Into The Grooves

John Petrucci counts down the 10 most important albums in his collection

by Michael Moses

As the guitarist for progressive rock act Dream Theater, John Petrucci has claimed new ground on Rush’s old turf, worshiped at the flame of Stevie Ray Vaughan, and established himself as a guitar god among men. None of this has escaped our readers, who voted Petrucci and his bandmates—bassist John Myung and drummer Mike Portnoy—their favorite band of 1997 in Guitars Readers’ Poll.

We see their point: From 1989’s When Dream And Day Unite to their latest release, Falling Into Infinity, John Petrucci and Dream Theater have continued to set new standards in rock with their provocative and completely elastic approach to songwriting.

How odd is it, then, to find that Petrucci, a guitarist known for both his technical ability and passionate playing, taught himself using a cheap Mickey Mouse record player?

Almost everything I learned was done by listening to records that were slowed down to half speed,” he laughs. “Unfortunately, I ruined my entire album collection in the process.”

We sat down with John and asked him to take us through those albums and to pick out the 10 most influential records in the bunch. Says Petrucci, “There have been certain moments in my life where everything changed after hearing a particular song or player for the first time.” Here then, are 10 of those moments.

Night Of The Living Dregs – Dixie Dregs

“This was a record that definitely changed my life. I was about 15 years old, listening mostly to bands like Black Sabbath, Rush, and Iron Maiden, and had never heard anything by Steve Morse. A friend taped this record for me, and I was just floored by it. There’s a song on it called ‘Bash ‘ that is just the chicken-picking song from hell. I had never heard anyone pick in that context before; Steve Morse picks like a bluegrass player, but uses a pick instead of his fingers, and that’s really challenging. Once I heard it, I immediately wanted to learn how to play like that.”

Diary Of A Madman – Ozzy Osbourne

“The great thing about those early Ozzy records was that they combined a pop feel with the darkness of his Sabbath days. And everything about Randy Rhoads—the type of riffs that he played, his solos, all of it—was really influential. I remember that there we re certain solos on this record that everyone at school tried to learn, especially the one on ‘Over The Mountain.’ If you could play that, the other kids all thought you were some kind of god. On the night that he died, I was a playing a gig at Town Hall with a local band. I couldn’t believe it when I heard the news. He was simply amazing.”

Couldn’t Stand The Weather – Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble

“I used to fall asleep while listening to the radio, and I remember being in bed one night and Stevie Ray Vaughan’s version of ‘Voodoo Child’ came on, and it just flipped me out. I thought, ‘Who is this guy?’ He sounded just like Hendrix, but with more balls and technique to his playing. The next day I went out and got the record and learned every song. All the different techniques he did, like the way he plucked the strings, his pentatonic scales, the way he used feedback and vibrato—all of it was just so cool. After hearing that record and songs like ‘Scuttle Buttin’’ I started incorporating a lot of aggressive, bluesy-type licks into my playing.”

Hemispheres – Rush

“There are so many great Rush albums to choose from, but I’d have to say that Hemispheres had the most profound effect on me. The first time I heard the record and songs like ‘La Villa Strangiato,’ I couldn’t understand how a three-piece band could sound so big. Before I discovered Rush, I had been playing mostly AC/DC-type power chords, but all that changed after hearing Alex Lifeson. He would play these extended voicings with effects on them, and the sound was just huge. I also loved the way he and Geddy Lee would double their parts; it was so powerful. And Rush’s influence on our playing is pretty obvious. “

Piece Of Mind – Iron Maiden

“Mike, John, and I loved Iron Maiden, and we learned and played every song on this record. Listening to Adrian Smith taught me how to use the vibrato really well, and from Dave Murray I learned trills. All his solos had them, and it really helped me to build up my left hand. Plus, those guys were always soloing in E minor or A minor, so I learned how to solo in those two keys. When I look back on it now, technique-wise and theoretically, this is pretty basic stuff, but I was young and listening to this album really helped in the development of my playing.”

Master Of Puppets – Metallica

“I had heard other Metallica records, but this was the album that really made an impression on me. I loved the heaviness of their sound and their tight riffs. This was a record that influenced my rhythm playing more than my soloing. All those chunky riffs that I play were inspired by Metallica.”

Led Zeppelin IV – Led Zeppelin

“There’s something classic about every song on this album. I remember being about 12 years old and sitting down on my bed, drawing the album cover, amazed at the way Jimmy Page based songs off of riffs. I tried to learn all those solos, note for note, with all the inflections, especially the one on ‘Stairway To Heaven.’ I would listen to the acoustic stuff like, ‘Going To California,’ and I couldn’t understand the tuning; it sounded like so many guitars. So in that sense, it also influenced me on a production level—teaching me to use the guitar to create scenery, sort of like painting on a canvas.”

Casino – Al DiMeola

“I was at a party hanging with some older guys that were more into jazz and fusion-type stuff. and I remember one guy saying. ‘Dude, you gotta break away from that rock crap. Here,’ he said, and he played Casino for me. and I was just blown away. I couldn’t believe the kind of technical ability Al DiMeola had on acoustic guitar. I never heard anybody play like that before. I had to slow the album down to half speed on my turntable in order to learn how to play the parts. I would play those runs over and over, trying to nail them. Each day I would come back and try it again. It took me forever to get it right.”

Fragile – Yes

“I remember listening to songs like ‘Roundabout’ and being really impressed with the way Steve Howe played within the ensemble and what his role was in relation to the keyboards. Yes was also one of the first bands I had ever heard where the keyboards played such a prominent part in the overall sound. Unlike Rush, who doubled their parts, these guys played in counterpoint to one another: one guy played in one time signature, while another played in a different time signature, and somehow they made it work. I thought that was incredible. And, like Rush, they were very influential on both myself and Dream Theater as a whole.”

Rising Force – Yngwie Malmsteen

“I was really getting into the idea of playing fast and proficient. and here was a guy that sounded like Al DiMeola playing heavy metal. His use of vibrato and phrasing and runs and arpeggios was just amazing. I was in high school at the time this record came out and I would sit in the back of the class with my headphones on, flipping out over what Yngwie was doing. I couldn’t wait to go home and try to play his parts. This album also encouraged me to go out and learn Bach and Paganini, and study pieces that were both beautiful and technically challenging. It gave me a whole new knowledge of single-note, classical-type soloing.”