manu/mldr-zoomed-100char-total-queries-documents

chunk_id stringlengths 3 9	chunk stringlengths 1 100
132_2	Friedman, and they released two albums, Speed Metal Symphony (1987) and Go Off! (1988). Since the
132_3	dissolution of Cacophony in 1989, Becker has undertaken a solo career, releasing seven albums since
132_4	his 1988 debut Perpetual Burn. He later joined David Lee Roth's band and recorded one album with
132_5	him, A Little Ain't Enough.
132_6	Becker's performing career was cut short by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which he was
132_7	diagnosed with in 1989. By 1996, Becker had lost the ability to speak, and he now communicates with
132_8	his eyes via a system developed by his father. He continues to compose with the aid of a computer
132_9	and has since released Collection in 2008 and Triumphant Hearts in 2018, as well as various
132_10	compilations.
132_11	Biography and career
132_12	Hometown, birthplace, school and early years
132_13	Becker was born and raised in Richmond, California, by his parents, Gary and Patricia (Heffley)
132_14	Becker. He was born in Richmond Hospital on 23rd Street in 1969. His maternal grandfather was actor
132_15	Wayne Heffley. Becker graduated from Kennedy High School where he performed Yngwie Malmsteen's
132_16	"Black Star" with his band at a talent show. While still in high school, Becker was introduced to
132_17	Marty Friedman. He was exposed to the guitar at an early age because both his father and his uncle
132_18	were guitar players. He absorbed all kinds of music from around the world and melded different
132_19	aspects of each style into his playing. He cited Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix and Eddie
132_20	Van Halen as early influences.
132_21	Cacophony and solo career
132_22	Becker started out playing alongside Marty Friedman in the Mike Varney-produced duo, Cacophony.
132_23	Together, they put out an album, and toured Japan and the U.S. While they never went mainstream in
132_24	the U.S., they proved popular enough in Europe to sell out almost every performance. In 1990,
132_25	Friedman left to join Megadeth and Becker began to pursue a solo career, having released his first
132_26	solo album titled Perpetual Burn in 1988. He has since released the albums Perspective and
132_27	Collection, as well as two albums of demos, entitled The Raspberry Jams and The Blackberry Jams.
132_28	Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis diagnosis
132_29	In 1989, Becker joined David Lee Roth's solo band to work on his third album A Little Ain't Enough,
132_30	replacing Steve Vai, who left the band to record and tour with Whitesnake. While preparing for the
132_31	album, Becker began to feel what he called a "lazy limp" in his left leg. He was soon diagnosed
132_32	with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS; Lou Gehrig's disease) and was given three to five years to
132_33	live. He finished the recording using lighter gauge guitar strings and other techniques, which made
132_34	it easier for him to play with his weakening hands. Although he managed to finish the album, he did
132_35	not join the supporting tour due to his inability to perform on stage; former Lizzy Borden
132_36	guitarist Joe Holmes took Becker's place on tour.
132_37	His ALS gradually robbed him of his ability to play guitar, to walk, and eventually his ability to
132_38	speak. He now communicates with his eyes via a system developed by his father. Due to the nature of
132_39	the disease, he remains mentally sharp and, with the aid of a computer, continues composing. In the
132_40	back of the Perspective CD case, Becker states "I have Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. It has
132_41	crippled my body and speech, but not my mind." His medical condition has remained stable since
132_42	1997. In 2003, Becker posted on his website that he was feeling better and had gained some weight,
132_43	while the folder for his 2008 album Collection also mentions an upcoming book.
132_44	Perspective and Raspberry Jams
132_45	In 1996, Becker released an album entitled Perspective, an instrumental album composed by him (with
132_46	the exception of Bob Dylan's song "Meet Me in the Morning"). The writing of the music had been
132_47	started before ALS completely crippled his abilities. By using guitar, and, later, when he was
132_48	unable to use both hands, a keyboard, he continued to compose while his disease worsened. However,
132_49	when Becker could no longer physically play even a keyboard, his friend and music producer Mike
