Criss Oliva

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Christopher "Criss" Michael Oliva (* 3. April 1963 in Pequannock Township , Morris County , † 17th October 1993 near Zephyrhills, Pasco County , Florida ) was an American Metal - guitarist . He became known with the band Savatage , which he founded together with his brother Jon Oliva in 1981.

Life Before Savatage

He was born in Pequannock Township in Morris County , New Jersey , the youngest of four children (11 years older sister Joann, 9 years older brother Tony, 3 years older brother Jon ) and moved as a young boy after a stopover in Escondido , California to Tampa , Florida . He rode a motorcycle there early with his brother Jon. He taught himself to play the guitar, although he was shown the first chords by his brother Jon. At first he played bass, but at this time he discovered guitarists like Ritchie Blackmore from Deep Purple and Rainbow and Michael Schenker from UFO , Scorpions and the Michael Schenker Group . The later drummer of the band Savatage , Steve "Doc" Wacholz remembered that the young Criss could already play better than older guitarists. Shortly after they moved to Tampa, Criss Oliva formed the band Tower with his brother Jon and a bassist named Tony Ciulla (later manager of Marilyn Manson ) . His brother had previously played in a band called Alien . They played cover songs by Black Sabbath , Rush and Van Halen , among others . When Jon left the drums and became the band's vocalist, the group was renamed Avatar . When they were already releasing a demo tape through Par Records , a local record company, they were asked if they would like to record an album. However, during the album's initial process, the band realized that the name Avatar was already trademarked. So the band renamed itself Savatage.

Savatage

In 1983 the debut album Sirens was released . The band now consisted of Jon Oliva, Criss Oliva, Keith Collins (bass) and Steve "Doc" Wacholz (drums). On the album, Criss Oliva is listed as songwriter for 8 out of 9 songs. The album was recorded in one day. The remaining songs on the recording were released in 1984 under the name The Dungeons Are Calling . After this album, the band was signed by Atlantic Records , which released the album Power of the Night in 1985 . Then the first problems arose. The band barely had time to work on the sequel, Fight for the Rock . The record company wanted to make an album suitable for the masses, but it failed. On the album for the first time Johnny Lee Middleton plays bass, who had been brought in for Keith Collins, who was dismissed (for musical reasons). In 1987 Hall of the Mountain King appeared , which marked the turning point for the band. Paul O'Neill was found as producer , who wanted to align the band more progressively. The sound was well received by the fans. In the next few years the band members were able to give up their jobs and devote themselves fully to music. The successor, Gutter Ballet (1989) was also well received. Together with his brother and Paul O'Neil, he worked on a Broadway - musicals , but the 1991 also as Savatage album ( - Streets A rock opera appeared). During this time there were again problems within the band. His brother Jon had to take a break from the band for health reasons and give up his position as a singer. He switched to the keyboard . 1993 appeared with the new singer Zachary Stevens in the band the album Edge of Thorns , which should remain the last with Criss Oliva.

death

On October 17, 1993, Criss Oliva was with his wife Dawn (* July 26, 1963, † January 10, 2005) in a 1982 Mazda RX-7 on the way to the Livestock 4 rock festival in Zephyrhills, Pasco County . Savatage had played there themselves in 1990 and 1991 and were only days away from going on tour with Vince Neil (who had just left Mötley Crüe at the time ). He wanted to see the last day of the festival, so he was still out at 3:30 that night. He met a car while overtaking, the driver of which was drunk. Oliva could no longer avoid the car and died at the scene of the accident. His wife was taken to Tampa General Hospital in critical condition with head injuries and multiple trauma . Oliva and his wife Dawn had been married since 1984. Dawn Oliva was found dead by family members at home on January 11, 2005. The person who caused the accident was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Criss Oliva is buried in the Curlew Memorial Gardens cemetery in Palm Harbor, near Tampa.

Follow for the band

Johnny Lee Middleton told the press shortly after his death that he never wanted to play the Savatage songs that Criss Oliva made with him again. Also at his funeral was Chris Caffery , who left Savatage in 1990 and returned to the band in 1995. He was invited by the Oliva family to stay with them. The status of Savatage has long been unclear. However, the album Handful of Rain was released in 1994 , on which Steve "Doc" Wacholz, Johnny Lee Middleton, Zachary Stevens, Jon Oliva and Alex Skolnick are registered as a band. Paul O'Neil had helped Jon Oliva deal with grief and encouraged him to move on. Allegedly, the album only recorded Jon Oliva with Alex Skolnick and Zachary Stevens. Wacholz, an old friend of Criss, left the band after this album. In 1995 the live album Ghost in the Ruins - a Tribute to Criss Oliva was released , which only contains old live recordings with Criss Oliva on guitar. After three more albums by the band ( Dead Winter Dead 1995, The Wake of Magellan 1997 and Poets and Madmen 2001), the group became quiet in 2002. After a concert was played on the tenth anniversary of Criss Oliva's death in 2003, Jon Oliva announced the end of the band in 2007. However, the former members of the band have been touring as the Trans-Siberian Orchestra since 1996 and have already released several albums with this line-up with many changing guest musicians.

equipment

Initially, Criss Oliva played Fender Stratocaster guitars . From the mid-1980s he used Kramer guitars. He also made the Charvel Model 6 guitar famous. He also played other Charvel and Jackson guitars. He had an endorsement deal with Charvel and Laney Amps . The guitar with a gargoyle on the front also became known. Because of his endorsement, he sprayed the Charvel logo on the guitar, which was actually built by ESP . In the studio he sometimes used Les Paul guitars .

Influences

Criss Oliva are said to have influenced Uli Jon Roth , Yngwie Malmsteen , Ritchie Blackmore , Jimmy Page , Alex Lifeson , Eddie Van Halen , Randy Rhoads and Michael Schenker .

Others

  • The band Overkill dedicated the song RIP (Undone) on the album WFO (1994) to Criss Oliva. The band had previously made friends with Criss Oliva on tour.
  • At the age of 17, Criss Oliva won a white Fender Stratocaster in a local guitar competition. He played Van Halen Eruption. It was later stolen from a club gig in Florida.

Discography

Savatage

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ http://www.jonoliva.net/html/dawn.html
  2. ↑ http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/more-information-surfaces-regarding-death-of-late-savatage-guitarist-s-wife/
  3. ↑ http://www.dinosaurrockguitar.com/new/node/43
  4. ↑ http://www.savatage.com/newsavatage/bandinfo/faq4.html
  5. ↑ http://www.guitarworld.com/node/2198
personal data
SURNAME Oliva, Criss
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Oliva, Christopher Michael; Oliva (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American musician
DATE OF BIRTH April 3, 1963
PLACE OF BIRTH Pequannock Township , Morris County
DATE OF DEATH 17th October 1993
Place of death Zephyrhills, Pasco County , Florida