Guitarist CHRIS CAFFERY (TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA, SAVATAGE) spoke with John Parks from Legendary Rock Interviews recently about a number of topics. A few excerpts from the chat follow:

Legendary Rock Interviews: Is it more satisfying to play in Savatage or to have that total creative freedom in your solo projects?

Caffery: "There’s something magical about Savatage. I can’t put an exact reason or word on it or say what it is but there was something about that time and the Oliva brothers. There was just some special thing about that name or that band and being a part of the Oliva brothers as they created those tunes and lyrics with Paul. It’s great to do your own solo projects but in a lot of ways it is a huge pain in the neck because when you’re doing solo work you are by yourself, as the name implies (laughs). All the business, all the details, all the finance falls on you. When you’re in a band it’s like a little ARMY, when something goes bad for one member, it’s felt by everyone and you’re all in it together, you deal with your problems together. In Savatage we were best friends, we ALL loved our band. I don’t even think that any of us at that time realized exactly what the band WAS, we just did what we did. I don’t think Jon or Criss or even Paul had any notion of how legendary their music was going to become. Twenty plus years after they’ve recorded those songs, ten years since the last Savatage album we’re still talking about this band. There was none of that “better than” kind of attitude to the band, there was a humbleness, a HAPPINESS to us. The band was just a bunch of goofy singers, musicians and friends and I think that’s what drew Paul O’Neill to it in the beginning, not just the incredible amount of talent that the Oliva brothers had but just the genuineness that existed inside those two. That genuineness infused the rest of the band and the spirit and the music we were doing. Jon’s voice and Criss’s playing is something that is really unique and special just doesn’t happen very often and Paul picked up on that and recognized that and said “Look, we’re gonna do something with this”. He guided the Oliva brothers and has really been Savatage’s biggest fan and best friend for all these years. Again, like you said it HAS been a crazy story but as time goes on I realize that I was and still am a part of something that was extremely special to people. Thousands of people and more everyday are feeling that music and appreciative of what we’ve done and that’s pretty cool to continue to be associated with. To have been able to work on these Savatage albums and put them down in metal history and to be able to continue to tour the world and bring music to people with these guys is pretty special."

Legendary Rock Interviews: What was a bigger surprise in regards to the Savatage camp, the fact that the band finally had a bit of a breakthrough hit with Zach and 'Edge Of Thorns' or the fact that this whole other world opened up with the 'Christmas Eve' song which led to even bigger things?

Caffery: "I don’t think any of that necessarily surprised Paul. Paul always envisions things on another level. For instance, before we even put down the first notes on a Savatage album Paul was always thinking about the upcoming tour production. I think that huge vision kind of gave us some perspective to work from the ground up in a weird way. I know that sounds crazy. To me PERSONALLY, it is all surprising, I just look at my life and my career with Paul and it is so amazing and surreal. I think the biggest surprise for all of us is just the fact that all these years later we are still running into all these younger bands that mention us as an influence. We all collectively hear from these musicians, some of them REALLY successful who tell us how much we mean to them, how much the Savatage catalog means to them. To me, that is one of the greatest rewards of any success we have achieved because it transcends anything you can put in numbers. To know that you have affected people with your music and performances the same way you were influenced by the bands that you grew up on is really priceless. We hear a lot of individual stories about how a certain element of Savatage or a certain album really encouraged an artist to go down a particular path. You can’t underestimate the power of someone telling you that you’re one of their favorite bands or that your art changed their life. Paul wrote lyrics and stories that truly had that kind of impact and power on people and I am just honored to be a part of it to this day. Like I said before, even the BAND members as young rock and rollers were really not aware of the impact of what Paul was setting forth lyrically. We still have people coming up to us crying and talking about how those songs affected them personally and changed their life. There’s no way to put a price on any of that."

Legendary Rock Interviews: Do you think that Jon Oliva is celebrated or applauded as much as he should be for his involvement in all of the projects?

Caffery: "I think that Jon is exactly where Jon wants to be. Jon is making his music and doing his stuff, he knows how much people love Savatage he knows how much people love what he brought to the band and how important his musical ideas are. I think is Jon is pretty happy and comfortable with how he is regarded and he is still active and relevant musically. He still does his own band and does Festivals and he still tours with us and is involved with everything. He is absolutely proud of our orchestral project and has every right to be since he and Paul wrote those songs together. They created a LOT of that material, a tremendous amount of that piano/classical feel is directly related to Jon. There are certainly moments there that recall “When the Crowds Are Gone” or that Freddie Mercury/John Lennon piano ballad thing Jon does so well. That is just a part of Jon Oliva’s soul, his dad was a piano player and he would sit and watch him play in restaurants. It sounds crazy to compare but they really have like a LENNON/MCCARTNEY partnership and have been together as long. They have written as many pieces or more as Lennon and McCartney did (laughs). It’s really a magical combination with Jon’s music and Paul’s vast knowledge of pretty much everything. You name it, politics, music, life, Paul can speak on it. There’s not any specific formula but it seems like whatever they do just clicks. It’s crazy to watch them work together and bounce ideas off each other and it has translated now to great success. Jon is VERY proud of all of the accomplishments he and Paul have made outside of Savatage. I will say though that Jon is one of those people who is going to be mentioned and applauded more and more as time goes on just like his brother Criss. I personally KNOW how much people love Jon Oliva because I have spent the better part of the last 25 years with the guy. Trust me when I say there is no lack of love or recognition for what that man has accomplished."

Read the entire interview here.