Derek Sherinian, a keyboardist, is a man of great age. He would have been a star player in 1970, when keyboard titans like Rick Wakeman, Keith Emerson and Jon Jord were still in their prime. This was back in a time where such talent was valued and celebrated in popular music. Born in Santa Cruz, California at five years old, Sherinian learned to play piano and fell in love with Elton John’s 1973 double album, ‘Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. The album and the early influences of Bob Dylan and The Beatles launched Sherinian on a musical journey that continues to this day. He was still in junior high school and his musical talent was so great that he was awarded a scholarship to Berklee School of Music, Boston, Massachusetts. After three semesters of studying at the school, Sherinian felt it was time to try his hand as a professional musician. Buddy Miles, the former drummer of Jimi Hendrix’s Band Of Gypsys was his mentor. He invited him to audition and impressed enough to be offered a spot on the “chitlin circuit” in the Southern United States. He soon landed a gig alongside Alice Cooper, a rock legend, through the efforts and support of Al Pitrelli (now musical director of Trans -Siberian Orchestra), who was at the time in the same position as Cooper. He was performing over 250 shows for Alice’s ‘Trash’ album during which time he was awarded the nickname “The Caligula Of The Keyboards”, by shock rock legend, Eric Singer. He was asked by Eric Singer to become the offstage keyboardist of Kiss in 1991. Eric Singer had previously been in Sherinian’s band and had just been hired as the drummer. His profile rose when he joined Dream Theater, prog metal’s biggest stars. He found it more difficult musically than any other group he was a part of, but he rose to the occasion and was appointed keyboardist for the band in October 1994. This was just before the tour to support the album ‘Awake. After four years of being with the band, during the course of which he recorded three albums, and performed two world tours, his relationship ended. Sherinian left the band in January 1999, due to the usual suspect, i.e. “musical differences”. Although he was disappointed, he left the band to pursue his solo career. For his 1999 debut album, ‘Planet X,’ Virgil Donati, an Australian drummer, joined forces. It soon led to the formation of the progressive rock-fusion band of the same name. They released three albums: 2000’s Universe’, 2002 ‘MoonBabies u0026 2007 ‘Quantum. In 2002, Live From Oz, a live album, was released. It was recorded in Melbourne, Australia. They are technically sophisticated and completely different from what is popular in mainstream music. Sherinian is best known for his albums with Planet X. He has also created several fusion-influenced solo projects that have attracted guitar legends like Al DiMela, Steve Lukather and Slash. John Sykes and Zakk Wilde will record with him. He prefers a guitar-based, rock-based approach to fusion, as did his musical hero Jeff Beck. This allows for a lot of energy to be captured on the recordings. It also makes the music more appealing to fans of technical metal and jazz fusion. He has also proven his versatility by touring with many well-known artists such as Billy Idol, Yngwie Malmsteen, and others. Sherinian was approached earlier this year by Kevin Shirley, an Uber producer, to record the self-titled debut album with the band. He recorded the album with Glenn Hughes, Jason Bonham, Joe Bonamassa, blues guitarist titan, and Joe Bonamassa, Anglo -Rock “Supergroup”. This showcased his talents in yet another setting – 70’s influenced hard rock. It showed another side of his versatility. from http://www.dereksherinian.com