132_50	Bemesderfer helped him with a music-composing computer program that reads movements of his head and
132_51	eyes, enabling Becker to continue to compose after he lost control of the rest of his body.
132_52	Several years later, Becker released Raspberry Jams (1999) and Blackberry Jams (2003); the first
132_53	contained various unreleased demo-tracks, and the latter contained demo-tracks and alternate
132_54	versions of songs that were later reworked and published into other albums.
132_55	Two tribute albums to Jason Becker have been issued. Respectively entitled Warmth in the Wilderness
132_56	I and Warmth in the Wilderness II, they feature guitarists such as Steve Vai, Paul Gilbert, Marty
132_57	Friedman, Joe Becker, Rusty Cooley, and Mattias Eklundh. The album profits were sent to Becker to
132_58	help him with his medical finances.
132_59	Collection
132_60	On November 4, 2008, Shrapnel Records released a new Jason Becker album entitled Collection. The
132_61	album includes three new songs in addition to some older recordings (some never before released)
132_62	and features Marty Friedman, Greg Howe, Joe Satriani, Michael Lee Firkins, Steve Vai, and Steve
132_63	Hunter.
132_64	Boy Meets Guitar
132_65	On August 20, 2010, Becker declared that he was considering releasing an album of music he recorded
132_66	when he was in his teenage years. He has since released this album, titled Boy Meets Guitar, in
132_67	2012.
132_68	Triumphant Hearts
132_69	In October 2016, Becker launched a campaign to fund an album, which was initially estimated for
132_70	release in July 2017. The campaign raised more than $100,000. The album, Triumphant Hearts was
132_71	released on December 7, 2018.
132_72	Musical style
132_73	Considered a virtuoso guitarist and one of the top players of his time, Becker studied the works of
132_74	violinist Niccolò Paganini and was a playing partner with Marty Friedman. He later arranged
132_75	Paganini's 5th Caprice, performing it during an instructional guitar video. Becker's compositions
132_76	often include high speed scalar and arpeggio passages—trademarks of his shred style of guitar
132_77	playing. Often incorporating advanced techniques such as sweep picking, alternate picking,
132_78	artificial harmonic accenting, tapping and hybrid picking; he was among the leaders of the field
132_79	during the technical shred guitar and neoclassical metal trend of the mid to late 1980s and is
132_80	still respected and honored by his musician peers today. The song "Serrana" appearing in the album
132_81	Perspective, is an example of his sweep-picking skills. He demonstrated the arpeggio sequence
132_82	during a clinic at the Atlanta Institute of Music. A video of this performance first appeared on
132_83	his Hot Licks guitar instructional video.
132_84	Influence on other guitarists
132_85	Becker's playing has proven to be influential on countless guitarists, including Nita Strauss,
132_86	Guthrie Govan, Herman Li, Chris Broderick, and Daniel Mongrain, among others.
132_87	Media
132_88	Becker has appeared on many magazine covers throughout his career, including the February 1991
132_89	issue of Guitar for the Practicing Musician along with Jim Martin of Faith No More, the June 1991
132_90	issue of Young Guitar, and the July 2012 issue of Guitar Player, among others. He was also
132_91	extensively interviewed for the 2017 book, Shredders!: The Oral History Of Speed Guitar (And More),
132_92	by author Greg Prato.
132_93	Equipment
132_94	Becker's first guitar was a Franciscan acoustic. Prior to joining Cacophony in 1987, Becker worked
132_95	his way through the Franciscan, a Takamine acoustic, a Fender Musicmaster, and finally, a black
132_96	"Dan Smith" era Fender Stratocaster (likely a 1982 or 1983 model) with a DiMarzio Steve Morse
132_97	humbucker in the bridge (seen in the "Black Star" video, circa 1986). On his message board, Becker
132_98	said "I recorded SMS [Speed Metal Symphony] with my Strat."
132_99	For his next guitar, Becker said on his message board "Mike Varney got Hurricane to endorse us
132_100	after we recorded Speed Metal Symphony. I liked how they were like Strats, only beefier."
132_101	On Perpetual Burn, Becker said on his message board: "I used my white and black Hurricane guitar

132_2

Friedman, and they released two albums, Speed Metal Symphony (1987) and Go Off! (1988). Since the

132_3

dissolution of Cacophony in 1989, Becker has undertaken a solo career, releasing seven albums since

132_4

his 1988 debut Perpetual Burn. He later joined David Lee Roth's band and recorded one album with

132_5

him, A Little Ain't Enough.

