Abba

Mark Greenway (existirá um outro?) em release histórico copioso e faixa-a-faixa em “The Best Of ’90-’99” (2000), aqui resumido:

“Yngwie Malmsteen: Stubborn perfectionist, professional hothead and unpredictable eccentric.

In today’s nondescript rock world of downbeat musicians and underplayed personas, the Sweden-born guitar virtuoso has theses charges levelled at him repeatedly – plus plenty more equally mocking words in relation to the frenzied fashion with which he attacks his instrument. He is not exactly loved in ‘hip’ media circles.

What people often fail to acknowledge, however, is that here is a man unmoved by trends and the unsavoury practice of bandwagon jumping employed by so many ‘contemporary’ artists in search of a quick hit. In direct contrast, Yngwie studiously learnt his chosen craft from the age of five onwards, kick-starting his art in the aftermath of a 1970 Jimi Hendrix TV show before going on to work in an instrument shop where he developed a passion for expertly crafted traditional instruments (the characteristics of which he later employed on his own electric guitars). Throughout, Yngwie honed his art to such a point that he could quite possibly have still pulled off one of his dramtic works of such classical composers as Bach, Vivaldi and Paganini, it was high time that the world-at-large got to hear about such a precocious talent.

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Possibly feeling slightly tied down by operating in such communal circles, he then took control through his own Rising Force project and recorded a brace of albuns, some of which would rightly be defined as classics not only in the realms of the guitar hero – but in the hard rock genre as a whole. Take your pick from the predominantly instrumental ‘Rising Force’ (84) and ‘Marching Out’ (85) albuns, the raw melodies of ‘Trilogy’ (86), the hit-punctuared majesty of ‘Odissey’ (88), the onstage fireworks of ‘Trial By Fire’ (recorded live in Leningrad, Russia, 89), and the choruses of the smooth’n’sassy ‘Eclipse’ (90) and ‘Fire And Ice’ (92) albuns. Via a succession of vocalists, the odd major car accident and the ususal day-to-day bullshit, they all made their mark. This much we already know.

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In the meantime, a live release of a slightly different persuasion was about to see the light of day. It stemmed from Yngwie traveling to Prague in ’97 to record his ‘Concerto Suite For Electric Guitar and Orchestra In E Flat Minor OP. 1 – Millennium’ (98) with the Czech Philarmonic Orchestra. This ambitious and deeply time-consuming projetc saw Yngwie transforming his classical influences into a pure concerto, with infusions of his wailing guitar accompanying the orchestra. Consequently, ‘Cavalino Rampante’ is a rousing snapshot from a session that anyone should be able to appreciate for it’s symphonic high drama. Metallica who?

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Oh, and did we forget to mention the cheeky little bonus cover of the Abba superhit, ‘Gimme, Gimme, Gimme’, that jumps playfully to the front of the album’s running order. With tongue firmly planted in cheek, this just goes to show that even one of rocks most industrious, colourful and commited characters doesn’t necessarily need a sense of humour bypass to function. Pop chuckles aplenty in a classical stylee – who’d have thought it?”