Known primarily for his work with Dokken and Lynch Mob, George Lynch is considered to be one of the most influential and famous 80's metal guitarists and is ranked #68 on "100 Greatest Guitarists Of All Time" by Guitar World magazine and is also ranked #10 on "Top 10 Metal Guitarists Of All Time" by Gibson.
Lynch was born September 28, 1954 in Spokane Washington, was raised in Bakersfield, CA, and began learning to play guitar at the age of 10. He cites Jimi Hendrix, Randy Rhoads, Jeff Beck and Michael Schenker, along with Eddie Van Halen, Allan Holdsworth, Roy Buchanan, Albert King, Muddy Waters, and Yngwie Malmsteen as being part of his musical influences. Great White guitarist Mark Kendall claims George started two-hand tapping before Eddie Van Halen did.
He twice auditioned to be Ozzy Osbourne’s guitarist, once when Randy Rhoads was chosen and then when Brad Gillis was picked. Lynch also claims he had the job for a very brief time in 1983 until Osbourne changed his mind and hired Jake E. Lee. Lynch joined Dokken in 1981 and as a member of their ‘classic” lineup played on four studio albums in the 80s, and then 2 more in the mid-90s. Tensions with Don Dokken prompted his first exit from the band and in 1989 Lynch formed Lynch Mob (big fan of their debut album) with Dokken drummer Mick Brown and vocalist Oni Logan. As mentioned already, he rejoined Dokken in the 90s before those same tensions led him to leave Dokken again in 1997. He reformed Lynch Mob and has released 7 more studios with them since 1998. He also has recorded about a dozen solo albums over the past 20 years. He got really heavy into bodybuilding in the mid-2000s but quit when he claims it began to make it difficult for him to play by hurting the muscles in his hand and hindering his dexterity.
The classic Dokken lineup has recorded a new song and just recently, Lynch addressed rumors of a Dokken reunion "If I were betting, I'd say there's probably a 50/50 chance [that there will be more gigs]," the guitarist said. "And I'd be advocating for that, too. On a business level, I'm sure it could be done very easily. So, you know, never say never."
Brown however has stated there is still tension between Don and George. "Nothing's changed," he said. "I know George and Don, during the conversations to get this going, they're already starting up… I'm tired of the bad-attitude stuff. And you put Don and George together, and it just starts happening again, and then it gets really confusing. I think it's very sad when grown men act that way. And I'm tired of being around it, but here we go. And listen, for that kind of money, I'll shut up and do what we used to do."
My feelings about Don Dokken have been well- documented in the annals of TIMH, and I've always felt that Lynch is better on a recording than he is live but I might take the opportunity to see these guys live again given a chance.