132_6

Becker's performing career was cut short by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which he was

132_7

diagnosed with in 1989. By 1996, Becker had lost the ability to speak, and he now communicates with

132_8

his eyes via a system developed by his father. He continues to compose with the aid of a computer

132_9

and has since released Collection in 2008 and Triumphant Hearts in 2018, as well as various

132_10

compilations.

132_11

Biography and career

132_12

Hometown, birthplace, school and early years

132_13

Becker was born and raised in Richmond, California, by his parents, Gary and Patricia (Heffley)

132_14

Becker. He was born in Richmond Hospital on 23rd Street in 1969. His maternal grandfather was actor

132_15

Wayne Heffley. Becker graduated from Kennedy High School where he performed Yngwie Malmsteen's

132_16

"Black Star" with his band at a talent show. While still in high school, Becker was introduced to

132_17

Marty Friedman. He was exposed to the guitar at an early age because both his father and his uncle

132_18

were guitar players. He absorbed all kinds of music from around the world and melded different

132_19

aspects of each style into his playing. He cited Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix and Eddie

132_20

Van Halen as early influences.

132_21

Cacophony and solo career

132_22

Becker started out playing alongside Marty Friedman in the Mike Varney-produced duo, Cacophony.

132_23

Together, they put out an album, and toured Japan and the U.S. While they never went mainstream in

132_24

the U.S., they proved popular enough in Europe to sell out almost every performance. In 1990,

132_25

Friedman left to join Megadeth and Becker began to pursue a solo career, having released his first

132_26

solo album titled Perpetual Burn in 1988. He has since released the albums Perspective and

132_27

Collection, as well as two albums of demos, entitled The Raspberry Jams and The Blackberry Jams.

132_28

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis diagnosis

132_29

In 1989, Becker joined David Lee Roth's solo band to work on his third album A Little Ain't Enough,

132_30

replacing Steve Vai, who left the band to record and tour with Whitesnake. While preparing for the

132_31

album, Becker began to feel what he called a "lazy limp" in his left leg. He was soon diagnosed

132_32

with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS; Lou Gehrig's disease) and was given three to five years to

132_33

live. He finished the recording using lighter gauge guitar strings and other techniques, which made

132_34

it easier for him to play with his weakening hands. Although he managed to finish the album, he did

132_35

not join the supporting tour due to his inability to perform on stage; former Lizzy Borden

132_36

guitarist Joe Holmes took Becker's place on tour.

132_37

His ALS gradually robbed him of his ability to play guitar, to walk, and eventually his ability to

132_38

speak. He now communicates with his eyes via a system developed by his father. Due to the nature of

132_39

the disease, he remains mentally sharp and, with the aid of a computer, continues composing. In the

132_40

back of the Perspective CD case, Becker states "I have Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. It has

132_41

crippled my body and speech, but not my mind." His medical condition has remained stable since

132_42

1997. In 2003, Becker posted on his website that he was feeling better and had gained some weight,

132_43

while the folder for his 2008 album Collection also mentions an upcoming book.

132_44

Perspective and Raspberry Jams

132_45

In 1996, Becker released an album entitled Perspective, an instrumental album composed by him (with

132_46

the exception of Bob Dylan's song "Meet Me in the Morning"). The writing of the music had been

132_47

started before ALS completely crippled his abilities. By using guitar, and, later, when he was

132_48

unable to use both hands, a keyboard, he continued to compose while his disease worsened. However,

132_49

when Becker could no longer physically play even a keyboard, his friend and music producer Mike

132_50

Bemesderfer helped him with a music-composing computer program that reads movements of his head and

132_51

eyes, enabling Becker to continue to compose after he lost control of the rest of his body.

