29 April - Universal records have a CD reissue of the classic Whitesnake 1987 album out in Japan. The reissue comes as a "mini LP" replica with original artwork, inner sleeve and superior sound quality. This is the best quality edition of '1987' that I have heard. Definitely better than the 20th Anniversary Collector's Edition. Buy it!!

19 January 2008 - Related news: Tygers of Pan Tang announce UK tour dates - here.

12 December - John Sykes IS Thin Lizzy! Here is a short clip of Lizzy playing The Boys are Back in Town with JS as the only guitarist. This happened at the Exeter show on December 10th after Scott Gorham was forced to leave the stage sick.

3 December - I attended the Thin Lizzy show at Newcastle City Hall yesterday. The guys were on top form, playing one or two seldom-heard tracks from the Live and Dangerous album, together with the 'greatest hits'. JS looked to be in a good mood and pulled off some fine guitar-hero shapes. Apparently, some of the band have recently been hit by a respiratory virus, but there were no signs of this last night. Thanks to Susan Thorsen for the use of her amazing photos of JS from last night's gig below, on my front page and here! It is a genuine treat to be able to use these photos of JS playing at my all-time favourite music venue - Newcastle City Hall - a mecca of hard rock!

In related Tygers of Pan Tang news, the band, who JS recently expressed an interest in jamming with, have announced details of a UK tour and ongoing touring and release plans - visit here for further information.

18 November - A new interview with John Sykes is accessible at Komodo Rock - here. Reading this was a really pleasant surprise: JS goes into a lot of detail on a range of subjects, including Lizzy, Phil Lynott, plus the Tygers of Pan Tang. He seems genuinely interested in the Tygers as an important part of his career and even talks about the possibility of getting up on stage and jamming with Robb Weir! I have been waiting to see an interview with JS like this for a long, long time. It's a fantastic read. If the positive vibes in this interview are anything to go by, we might now be at the start of a really active and productive stage in JS's career.

13 November - A press release from the Thin Lizzy publicity agency has announced that on the imminent UK tour the band will be playing the classic live album 'Live and Dangerous' in its entirety. Next year will mark the 30th anniversary of the release of this album. You've got to applaud John Sykes and Scott Gorham for this decision. They have taken a few knocks for not mixing up the setlist on recent Lizzy tours. This will see them playing some vintage stuff indeed! It would be great to see a live CD/DVD of this tour getting a release!

11 November - The latest edition of Fireworks magazine has a 4-page interview with John Sykes's friend and bassist, Marco Mendoza. Amongst other things, including his solo album, and his work with Whitesnake, Marco discusses his collaborations with Sykes, describing 'Loveland' as a "beautiful album". He also has this to say about JS: "[...] such a talented person. He's got a lot to offer. I have actually been trying to convince him into going out there more often, away from the Lizzy camp. Doing some more live performances, he needs to be out there. I have had the opportunity to play with some pretty amazing musicians and I consider him to be one of them." It's a great in-depth interview with Marco, one that really gives you insight into the man and musician. If you don't already buy this magazine anyway, I strongly recommend that you do.

29 October - Press Release, October 28th 2007, Tygers of Pan Tang. At last the new Tygers of Pan Tang Website is up online www.tygersofpantang.com . It's been a long time coming but we wanted it to be right bang up to date so it was launched to coincide with the release of the New EP Back & Beyond. You will be able to read the latest news, check on concert dates as they are confirmed and hear samples of the songs new and old. There is also a Tygers Shop to buy the latest merchandise and of course all new releases.

3 October - Above is a photo of JS taken at the Reading 1980 Tygers show. This is the first of a set of photos very kindly donated by Alan Perry from www.concertphotos.uk.com...thanks Alan! You can see very clearly in this picture that JS is playing the Gibson SG with the Bigsby trem - the guitar with which he auditioned for the Tygers.

