Axel Rudi Pell (born 27 June 1960) is a German hard rock guitarist.

Career

Pell commenced his musical career with Steeler (1984–88) before leaving in 1988 for a solo career. During this time, he has played with such drummers as Jörg Michael and

Mike Terrana Mike Terrana (born January 21, 1960) is an American hard rock and heavy metal drummer. Career His first professional work was in 1984, with the MCA band Hanover Fist from Toronto, Canada. Between 1987 and 1997, he was based in Los Angeles a ...

, and singers Charlie Huhn,

Johnny Gioeli Johnny Gioeli ( ; born October 5, 1967) is an American rock music, rock singer. He is the lead vocalist of Hardline (band), Hardline, Crush 40, and Axel Rudi Pell's Axel Rudi Pell#Band members, backing band. He is best known for his musical con ...

Hardline In politics, hardline or hard-line is an adjective describing a stance on an issue that is inflexible and not subject to compromise. A hardliner is a person holding such views. The stance is usually far from the centrist view. People, policies, ...

Jeff Scott Soto Jeff Scott Soto (born November 4, 1965) is an American Rock music, rock singer of Puerto Rican descent. He is perhaps best known for being the vocalist on Yngwie Malmsteen's first two albums, and the lead vocalist for Journey (band), Journey i ...

, and

Rob Rock Robert Rock (born June 29, 1959) is an American heavy metal singer who is best known as the longtime frontman of Impellitteri, a position he has held from 1987 to 1988, 1992 to 2000, and now from 2008 to the present day. Rock has also release ...

. Gioeli remains the longest surviving vocalist of the band, having joined the group since 1998 on the album ''Oceans of Time'', Gioeli's first musical appearance since the 1992 Hardline album ''

Double Eclipse ''Double Eclipse'' is the debut studio album by American hard rock band Hardline, released in 1992. The first single released from the album was "Takin' Me Down", written by Johnny and Joey Gioeli with Neal Schon. "Takin' Me Down" peaked at No. ...

''. Pell often says his music is about a Knight in shining armour going on various adventures. Each album continues one new quest after the other, and songs are told as separate stories. Pell's main influence in guitar work has been

Ritchie Blackmore Richard Hugh Blackmore (born 14 April 1945) is an English lead guitarist. He was a founding member and the guitarist of Deep Purple, one of the pioneering bands of hard rock. After leaving Deep Purple in 1975, Blackmore formed the band Rainbow ...

from

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 music, heavy metal and modern hard rock, although their musical style has varied throughout their career. Originally for ...

SPV Records SPV GmbH (short for ''Schallplatten Produktion und Vertrieb GmbH'', "Vinyl Production and Distribution Company") is a German independent record label. Founded on 1 January 1984, it has slowly grown to be one of the largest independent distributors ...

released a live DVD on 25 February 2008, titled ''Live over Europe'', which includes the full performance from the

Rock Hard Festival Rock Hard Festival is a heavy metal festival organized and sponsored by the '' Rock Hard'' magazine. First established in Lichtenfels, Bavaria, Germany, in 1990 on an irregular basis, mostly for magazine anniversaries, it is held annually in Gels ...

in 2007, and comes with a bonus disc which includes live footage from Pell's own archive. In 2012, a new Axel Rudi Pell live concert CD/DVD Live on Fire was released. In 2013, ex-

Rainbow A rainbow is an optical phenomenon caused by refraction, internal reflection and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a continuous spectrum of light appearing in the sky. The rainbow takes the form of a multicoloured circular ...

drummer

Bobby Rondinelli Robert Rondinelli (born July 27, 1955) is an American rock drummer best known for his work with the hard rock/ heavy metal bands Blue Öyster Cult, Rainbow, Quiet Riot, Black Sabbath, The Lizards, The Handful, and Rondinelli. In July 2013, Rond ...

joined the band, replacing

after his initial departure in 2013.

wanted to pursue other projects, such as becoming a member of the supergroup The Ferrymen, featuring Rainbow singer

Ronnie Romero Ronald Romero (born 20 November 1981) is a Chilean singer best known as the vocalist of the rock/heavy metal bands Elegant Weapons, Lords of Black, Rainbow, the Ferrymen, Michael Schenker Group, and Sunstorm. He represented Bulgaria at the ...

on vocals. Axel celebrated his 25th anniversary as a musician in 2014, headlining the Bang Your Head festival in Balingen

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

on 11 July 2014. It featured the second and third singers:

and

. Special guests also included Joerg Michael,

Ronnie Atkins Ronnie Atkins (born Paul Christensen on 16 November 1964) is a Danish singer, best known as the co-founder, lead vocalist and primary songwriter for heavy metal band Pretty Maids. Atkins co-founded Pretty Maids in Horsens, Denmark in 1981 with gu ...