132_52

Several years later, Becker released Raspberry Jams (1999) and Blackberry Jams (2003); the first

132_53

contained various unreleased demo-tracks, and the latter contained demo-tracks and alternate

132_54

versions of songs that were later reworked and published into other albums.

132_55

Two tribute albums to Jason Becker have been issued. Respectively entitled Warmth in the Wilderness

132_56

I and Warmth in the Wilderness II, they feature guitarists such as Steve Vai, Paul Gilbert, Marty

132_57

Friedman, Joe Becker, Rusty Cooley, and Mattias Eklundh. The album profits were sent to Becker to

132_58

help him with his medical finances.

132_59

Collection

132_60

On November 4, 2008, Shrapnel Records released a new Jason Becker album entitled Collection. The

132_61

album includes three new songs in addition to some older recordings (some never before released)

132_62

and features Marty Friedman, Greg Howe, Joe Satriani, Michael Lee Firkins, Steve Vai, and Steve

132_63

Hunter.

132_64

Boy Meets Guitar

132_65

On August 20, 2010, Becker declared that he was considering releasing an album of music he recorded

132_66

when he was in his teenage years. He has since released this album, titled Boy Meets Guitar, in

132_67

2012.

132_68

Triumphant Hearts

132_69

In October 2016, Becker launched a campaign to fund an album, which was initially estimated for

132_70

release in July 2017. The campaign raised more than $100,000. The album, Triumphant Hearts was

132_71

released on December 7, 2018.

132_72

Musical style

132_73

Considered a virtuoso guitarist and one of the top players of his time, Becker studied the works of

132_74

violinist Niccolò Paganini and was a playing partner with Marty Friedman. He later arranged

132_75

Paganini's 5th Caprice, performing it during an instructional guitar video. Becker's compositions

132_76

often include high speed scalar and arpeggio passages—trademarks of his shred style of guitar

132_77

playing. Often incorporating advanced techniques such as sweep picking, alternate picking,

132_78

artificial harmonic accenting, tapping and hybrid picking; he was among the leaders of the field

132_79

during the technical shred guitar and neoclassical metal trend of the mid to late 1980s and is

132_80

still respected and honored by his musician peers today. The song "Serrana" appearing in the album

132_81

Perspective, is an example of his sweep-picking skills. He demonstrated the arpeggio sequence

132_82

during a clinic at the Atlanta Institute of Music. A video of this performance first appeared on

132_83

his Hot Licks guitar instructional video.

132_84

Influence on other guitarists

132_85

Becker's playing has proven to be influential on countless guitarists, including Nita Strauss,

132_86

Guthrie Govan, Herman Li, Chris Broderick, and Daniel Mongrain, among others.

132_87

Media

132_88

Becker has appeared on many magazine covers throughout his career, including the February 1991

132_89

issue of Guitar for the Practicing Musician along with Jim Martin of Faith No More, the June 1991

132_90

issue of Young Guitar, and the July 2012 issue of Guitar Player, among others. He was also

132_91

extensively interviewed for the 2017 book, Shredders!: The Oral History Of Speed Guitar (And More),

132_92

by author Greg Prato.

132_93

Equipment

132_94

Becker's first guitar was a Franciscan acoustic. Prior to joining Cacophony in 1987, Becker worked

132_95

his way through the Franciscan, a Takamine acoustic, a Fender Musicmaster, and finally, a black

132_96

"Dan Smith" era Fender Stratocaster (likely a 1982 or 1983 model) with a DiMarzio Steve Morse

132_97

humbucker in the bridge (seen in the "Black Star" video, circa 1986). On his message board, Becker

132_98

said "I recorded SMS [Speed Metal Symphony] with my Strat."

132_99

For his next guitar, Becker said on his message board "Mike Varney got Hurricane to endorse us

132_100

after we recorded Speed Metal Symphony. I liked how they were like Strats, only beefier."

132_101

On Perpetual Burn, Becker said on his message board: "I used my white and black Hurricane guitar