Mercyful Fate Family Tree

September 20, 2023 by Joe Cearlock in Family Tree

This is a project aimed at making it easy to see who inspired the bands you love or even hate. For this I try not to use any influences that the band don’t claim themselves. There will be a focus on predecessors but successors will be added as they site the band. These trees become more and more interactive as new bands are added, allowing you to click any band that has a tree and jump to it.

We want our lists to be better. If you know something that belongs on this list, let us know. When in doubt we will leave it out, so we need reliable sources.

Mercyful Fate is a important metal band that doesn’t get the attention they deserve. Much of the reason being their initial career was relatively short lived. They have been a huge influence on a ton of bands and are far more technical of a band than they are given credit for. They released their first two albums in 1983, and 1984 with the line up consisting of vocalist King Diamond, Hank Shermann and Michael Denner on guitars, Timi Hanson on bass, and Kim Ruzz on drums.
Primarily Writing in the band has been done by Shermann, King Diamond, and Denner. After the first two albums, the band split but reformed in the early 90’s releasing albums through out the 90’s. During that time the band saw some line up changes with only King Diamond and Hank as core members. With the exception of two songs, one by Bassist Sharlee D’Angelo, and another by Guitarist Mike Wead, all other songs were written by King, Shermann, or Denner. Denner was no longer with the band after the fourth album. The influences here will only be that of King Diamond, Shermann, and Denner.

Jimi Hendrix is one of the most influential and revolutionary guitar players. Hank named him as one of his favorite lead players.

Ollie Halsall

Deep Purple are an important and influential hard rock and early heavy metal band. King Diamond named Ian Gillian as an influence. Hank named Ritchie Blackmore as one of his favorite lead players. Michael also named Deep Purple.

Ritchie Blackmore

Led Zeppelin are one of the most influential hard rock bands of all time. King Diamond named Robert Plant as an influence. Michael named Led Zeppelin.

Alice Cooper is often known as the original shock rocker. King Diamond named him as an influence.

Genesis were a influential progressive rock band and later hit more mainstream fame with poppy synth rock stuff. King Diamond named them as an influence both musically but also theatrically.

Black Sabbath are the Fathers of Heavy Metal. Hank named them as an influence and *Sabotage,* and Sabbath Bloody Sabbath as favorite albums. King Diamond named Ozzy as an influence. Michael also named Sabbath.

Uriah Heep are influential progressive rockers and metal dabblers. King Diamond name then and singer David Byron as an influence with Byron being his favorite singer. Michael also named them as an influence.

Trapeze were a 70’s hard rock band. Michael named them as an influence.

UFO are an influential Hard Rock band. Hank named Michael Schenker and them as an influence, and named Schenker as one of his favorite lead players. Michael also names Schenker.

Sweet were hard glam rock band. Hank named their stuff between 1973-76 as an early influence, and *Fanny Adams* as a favorite album.

Three Man Army were a hard rock band of the early 70’s. Michael named them as an influence.

Scorpions were one of the earliest adopters of heavy metal. Hank named them and Uli Roth as an early influence, and *Virgin Killer* as a favorite album. He named Uli as one of his favorite lead players, and Michael also named him as an influence.

Captain Beyond was a progressive rock supergroup, however their first album I would classify primarily as Progressive Traditional Heavy Metal. Similar to several other early 70’s progressive rock bands they played with the new heavy metal sound, and even more so than some of their peers. Hank and named their first album as a favorite and the influence. Michael also named them as an influence.

Aerosmith are one of the most classic of Hard Rock bands. Hank named *Rocks* as a favorite album.

Judas Priest are one of the most important heavy metal bands. Hank named their 70’s albums as an early influence and Stain Class, Sin After Sin, and Sad Wings of Destiny as favorite albums. He named Glen Tipton as one of his favorite composers. Michael said he is a huge fan.

Yngwie Malmsteen is known as a virtuoso guitarist in the neo-classical style. Hank said he was impressed when Yngwie first came out.

Van Halen with Eddie on guitar was a new revolution to guitar playing. Hank said he liked his playing on their first album.