, John Lawton, ex-Rainbow members

Graham Bonnett Graham Bonnet (born 23 December 1947) is an English rock singer. He has recorded and performed as a solo artist and as a member of several hard rock and heavy metal bands including Rainbow, Michael Schenker Group, Alcatrazz, and Impellitteri.Pr ...

Doogie White Douglas "Doogie" White (born 7 March 1960) is a Scottish rock vocalist who currently sings for La Paz. He has also notably sung for Rainbow (rock band), Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow, Michael Schenker, Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force, Praying Ma ...

and keyboardist

Tony Carey Anthony Lawrence Carey (born October 16, 1953, Watsonville, California, United States) is an American musician, composer, producer, and singer/songwriter. In his early career he was a keyboardist for Rainbow. After his departure in 1977, he bega ...

, and drummer

Vinny Appice Vincent Samson Appice (born September 13, 1957) is an American rock and metal drummer best known for his work with the bands Dio (band), Dio, Black Sabbath, and Heaven & Hell (band), Heaven & Hell. Of Italian descent, he is the younger brother ...

. The show consisted of 3 acts: a short Steeler reunion and brief Axel Rudi Pell reunion with singers Rob Rock and Jeff Scott Soto, a full modern Axel Rudi Pell show with vocalist

and current band members, and the last act featuring various Deep Purple and Rainbow covers with a full ensemble. In 2019, the band celebrated their 30th anniversary, releasing a double live album called ''XXX – 30th Anniversary Live''. The songs were recorded on various dates of the Knights Call 2018 tour. The group's Facebook page stated at the time that the band did not know they were being recorded but when they heard the audio they were amazed and wanted to release it to celebrate the group's 30th Anniversary. It was released in June 2019 on CD and LP. Their most recent release, The Ballads 6, was released in early 2023. On 5 February 2020, they announced their latest album on their Facebook page, titled ''Sign of the Times,'' due for release on 24 April 2020. In March 2020, the band announced a delay of the release of the new record, due to the ongoing

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, and was released on 8 May 2020 instead. A tour in support of the new album was also postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and then later delayed again until 2022. In late 2020, Pell announced his newest album ''Diamonds Unlocked II'', which was released on 30 July 2021. It is another covers album similar to ''

Diamonds Unlocked ''Diamonds Unlocked'' is the twelfth album by German guitarist Axel Rudi Pell. It is a cover album released in September/October 2007. The album consists of 10 cover tracks and 1 self-written introduction track. Axel Rudi Pell attempted to make co ...

'' from 2007. Pell is well known for his extensive touring, mostly around Germany and his home town in

Bochum Bochum (, ; ; ; ) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia. With a population of 372,348 (April 2023), it is the sixth-largest city (after Cologne, Düsseldorf, Dortmund, Essen and Duisburg) in North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous German federa ...

. He rarely tours globally, but has performed a few one-off shows in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

over the recent years. However, there has always been high demand to bring him to other countries. They are also famous for attending many music festivals such as being regulars at

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

since the late 1990s. Their most recent album with original music is called ''Lost XXIII'' and was released on 15 April 2022. The group was appearing at the Sweden Rock Festival in 2024.In 2024 the band released their latest album Risen Symbol

Band members

Axel Rudi Pell
in the Encyclopaedia Metallum

; Current * Axel Rudi Pell — guitar (1989–present) *

— lead vocals (1998–present) *Ferdy Doernberg — keyboards (1997–present) *Volker Krawczak — bass guitar (1989–present) *

— drums (2013–present) ; Past ; Vocals *

Charlie Huhn Charles Hartley Huhn (born January 11, 1951) is an American rock singer, songwriter, guitarist and keyboard player. He got his start in Grand Rapids, Michigan, playing with local groups Cirrus, Tanglewood, and Vic Amato & Co before joining Ted ...

(1989) *

(1991) *

(1992–97) ; Bass * Jörg Deisinger (1989) *Thomas Smuszynski (1989) ; Drums *

Jörg Michael Jörg Michael (born 27 March 1963) is a German drummer who is known for playing with numerous groups, including the power metal band Stratovarius, with whom he played from 1995 to 2011, and Saxon (2004–2005). He has also been a member of Mekon ...

(1989–98) *

(1998–2013) ; Keyboards *Georg Hahn (1989) *Rüdiger König (1989) *Kai Raglewski (1991–92) *Julie Greaux (1993–96) * Christian Wolff (1997) ; Timeline

Discography

With Steeler

*''Steeler'' (1984) *''

Rulin' the Earth Steeler was a heavy metal band from the German city of Bochum formed in 1981. The band was active between 1981 and 1988. The founding members consisted of Peter Burtz on vocals, Axel Rudi Pell on guitar, Tom Eder also on guitar, Volker Krawczak ...

