Chris Risola (born June 30, 1958) is an American musician and songwriter. He is best known as the original lead guitarist for the

glam metal Glam metal (also known as hair metal or pop metal) is a subgenre of heavy metal music, heavy metal that features pop music, pop-influenced Hook (music), hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat arena rock, rock anthems, and slow Sentimental ballad#Powe ...

band

Steelheart Steelheart is an American glam metal band from Norwalk, Connecticut, that formed in 1989. At the time that their debut was recorded, the band's members consisted of vocalist Miljenko Matijevic, lead guitarist Chris Risola, rhythm guitarist Fra ...

Career

Risola first started playing guitar at age 13. In high school, he studied music theory and formed numerous bands. In 1981, Risola was playing lead guitar with his band consisting of Jimmy Ward on bass and Jack Wilkinson on drums, they then started auditioning singers, eventually hiring 15-year-old Mike Matijevic. The result was the band Rampage which was soon changed to Red Alert.

Steelheart

In 1989, the band consisting of members Chris Risola, Ward and Matijevic added former Rage of Angels members John Fowler on drums and Frank DiCostanzo on rhythm guitar. They were signed to MCA Records in 1990 and the name of the band was then changed to

. Risola played on the first two Steelheart albums, ''

'' and '' Tangled in Reins''. His solos focused on hard blues, rock, speed,

tapping Tapping is a playing technique that can be used on any stringed instrument, but which is most commonly used on guitar. The technique involves a string being fretted and set into vibration as part of a single motion. This is in contrast to stand ...

and

harmonies In music, harmony is the concept of combining different sounds in order to create new, distinct musical ideas. Theories of harmony seek to describe or explain the effects created by distinct pitches or tones coinciding with one another; harm ...

with

rhythm guitarist In music performances, rhythm guitar is a guitar technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass ...

Frank DiCostanzo. Steelheart released their self-titled debut album in 1990. It sold 33,000 copies on its first day in Japan alone, and quickly hit platinum status. The album peaked at #40 on ''Billboards Top 200 albums listing. Two singles from the album, " She's Gone" and "

I'll Never Let You Go "I'll Never Let You Go" (also titled "I'll Never Let You Go (Angel Eyes)") is a power ballad by American glam metal band Steelheart. It was released as the second single from their 1990 self-titled debut album. It peaked at No. 23 on the ''Bill ...

" both reached the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1991. Steelheart’s next effort, '' Tangled in Reins'' was a much more mixed combination than the debut, with songs like “Sticky Side Up” to ballads such as “Mama Don’t You Cry”, which charted at #1 in several East Asian countries including Hong Kong, prompting their Asian tour in September 1992. Nearing the end of the 'Tangled in Reins' tour, Slaughter asked Steelheart to perform one last show in Denver, Colorado. While performing “Dancing in the Fire” from the album ''Tangled in Reins'', Matijevic decided to climb a lighting truss, which was improperly secured. Matijevic tried to evade the fall of the massive rig, but without success. An injured Mike walked off stage that night but would never again front the band in its original form. After a 13-year hiatus, Risola rejoined Steelheart, joined by Mike Humbert on drums, along with Rev Jones on bass. In 2006, the band did the 'Just a Taste' tour. In 2007 and 2008, Steelheart played the Rocklahoma festivals, and in 2009 did the 'Good 2B Alive' tour. Risola has taught guitar and music theory to well known acts such as musician

Moby Richard Melville Hall (September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, disc jockey, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "amo ...

, ,guitarist Paul Nelson of the Johnny Winter Band And Begley Bopper.

References

External links

Chris Risola's Homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Risola, Chris American rock guitarists American male guitarists Living people Steelheart 1958 births