Ozzy had an influential career even after already being part of Black Sabbath. King Diamond named him as an influence.

Hank names a favorite band/album that I can not identify, “Warning/2 (The Red Album)”

Hank was previously in a punk band, Brats.

King Diamond in one interview talks about how great Dio’s vocals were, but didn’t directly name him as an influence, perhaps he is though. When talking about his makeup King said he was influenced by Peter Gabriel and Alice Cooper. King talking about concerts he saw when he was young named Sex Pistols back then, the Runaways, Thin Lizzy, Grand Funk Railroad, The Who, Blue Oyster Cult, Geordie, and Budgie. I’m not clear if he meant these as influences, but lean toward he was just reminiscing.

Michael said that Hank picked up guitar influenced by Ace Frehley of Kiss.

Some of Michael’s influences are lacking an original source that is till online. These influences include Uli Jon Roth, Michael Schenker, and Ollie Halsall. The original sources seem to be from old Mercyful Fate and Denner/Sherman websites that are no longer active, but I believe these second hand sources to be reliable as the same list has been identically copied in multiple places and other indirect comments give evidence of the list.

Bands influenced by Mercyful Fate!

As this project advances, bands will be added here… there are many!

Bay Area Thrash Legends

Thrash Kings

Sources:

https://hankshermann.com/bio/
https://loudwire.com/hank-shermann-early-mercyful-fate-reunion-hopes-guitar-influences/
https://web.archive.org/web/20160303165043/http://www.tartareandesire.com/interviews/kingdiamond.html
https://www.loudersound.com/features/king-diamond-is-honoured-to-have-inspired-metallica
https://www.kerrang.com/king-diamond-if-there-is-a-hell-and-i-go-there-who-cares-ive-already-faced-it
https://steelforbrains.tumblr.com/post/98725284842/king-diamond
https://www.bardomethodology.com/articles/2020/04/15/michael-denner-king-diamond-mercyful-fate-interview/
https://www.saitenkult.de/2019/09/26/michael-denner/
https://www.johndenner.com/michael-denner/

Accept Family Tree

February 02, 2021 by Joe Cearlock in Family Tree

Metal Family Tree

We want our lists to be better. If you know something that belongs on this list, let us know. When in doubt we will leave it out, so we need reliable sources.

Accept are one of the most important German heavy metal bands. When the NWOBHM spring up, Accept was representing the same generation of metal heads in Germany. At the heart of the band has always been guitarist Wolf Hoffmann and except for the most recent of years bassist Peter Baltes. The classic lineup also consisted of vocalist Udo Dirkschneider and drummer Stefan Kaufmann who replaced Frank Friedrich who played on the first album. Rhythm guitarists during that time were Jörg Fischer who appeared on most albums and Herman Frank who played on a couple albums. Eat The Heart featured vocalist David Reece. The modern line up of Accept is fronted by vocalist, Mark Tornillo. It also features a new guitarist and drummer but there are no writing credits that indicate they have contributed.

Buddy Rich

The Rolling Stones are among the most influential and well known rock bands to come out of the 60’s. Udo named them as an influence.

Jimi Hendrix is legend, inspiring a generation of music and beyond. Udo named him as an influence.

Deep Purple are a very influential hard rock / early heavy metal band. Wolf named Ritchie Blackmore as probably his biggest influence. Udo, Stefan, and Peter also named Deep Purple as an influence.

Led Zeppelin may easily be the most influential hard rock band. Stefan named them as an influence.

Uriah Heep were an influential progressive rock band who dabbled in early heavy metal. Udo named them as an influence.

Black Sabbath are the fathers of heavy metal. Udo named them as an influence.

Sweet were a hard rock / glam rock band. Udo named them as an influence. Stefan named Sweet and Mick Tucker as an influence.

Scorpions are the original German metal / hard rock band. Wolf named Uli Jon Roth as a big influence.

Judas Priest are probably the most quintessential heavy metal band. Wolf said both Glenn and KK have been a huge influence on him. Peter also named them as an influence on the band. Stefan said he was a fan.

Rainbow brought Ritchie Blackmore and Ronnie James Dio together for something amazing. Ritchie is one of Wolf’s biggest influences. Stefan also named Rainbow and Cozy Powell as an influence.