1 September - My interview with Robb Weir, Tygers of Pan Tang main man, is now online - here. To mark the occasion I have some Tygers collectibles to give away. There are two 7 inch single versions of Don't Stop By and The Story So Far (signed by Robb), and two Tygers Noises from the Cathouse t-shirts (sizes Large and XLarge). I'll give these away on a first-come, first-served basis to fans who e-mail me at simonm75@googlemail.com with the correct answer to the following question about Robb Weir's career: Back in 1983, Robb's band Sergeant wrote a theme tune for the UK television children's show 'How Dare You!' which was never actually used. Which 1980s pop group were responsible for the song that eventually DID become the programme's theme tune?

20 August - Another few lines to big-up my forthcoming interview with Robb Weir: I recently had the privilege and pleasure of meeting and chatting with Robb - the Tygers guitarist and main man. A founding member, Robb is arguably the Tygers' greatest fan. He remains as passionate about the band's early material (particularly the all-time classic, Spellbound) as he has about the current incarnation of the band, which he revived in 1999. I caught up with Robb on a warm summer's day in New York (no - not THAT New York! - it's actually a small village near Whitley Bay, the Tygers' hometown). Our conversation focussed not only on John Sykes's time in the group, but the band's very early days, Robb's activity after the group's initial split, coming right up to date with the Tygers' plans for their next CD, tentatively titled 'Animal Instinct' and promising a 'back to the roots' approach. Keep your eyes peeled for the full interview!

10 August - Coming very soon: interview with Tygers of Pan Tang guitarist and main man Robb Weir! i.e. once I have typed it all up!!

1 August - John Sykes now has his own MySpace page. It is 100% official.

23 July - Endrik's Sykes guitar-player's guide has been updated - here. Thanks man!

9 July - Question and Answer with ex-Tygers of Pan Tang vocalist Jon Deverill - here!

17 June - More on the Whitesnake 1987 Collector's Edition: David Coverdale has another interview on the subject on the official Whitesnake website. Amongst other things he talks about he planned to team John Sykes up with Steve Vai and, typical of his double standards, says the following (doubtless a dig at JS): "My memory is very good... & my recall is not as self serving as some..."

8 June - The 20th Anniversary Special Collector's Edition of Whitesnake's 1987 album is now out (see below). The remastered audio promises guitar nuances you've never heard before but, to be honest, I think I prefer the unofficial Axe Killer remastered version. At least that didn't have nauseatingly sycophantic liner notes by "respected" rock journalist, Geoff Barton. As for Coverdale's story of the recording of the album, it makes me want to puke: "decisions were being made, studio time was being booked without my approval, or involvement [...] I felt taken advantage of." Oh really? How come you didn't just ditch all the tapes and wipe JS's guitar tracks completely then? And what about the Whitesnake fans who you are fleecing with repeated rehashes of greatest hits collections and 'nostalgia' tours with no new material, DC? Are we not being taken advantage of? People say that JS has never got over being dropped by DC and should let sleeping dogs lie. Well, to me it is pretty clear that DC has never got over sacking JS. Why this celebration of '1987'? DC knows losing JS was a mistake, you know it, I know it. I thought DC would do the gracious thing and acknowledge JS's enormous contribution to Whitesnake's ongoing success in the terms it deserves. I didn't really expect he would, and he proved me right - in spades. I won't be buying any more Whitesnake records.

24 May - Hello! Very busy with work and family stuff at the moment. However, the latest edition of Classic Rock magazine (July 2007) has a feature on Whitesnake 1987 drummer, Aynsley Dunbar. He comments on that album and his ensuing sacking thus:- "David (Coverdale) didn't want us any more. He wanted to make all the money... David [...] thought he was the one that put the album together, that it was all his doing. He'd forgotten that John Sykes had written all the music. John had another whole album already written which only needed DC's lyrics and voice on top and we would have had the next huge Whitesnake hit." Maybe so, but most interesting that Dunbar, for so long the silent participant (JS and Murray having said their pieces), finally emerges with the same story we are so familiar with. I would love to see DC accord his 1987 recording band the plaudits it deserves in the liner notes of the remastered edition of 1987 due out shortly. We shall see.

