Shawn Lane
photograph by: Carl Johan Grimmark
Background information
Born	March 21, 1963
Died	September 26, 2003
Genre(s)	Rock, fusion
Occupation(s)	Musician, Songwriter
Instrument(s)	Guitar, piano
Years active	1977 - 2003
Associated acts	Black Oak Arkansas, The Willys, Jonas Hellborg
Website	http://www.shawnlane.com

Shawn Lane (March 21, 1963 – September 26, 2003) was an American musician. He quickly became a noted player in underground guitar circles and joined Black Oak Arkansas when he was just fourteen years old. Image File history File links picture of Shawn Drover File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... For other uses, see Rock music (disambiguation). ... Jazz fusion (or jazz-rock fusion or fusion) is a musical genre that merges elements of jazz with other styles of music, particularly pop, rock, folk, reggae, funk, metal, country, R&B, hip hop, electronic music and world music. ... “Instrumentalist” redirects here. ... A songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics to songs, the musical composition or melody to songs, or both. ... A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified with the purpose of making music. ... For other uses, see Guitar (disambiguation). ... A short grand piano, with the lid up. ... Black Oak Arkansas, 1972 Black Oak Arkansas is an American Southern rock band named after the bands hometown of Black Oak, Arkansas. ... Jonas Hellborg (born June 7, 1958) is a Swedish bass guitarist. ... is the 80th day of the year (81st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see 1963 (disambiguation). ... is the 269th day of the year (270th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... “Instrumentalist” redirects here. ... For other uses, see Guitar (disambiguation). ... Black Oak Arkansas, 1972 Black Oak Arkansas is an American Southern rock band named after the bands hometown of Black Oak, Arkansas. ...

He is best known for his solo album Powers of Ten and his long stint with former John McLaughlin bassist Jonas Hellborg. Powers of Ten is the debut solo album from Shawn Lane on Warner Bros Records in 1992. ... John McLaughlin John McLaughlin (aka pinyon)(born January 4, 1942), also Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is a jazz fusion guitar player from Doncaster, Yorkshire in England. ... Jonas Hellborg (born June 7, 1958) is a Swedish bass guitarist. ...

Career

Shawn Lane was born in Memphis, Tennessee. At the age of eight he accompanied his sisters on the piano, but did not play guitar seriously until he was ten. Lane progressed very rapidly on the guitar, and he found it to be his natural instrument. At thirteen, he began to practice heavily, developing his technical abilities. Word began to spread around Memphis about a talented young guitar player, and at fourteen he auditioned for the lead guitar spot in Black Oak Arkansas. Black Oak Arkansas had been a popular country rock band but at the time when Lane joined the band's popularity was declining. At age fifteen Lane saw Allan Holdsworth perform at a UK concert and was inspired to develop his own method of playing guitar. Shawn toured with Black Oak Arkansas for the next four years. As the original band members dropped out, Lane began recruiting players from his high school days and began to play a style closer to fusion than the country rock style for which the band was known. For other uses, see Memphis (disambiguation). ... A short grand piano, with the lid up. ... Black Oak Arkansas, 1972 Black Oak Arkansas is an American Southern rock band named after the bands hometown of Black Oak, Arkansas. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Allan Holdsworth (born August 6, 1946 in Bradford, West Yorkshire) is a British jazz guitarist and composer. ... Jazz fusion (or jazz-rock fusion or fusion) is a musical genre that merges elements of jazz with other styles of music, particularly pop, rock, folk, reggae, funk, metal, country, R&B, hip hop, electronic music and world music. ...