AC/DC are the quintessential hard rock band. Wolf named Angus Young as a big influence. Peter also said they were an influence.

Wolf said he is a big fan of blues guitarist Joe Bonamassa and classical.

Wolf’s wife contributed to lyrics at times, she is credited as Deaffy.

I was un able to find the influences of Jörg Fischer who was on second guitar and wrote on most of the 80’s albums.

Frank Friedrich only drummed on the first album. I’m unsure of his influences.

Herman Frank is given credit for writing on Balls to the Wall and one co-writing credit on Blood of the Nations. He said he was not allowed to write in Accept. I’m not clear on his influence but he has mentioned Ritchie Blackmore and Gary Moore. He mentions Deep Purple and Iron Maiden being favorites of his.

David Reece was the vocalist for Eat the Heart. Although the entire band is given credit for writing, He said he didn’t write any vocal melodies. I’m unsure of his influences.

Mark was a fan of Accept as far back as the early days. In his former band TT Quick, they covered Accept songs. He played classical piano and tuba as a kid. He plays guitar, bass, drums, but always says he ends up singing in every band he’s in. I’m not sure of his influences.

Bands influenced by Accept!

As this project advances, bands will be added here… there are many!

Sources:

https://www.loudersound.com/features/accepts-wolf-hoffman-my-5-favourite-guitarists
https://metalshockfinland.com/2014/06/03/wolf-hoffmann-ive-always-been-a-huge-fan-of-ritchie-blackmore/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymtUpsLpoq8&feature=emb_logo
https://bravewords.com/news/u-d-o-s-udo-dirkschneider-talks-new-album-influences-and-more-audio-interview-streaming
https://myglobalmind.com/2015/06/26/interview-with-accept-bassist-and-back-vocalist-peter-baltes/
http://metalmark.blogspot.com/2011/08/interview-with-stefan-kaufmann.html
https://www.blabbermouth.net/news/guitarist-herman-frank-says-its-a-shame-he-wasnt-allowed-to-write-any-music-for-accept/
https://myglobalmind.com/2017/09/20/love-guitarist-iron-maiden-herman-franks-career-aspirations/
https://www.metal-rules.com/2019/04/14/david-reece/
https://www.blabbermouth.net/news/mark-tornillo-says-he-was-extremely-nervous-replacing-udo-dirkschneider-in-accept/
https://rotrradio.rocks/%23rotrarmy-blog%2Freviews/f/the-rise-of-accepts-mark-tornillo

Diamond Head Family Tree

November 30, 2020 by Joe Cearlock in Family Tree

Metal Family Tree

We want our lists to be better. If you know something that belongs on this list, let us know. When in doubt we will leave it out, so we need reliable sources.

Diamond Head are a new wave of British heavy metal band. At the heart of the band has always been guitarist and primary song writer Brian Tatler. Original vocalist/guitarist Sean Harris and his replacement vocalist Nick Tart have both wrote collaboratively with Brian. In more recent years writing has been more collaborative with drummer Karl Wilcox also contributing to the writing process.

Pink Floyd may be the most influential and well known progressive rock band. Brian named Dark Side of the Moon as his second favorite album and said he learned the entire thing. — Pink Floyd may be the most influential and well known progressive rock band. Brian named *Dark Side of the Moon* as his second favorite album and said he learned the entire thing.

Deep Purple were a very influential hard rock / early heavy metal band. Brian named Ritchie as a big influence and the reason he wanted to play lead. Sean and Karl also named them as an influence.

Led Zeppelin are among the first and most imporant hard rock bands. Brian named them as his favorite band. Led Zeppelin II was the first album he got and it had a big impact on him. He named Physical Graffiti as his favorite album and “Kashmir” a… — Led Zeppelin are among the first and most imporant hard rock bands. Brian named them as his favorite band. *Led Zeppelin II* was the first album he got and it had a big impact on him. He named *Physical Graffiti* as his favorite album and “Kashmir” as his favorite song. Sean and Karl also named them as an influence.