'' (1985) *'' Strike Back'' (1986) *''

Undercover Animal Steeler was a heavy metal band from the German city of Bochum formed in 1981. The band was active between 1981 and 1988. The founding members consisted of Peter Burtz on vocals, Axel Rudi Pell on guitar, Tom Eder also on guitar, Volker Krawczak ...

'' (1988)

Solo

Albums

*''Wild Obsession'' (1989) *''Nasty Reputation'' (1991) *''Eternal Prisoner'' (1992) *''Between the Walls'' (1994) *''Black Moon Pyramid'' (1996) *''Magic'' (1997) *''Oceans of Time'' (1998) *''The Masquerade Ball'' (2000) *''

Shadow Zone A seismic shadow zone is an area of the Earth's surface where seismographs cannot detect direct P waves and/or S waves from an earthquake. This is due to liquid layers or structures within the Earth's surface. The most recognized shadow zone is ...

'' (2002) *''Kings and Queens'' (2004) *'' Mystica'' (2006) *''

'' (2007) (cover album) *''

Tales of the Crown ''Tales of the Crown'' is the thirteenth album by Germany, German speed metal, speed/power metal guitarist Axel Rudi Pell. It released on 24 October 2008 by SPV GmbH, Steamhammer/SPV records. The album was #56 on the Sweden charts and #81 on the S ...

'' (2008) *'' The Crest'' (2010) *''Circle of the Oath'' (2012) *''Into the Storm'' (2014) *''Game of Sins'' (2016) *''Knights Call'' (2018) *''Sign of the Times'' (2020) *''Diamonds Unlocked II'' (2021) (cover album) *''Lost XXIII'' (2022) *''Risen Symbol'' (2024)

Compilations

*''The Ballads'' (1993) *''The Ballads II'' (1999) *''The Wizard's Chosen Few'' (2000) *''The Ballads III'' (2004) *'' The Best of Axel Rudi Pell: Anniversary Edition'' (2009) *''The Ballads IV'' (2011) *''The Ballads V'' (2017) *''The Ballads VI'' (2023)

Live

*''Made in Germany'' (1995) *''Knights Live'' (2002) *'' Live on Fire'' (2013) *''Magic Moments: 25th Anniversary Special Show'' (2015) *''XXX Anniversary Live'' (2019)

DVDs

*''Knight Treasures (Live and More)'' (2002) *''Live Over Europe'' (2008) *''One Night Live'' (2010) *'' Live on Fire'' (2013) *''Magic Moments 25th Anniversary Special Show'' (2015)

Guest appearances

* Onkel Tom Angelripper - Ein schöner Tag... (1996) (Guest guitar) *

Roland Grapow Roland Grapow (born 30 August 1959 in Hamburg) is a German guitarist and music producer. He is best known for his time in the power metal band Helloween, with which he played for twelve years, after replacing founding member Kai Hansen. He subse ...

- The Four Seasons of Life (1997) - guitar solo on "The Winner" *

Eyes of Eternity Robert Rock (born June 29, 1959) is an American heavy metal singer who is best known as the longtime frontman of Impellitteri, a position he has held from 1987 to 1988, 1992 to 2000, and now from 2008 to the present day. Rock has also released ...

(2003) - guitar solo on "The Hour of Dawn" *

Doro Doro may refer to: * Doro (musician), rock singer, former vocalist of the German heavy metal band Warlock ** ''Doro'' (album), a 1990 album by Doro * Dorothea Wierer, Italian biathlete * Doro (company), a Swedish telecommunications company * Doro, ...

- '' 25 Years in Rock... and Still Going Strong'' (2010) - guest guitar on "East Meets West (

Warlock A warlock is a male practitioner of witchcraft. Etymology and terminology The most commonly accepted etymology derives '' warlock'' from the Old English '' wǣrloga'', which meant "breaker of oaths" or "deceiver". The term came to apply special ...

Cover)" * Enrichment - ''EP 2012'' (2012) - guest guitar on "Reanimate Your Roots (featured version)" * Wolfpakk - ''Rise of the Animal'' (2015) - guest guitar on "Rise of the Animal" * The Carsten Lizard Schulz Syndicate - ''The Day the Earth Stopped Turning'' (2015) - (guest guitar) * FB1964 - ''Störtebeker'' (2017) - guest guitar on "Victual Brothers" * Secret Discovery - ''Truth, Faith, Love'' (2023) - guest guitar on "In My Life"

References

External links

* *
Axel Rudi Pell
on Metal Storm
Axel Rudi Pell, Interview: "I Have Never Changed My Style" September 2011
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pell, Axel Rudi 1960 births Living people German heavy metal guitarists German rock guitarists German male guitarists German lead guitarists People from Bochum