Johansson is son of the well-known Swedish jazz pianist Jan Johansson and brother of the heavy metal drummer Anders Johansson. In 1982, the classically trained Johansson left the jazz fusion band Slem and joined the Swedish metal band Silver Mountain, which also included Anders. In 1983 he left Sweden for California and joined guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen as a member of his band, Rising Force. Numerous records and world tours ensued and he stayed with Yngwie until 1989. Johansson also played with the band Dio between 1989 and 1990. Like Anders, he began an ongoing collaboration with Jonas Hellborg in 1989 which has resulted in several well-received progressive and avant-garde recordings, including Dissident, Silent Run (an acoustic piano trio record with Ginger Baker on drums) and the hard core progressive fusion record, E.
In 1993, Johansson co-founded a progressive blues metal project, The Johansson Brothers, and recorded a self-titled record. In 1996, with a different line-up, they recorded another album, Sonic Winter, this time under the name "Johansson", with Yngwie Malmsteen guesting on guitar. The last Johansson record, The Last Viking, a more "European metal" oriented album, was released in 1999 with special guests Michael Romeo and Göran Edman.
Johansson has released several instrumental solo records such as Fjäderlösa Tvåfotingar, Ten Seasons (a piano solo album improvised in the Mark Kostabi gallery, New York), Heavy Machinery (with Anders and Allan Holdsworth) and Fission (with Anders, Shawn Lane and Mike Stern) and many collaborations with other artists, metal compilations and Berends Brothers' band Mastermind.
He co-founded Heptagon Records to distribute his own recordings and that of other musicians, such as guitarist Benny Jansson and bassist Magnus Rosén.
Johansson auditioned for Dream Theater after Kevin Moore left the band in 1994. Despite his technical prowess, Johansson was not accepted into the band. Some sources state[citation needed] that if he had joined he would not have been allowed to participate in the songwriting process until the band was certain Johansson was suitable. Apparently, Johansson lost his interest in the keyboardist spot after this.[citation needed]
He joined the power metal band Stratovarius in 1995 and has remained since, still releasing solo albums and appearing as a guest or session musician in other projects.
Fading Away
Johansson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Laughed away so many days
Too many miles apart to keep it real, we
Had to go our separate ways
fading away, fading away, we saw the
Light together, but now you fade away
White, the truth is somewhere in
Between
fading away, fading away, we saw the
Light together, but now you fade away
The lyrics of Johansson's "Fading Away" speak of a relationship that has slowly but surely come to an end. The song opens with the line "You took away my sense of destiny," which could mean that the other person has caused the singer to lose her sense of purpose or direction. Despite having shared countless happy moments together, it becomes apparent that the couple cannot make things work anymore. The distance between them has made it impossible for them to maintain a real connection, and so they have decided to part ways. The line "we had to go our separate ways" suggests that their separation may have been necessary for them to find happiness outside of their relationship.
"Fading Away" is the story of a relationship that has run its course. The lines "I thought that life is either black or white, the truth is somewhere in between" speak to the gray area where relationships can often exist. They may begin with great passion and intensity, but that fire can fade with time. The chorus of the song repeats the phrase "fading away," which is a metaphor for the relationship slowly losing its spark. The singer and her partner may have seen the light together in the past, but now that has faded away as well.
Line by Line Meaning
You took away my sense of destiny, we
You robbed me of my fate, we were once inseparable
Laughed away so many days
We spent countless days just laughing and enjoying each other's company
Too many miles apart to keep it real, we
We were physically distant, making it difficult to maintain our relationship
Had to go our separate ways
We were forced to part ways and pursue different paths in life
fading away, fading away, we saw the
We are slowly disappearing from each other's lives
Light together, but now you fade away
We once shared a bright future, but now you are disappearing from it
I thought that life is either black or
I used to believe that life was simple and straightforward
White, the truth is somewhere in
But I have come to realize that reality is more complex and nuanced
Between
And the truth lies somewhere in between the extremes of black and white
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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