At eighteen Shawn Lane was married and burnt out from touring with Black Oak Arkansas so he decided to take a break and learn more about music. Over the next eight years he studied music and composing on his own and mainly worked on playing piano. Much of the material on Powers of Ten was written on his piano as Lane considered it his main writing instrument. He quickly developed his technique on keyboards as well, taking influence from pianists like Liszt,Tatum and Cziffra,ref> powers of ten ablum sleeve. ref>Requiem for a master. Guitar Player January 2004 http://www.guitarplayer.com/article/shawn-lane/jan-04/930</ref> ^[1] He began to create demo tapes which garnered interest from Warner Brothers Music and Lane was offered a recording contract. Except for one cover song, Lane wrote all the material and played all the instruments on his debut album. The album did well and earned several magazine awards.^[2] During the production of the album Lane continued to play live shows and did session work. He also performed on the Mark Varney Project's Centrifugal Funk album along with Brett Garsed and Frank Gambale.

Lane released two more solo albums following his debut. Powers of Ten Live!, recorded live in 1993, and The Tri-Tone Fascination.

When Lane met Jonas Hellborg a musical relationship was formed. They both enjoyed classical, rock, Pakistani, and Indian music. Lane and Hellborg played with drummer Jeff Sipe in a jam band commonly referred to as HLS (Hellborg, Lane, Sipe). Sipe was already well known in the jam band scene as the original drummer for Aquarium Rescue Unit, and helped HLS get exposure all over the world.^{[citation needed]} Later, Lane and Hellborg formed an East-West fusion band with Indian musicians V. Selvaganesh and Umamahesh. In February 2003, Lane and Hellborg toured India with drummer Andrea Marchesini. Lane's last concert performance was at Smilefest in North Carolina with Hellborg and Jim Britt. Jonas Hellborg (born June 7, 1958) is a Swedish bass guitarist. ... Classical music is a broad, somewhat imprecise term, referring to music produced in, or rooted in the traditions of, European art, ecclesiastical and concert music, encompassing a broad period from roughly 1000 to the present day. ... Rock and roll (also spelled Rock n Roll, especially in its first decade), also called rock, is a form of popular music, usually featuring vocals (often with vocal harmony), electric guitars and a strong back beat; other instruments, such as the saxophone, are common in some styles. ... The Aquarium Rescue Unit was an experimental jazz rock group, originally founded as a backup band for Col. ... V. Selvaganesh is an Indian percussionist working in the Carnatic tradition, and is the leading kanjira (or south Indian frame drum) player of his generation. ...

Death

Lane had psoriasis his whole life and also suffered from psoriatic arthritis from the age of about 13. This did not impair his playing but caused difficulty walking, and required treatment with steroids which seriously affected Shawn's weight so much that he weighed over 300 pounds in the years before his death (though Shawn was slim in his youth). He also smoked constantly. On September 26, 2003 Shawn died in a hospital in Memphis, shortly after being told that he would have to remain on medical oxygen the rest of his life. He is interred in the Memorial Park Cemetery, Memphis. Psoriatic arthritis (or Arthropathic psoriasis) is a type of inflammatory arthritis that affects around 20% of people suffering from the chronic skin condition Psoriasis. ... is the 269th day of the year (270th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the chemical element and its most stable form, or dioxygen. ... Memorial Park Cemetery, located at 5485 Hacks Cross Rd in Memphis, Tennessee, was founded in 1924 by E. Clovis Hinds. ...

Discography

Solo:

• 1992 West Side Boogie (Promo Single)
• 1992 Powers of Ten (Warner Bros.)
• 1999 The Tri-Tone Fascination
• 2001 Powers of Ten: Live!

With Jonas Hellborg: Powers of Ten is the debut solo album from Shawn Lane on Warner Bros Records in 1992. ... “WB” redirects here. ...

• 1996 Temporal Analogues of Paradise
• 1997 Time is the Enemy
• 1999 Zenhouse
• 2000 Good People in Times of Evil
• 2002 Personae
• 2003 Icon

References

1. ^ Richard Hallebeek's interview with Shawn Lane. http://www.richardhallebeek.com/interviews/lane.php
2. ^ Guitar Player magazine. March 1993

External links

• ShawnLane.com
• Shawn Lane interview
• Steppin Out, 2005 article in the Memphis Flyer
• Shawn Lane at Find A Grave