Genesis are an influential progressive rock band. Brian was a fan and said they were influential on the NWOBHM scene.

Free are another influential progressive rock band. Brain also said they were an influence on the NWOBHM scene. Sean also named them as an influence.

Black Sabbath are the fathers of metal. Brian named them as a big influence on Diamond Head. Sean and Karl also named them.

Gentle Giant were a progressive rock band. Brian has listed them as one of his influences.

UFO are a very influential hard rock band. Brain said they were influential on the NWOBHM scene. Karl also named them as an influence.

Thin Lizzy are a very influential rock / hard rock band known for their guitar harmonies. Brian said they was influential on the NWOBHM scene.

Queen are a widely popular rock band. Brian said they were an influence on the NWOBHM scene.

Judas Priest are possibly the most quintessential heavy metal band. Brian named them as a big influence. He said that they would occasionally try to write songs with the dynamics of “Victim of Changes” and said his favorite riff was from “Island of Domination”. Sean also named them.

Rush are one of the most influential progressive hard rock bands. Brian is a big fan and said they always strived to get Geddy’s bass sound in Diamond Head.

Rainbow combined the legendary Ritchie Blackmore with Ronnie James Dio. Brian didn’t directly name them as an influence but did name Ritchie and also motioned being a big fan of epic songs like “Stargazer”

AC/DC are probably the most quintessential hard rock band. Brian is a huge fan and particularly notes the energy they have. Karl named them as an influence.

Van Halen had a huge impact on the world of guitar with Eddie being revolutionary on the instrument. Brain named them as an influence saying that Eddie set a new bar for lead guitar players.

Brian says he wasn’t inspired to play punk music, but was inspired by punk bans in the sense that he didn’t have to be the greatest guitar player to just get out there and play. He said he liked bands like The Sex Pistols, The Jam, The Adverts, and the Ramones. He says some progressive rock bands can be pretentious but mentions being a fan of Genesis.

Original drummer Duncan Scott was on the first three albums and only has one co-writing credit that is on an album after he was no longer in the band. I didn’t find his influences.

Nick Wilcox joined as drummer in 1991. He shares in writing credits on many songs since that time . He played trumpet when he was young. His early drum influences were jazz drummers like Buddy Rich, Gene Krupa, and his dad who was a big band drummer, as well as glam band Slade. He also mentions Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells, Keith Moon, Terry Bozzio, and Neil Peart.

Nick was on vocals for two albums and contributed to writing but I’m unsure of his influences.

Bands influenced by Diamond Head!

As this project advances, bands will be added here!

Thrash Masters headed by Thrash Father Dave Mustaine

Sources:

https://www.loudersound.com/features/diamond-heads-brian-tatler-10-records-that-changed-my-life
https://search.blabbermouth.net/news/brian-tatler-doesnt-know-why-original-diamond-head-singer-sean-harris-hasnt-released-any-new-music-in-nearly-30-years/
https://yourlastrites.com/2016/05/09/are-we-evil-yes-please-interview-with-brian-tatler-of-diamond-head/
http://www.noizzeater.net/int/diamond-head-interview-brian-tatler-2017.php
https://www.diamondheadofficial.com/copy-of-profile-rasmus
https://www.ballbustermusic.com/2002/06/05/ready-to-strike-interview-with-diamond-head-vocalist-sean-harris/
http://musipediaofmetal.blogspot.com/2017/08/the-spotlight-interview-with-karl.html
http://metalmark.blogspot.com/2013/02/nwobhm-wednesday-interview-with-diamon_20.html

Raven Family Tree

September 24, 2020 by Joe Cearlock in Family Tree

Metal Family Tree

We want our lists to be better. If you know something that belongs on this list, let us know. When in doubt we will leave it out, so we need reliable sources.

Let people know you listen to the lesser known bands and proclaim your elitism proudly.

Raven comes out of the NWOBHM movement. Formed by brothers bassists/vocalist John and guitarist/backing vocals Mark Gallagher, they are the heart of Raven. Since their first album Drummers have been fairly consistent as well with the band only having three: Rob Hunter (80’s), Joe Hasselvander (87-2017), and currently Mike Heller since 2017. Raven has been a three piece since their first album although they did have a two guitar line up with two different guitar players early on. They also went through a few drummers prior to their first album as well. The writing has always been done by the three members at that time.

