John Sykes passed away in December at the age of 65, to the shock and dismay of many. He first came to prominence in the early 80s with NWOBHM act Tygers Of Pan Tang, though within a few short years he had replaced Snowy White in Thin Lizzy, before moving on to Whitesnake, most notably co-writing the 1987 self-titled album at the peak of their US success.
John’s fluid, skilful playing combined the passion of Gary Moore with riffs inspired by Zeppelin and Deep Purple, plus unexpected melodic twists like Ritchie Blackmore and squealing pinched harmonics that pre-dated Zakk Wylde getting the Ozzy Osbourne gig.
