His most well known playing is on the 1987 Whitesnake self titled album, also known simply as 1987. For the Whitesnake record John Sykes used two Mesa Boogie Coliseum heads and his favorite Gibson Les Paul Custom guitar.
Sykes fell victim to Whitesnake's revolving door; he was fired near the end of the 1987 recording sessions, but managed to record all his parts, save for the solo on "Here I Go Again" which was added later by Adrian Vandenberg.
This was Whitesnake's most successful recording, selling over 20 million copies worldwide. Songs like "Still of the Night", "Is This Love", "Give Me All Your Love", and particularly "Here I Go Again" were all hits, with the album reaching #2 on the Billboard Top 200.
Hoping to capitalize upon the success of 1987, Geffen Records signed Sykes to form a new band. After auditioning several vocalists (including Tony Martin and Ray Gillen), Sykes was encouraged to handle vocal duties himself. With fretless bassist Tony Franklin and drummer Carmine Appice, Blue Murder was formed.
Their self titled debut did moderately well, with "Valley of the Kings" receiving substantial airplay on MTV's Headbanger's Ball, the follow-up Nothing But Trouble received no promotion from Geffen and died quickly. A live recording, Screaming Blue Murder, was to be the band's final release.
Sykes has since recorded several solo albums, including Loveland, 20th Century, and Nuclear Cowboy. His latest album is a new live recording titled Bad Boy Live, which covers a large swath of his career, from the Thin Lizzy days through his most recent solo efforts.
In 1999, John Sykes' solo song "Cautionary Warning" was used in the anime series Black Heaven. The footage accompanying the song was rotoscoped from one of Sykes' concerts, which was a very striking statement for use in previews. Sykes' involvement in the series was the key feature of Pioneer USA's marketing.
In 2006, he got his own signature Gibson Les Paul Custom which was modeled after his favorite guitar, and has used it when touring with Thin Lizzy all around the UK and Ireland.
After over a decade fronting the reformed Thin Lizzy, John announced his departure from the band in June 2009.
Solo albums
As Sykes - Out of My Tree (1995)
As John Sykes - Loveland (1997)
As Sykes - 20th Century (1997)
As Sykes - Nuclear Cowboy (2000)
As John Sykes - Bad Boy Live! (2004)
As John Sykes - Sy-Ops (2021)
Everything I Need
John Sykes Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Searching for the answer
And my heart's been hurt before
I don't want to lose you
When you're all I really need
I've been waiting all my life
For love to rescue me
On the lonely side of life
Mama left me lonely
Yeah, she left with no good-bye
I don't want to lose you
Cause you're everything to me
I've been waiting all my life
For love to rescue me
You're everything I want
In a woman
You're everything I need
In a woman
You're everything I want
In a woman tonight
All my life
I don't whatever it is
When I'm holding you close
Yeah, it feels so real
Yeah, I'm crazy over you
I'll do what you want me to
Heaven sent you into my life
To take all of the hurt
Make it all alright
As I'm waiting here for you
And that is all I have to do
You're everything I want
In a woman
You're everything I need
In a woman
You're everything I want
In a woman tonight
All my life
Oh tonight
Oh, oh tonight
Oh, I've been waiting, waiting, waiting
All my life
The lyrics of "Everything I Need" by John Sykes are about the longing for love and the search for that one person who will make everything in life complete. The singer talks about how his heart has been hurt before, and he doesn't want to lose the person he's with because they are everything he needs. He has been waiting all his life for love to rescue him, and he sees the person he's with as the answer to his prayers.
The song talks about the singer's past experiences with loneliness and loss. His mother left him without warning, and he has struggled with being alone in the past. However, he believes that he has found everything he needs in the person he's with. He is crazy over them and is willing to do whatever they want. He sees them as heaven-sent, someone who has come into his life to take away the hurt and make everything alright.
The chorus of the song repeats the sentiment that the person the singer is with is everything he wants and needs in a woman tonight and all his life. He has been waiting, waiting, waiting for someone like them to come along, and now he has found them.
Overall, "Everything I Need" is a song about the search for love and the happiness that comes with finding the right person. The lyrics are heartfelt and emotional, and they speak to the universal desire for companionship and connection.
Line by Line Meaning
It's more than just a feeling deep within my soul
The emotions I feel are coming from a deeper place within me
Searching for the answer
I am seeking a solution to my problems
And my heart's been hurt before
I have experienced pain in the past
I don't want to lose you
I am afraid of the possibility of losing you
When you're all I really need
You are the only thing that I truly need
I've been waiting all my life
I have been waiting for a long time
For love to rescue me
I am hoping that love can save me from my troubles
I've had my share of losing
I have experienced a fair amount of loss in my life
On the lonely side of life
I have often felt alone in my life
Mama left me lonely
My mother abandoned me, leaving me feeling isolated
Yeah, she left with no good-bye
My mother left without saying goodbye
Cause you're everything to me
You are the most important thing in my life
You're everything I want
You possess all the qualities I desire in a partner
In a woman
All these desirable qualities belong to a woman
You're everything I need
You are the only thing I need to be happy
In a woman tonight
I am looking for all these qualities in a partner tonight
I don't whatever it is
I don't know what it is exactly
When I'm holding you close
When I am in your arms
Yeah, it feels so real
The sensation is authentic
Heaven sent you into my life
I feel like you were sent to me by a higher power
To take all of the hurt
To ease my pain
Make it all alright
To make everything better
As I'm waiting here for you
While I am anticipating your arrival
And that is all I have to do
To wait for you to arrive is all I need to do
Contributed by Madison B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
David Vitullo
John Sykes is one of the greatest guitar players and has a good voice, a good song writer, a good power ballad song
Bill C. Spilker
I'm an immense fan of John Sykes & have been for many years. To this day, never has he came remotely close at failing to amaze me with his musical prowess in the music world! Right when you thought you've heard every note, lyric written & performed by Sykes, something else he has had his hand in leaves me again in awe? My God? I don't think the man could turn out a bad song if he tried??? Thank you John. Keep cranking them out & Please come to Portland, OR. Sincerely, Bill C. Spilker. Peace!
Freya2021
All the ballads on this album are awesome...John is such a huge talent in rock history...he's incredible ...I love all his works ,I hope he will release some new music soon...
Jimkenhoy83
Love this tune. Sykes is the best.
Pamla Douglas
As always the voice, the playing, with looks like his amazing.
Waylon Peyton
@Aaron Azariah yup, been using InstaFlixxer for years myself :D
Jude Zain
@Aaron Azariah Yea, have been watching on instaflixxer for since december myself =)
Aaron Azariah
Not sure if anyone cares but if you guys are bored like me during the covid times you can stream all the new series on instaflixxer. Been binge watching with my gf these days :)
Annihilector
What a Solo!!!!!!!!!!
Love all the snakes!
Christophe Vernizzi
Avec votre musique vous m'emmenez toujours dans un monde parallèle