David Bowie is the original glam rocker. John named him as one of their influences they watched on TV.

Ronnie Lane

The Who at times had a harder sound then many of the rock bands of the 60’s. John named John Entwistle as an influence.

T.Rex were glam rockers. John named them as an influence.

Deep Purple were a hugely influential band. John named them along with bassist Roger Glover as an influence as well as singers Ian Gillan, and Glenn Hughes. John said that Ritchie was one of Mark’s early influences.

Status Quo were a hard rock / rock n roll band. John named them as one of the main reasons he wanted to start Raven. He said that they were one of Mark’s big influences for rhythm.

Slade were a rock/hard rock band with a lot of rock ‘n’ roll still in them. John said they were the band that really got him obsessed with music and named Jimmy Lea as his main influence.

Mott the Hoople was a glam rock band and one named by John as a band they watched on TV.

Led Zeppelin are easily one of the most influential bands. John named them and bassist John Paul Jones as a big influence.

Rory Gallagher was a blues rock player. John named him as an influence.

Free were a progressive rock band. John named bassist Andy Fraser and singer Paul Rodgers as an influence.

Yes were another influential progressive rock band. John named them and bassist Chris Squire as an influence.

Genesis were a progressive rock band that later became more poppy. John named them as an influence.

King Chrimson were an important Progressive Rock band. John named bassist John Wetton as an influence.

Emerson Lake & Palmer were a progressive rock band. John named them as an influence.

Black Sabbath are the fathers of heavy metal and named as a influence by John

Budgie although often considered a early heavy metal band were really more of a hard rock band who did some heavy metal songs. John named bassist Burke Shelly as an influence.

Nazareth were an Scottish Hard Rock band. John named them as an influence.

Uriah Heep were hard/progressive rock with some borderline heavy metal songs. John named bassists Gary Thain, Trevor Bolder, and John Wetton as an influence and Uriah Heep as one of his favorite bands. He also named singer David Byron as an influen… — Uriah Heep were hard/progressive rock with some borderline heavy metal songs. John named bassists Gary Thain, Trevor Bolder, and John Wetton as an influence and Uriah Heep as one of his favorite bands. He also named singer David Byron as an influence.

Gary Glitter was a glam rock / pop star and later a convicted pedo. John named him as one of the glam influences from TV.

Mud were a pop / glam rock band. John named them as an influence.

Rush was a band full of incredible musicians as most progressive bands are. John named Geddy as an influence.

Bad Company was a rock band with Paul Rodgers singing. John named them and Paul as an influence.

Jaco Pastorius is jazz fusion bassist with Weather Report being one of the most notable bands he was with. John named him as an influence.

The Metal Gods, Judas Priest. John named Halford as a vocal influence.

The Pat Travers band was a hard/blues rock band. John named them as an influence.

Jeff Berlin

Cheap Trick were a hard rock / power pop band. John named them and bassist Tom Petersson as an influence.

Pino Palladino

John said their first influences came from the glam rock that they saw on TV.

At the time the NWOBHM was taking off, Punk was the big thing. John said most of it was crap.

Rob "Wacko" Hunter played drums on the first 6 albums but I haven’t been able to find his influences.

Joe Hasselvander was the drummer of the following seven albums but I haven’t been able to find his influences.

Bands influenced by Raven!

As this project advances, bands will be added here.

Sources:

http://bravewords.com/news/raven-john-gallaghers-top-9-musical-influences-detailed
https://130db.nl/raven-interview-with-john-gallagher/
https://bassmyfever.weebly.com/interview-with-john-gallagher-from-raven.html
http://kkdowning.net/steelmill/Interviews/raven-steel-mill-interview/
http://www.truemetalfan.org/raven.htm
https://garyalikivi.com/2017/05/03/staring-into-the-fire/

Iron Maiden Family Tree

May 26, 2020 by Joe Cearlock in Family Tree

One of the most influential bands in all metal, let’s take a look at their influences.