29 April - Winter 2007 tour dates for Lizzy (yes, another tour) can be found here

18 April - The Lizzy tour kicks off in my hometown of Newcastle this Saturday (my birthday!). I hope the tour goes well for JS and that being back in England he will be able to stock up on some English teabags and maybe get inspired to write and record some new music! I'll be looking forward to reading the reviews. Here's a cool picture of JS. Take care, Simon.

7 April - It's Easter-time, so seasonal best wishes to all Sykes fans! The UK leg of the latest Lizzy tour is a couple of weeks away, when things kick off in Newcastle on 21 April. Lizzy will probably be third on the bill so expect it to be a strictly 'greatest hits' set. But a good opportunity to see JS in action, if you've never had the chance.

9 March - Today I received some news via e-mail that appears to have originated from Eddie Trunk, who was working at bringing the rumoured Blue Murder reunion to fruition. The e-mail states "There is no reunion." I have no way of verifying this but, if true, it's a pity. Anyway, the music lives on! 1993-era JS interview uploaded here.

23 February - Keeping the Blue Murder reunion rumour bubbling, I've added an edited interview with Carmine Appice from 2006, here.

13 February - Interview from 1992 posted in the Blue Murder section - here Scroll to the foot of the page.

12 February - Rumours are emerging from the rock media in the US that the original line-up of Blue Murder (JS, Tony Franklin and Carmine Appice) will be reuniting this Autumn/Fall for a show in New York City. Nothing much to go on at this stage, although it appears that DJ Eddie Trunk is supporting the reunion plans. JS has done a fair few interviews with Trunk in recent years, implying that he trusts/respects the DJ, so this could be possible. Time will tell of course. Hopes have been raised before, but it has often been said that if you wish hard enough, your dreams may just come true.

1 February - Guitar Player magazine (February 2007) has a feature on "101 Forgotten Greats and Unsung Heroes" and, guess what? It features John Sykes. It says the following:- "With a Les Paul Custom and a vibrato wider than the English Channel, Sykes burst out the new wave of British heavy metal in the late '70s with the Tygers of Pan Tang. An amazing rhythm player and power riffer, Sykes also has tone and chops for days, whether playing with Thin Lizzy (1983's Thunder and Lightning and current reunion tours), Blue Murder, or Whitesnake (how about that lick in the Still of the Night fade out for some serious shred?)." I'm not sure whether to be sad or proud about seeing JS in this list, albeit in some fine company (Tommy Bolin, Jake E. Lee, Robbie Blunt). A lot of these guys are dead FFS! Still, thinking about it, Sykes fits both those categories - a Forgotten GREAT and an Unsung Guitar HERO.

30 January - New Tygers MP3 added to the Audio Clips page - here. 'Raised on Rock' featuring JS, from a radio broadcast in 1981.

26 January - Added some collected thoughts of JS on the Tygers of Pan Tang - here. It remains to be seen if John will participate in the upcoming book on the Tygers being written by its former managers. I would be pleasantly surprised if he did, but would his comments be much different to what you can read here? JS has been pretty scathing about what he perceives as the group's lack of professionalism. But I suspect that his experiences in the Tygers cannot have been all bad. Some of the music the Tygers performed in the JS-era was polished and still highly regarded to this day. The forthcoming book on the Tygers will be a "must read"; add that to what we can piece together from things other bandmembers, associates and Tygers contemporaries have said, magazine interviews etc. and we have a reasonable picture, but will Sykes fans ever get to hear a more considered perspective on the band and his Whitley Bay days from the man himself?

17 January - Currently listening to 'Nuclear Cowboy'. This album just keeps on kicking my behind. Hard to believe it is 7 (SEVEN) years since JS released a studio album...