* * {{Authority control American power metal musical groups American progressive metal musical groups American symphonic metal musical groups Articles which contain graphical timelines Atlantic Records artists Heavy metal musical groups from Florida Musical groups established in 1979 Musical groups disestablished in 2002 Musical groups reestablished in 2014 Nuclear Blast artists