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Tony Rombola (born November 24, 1964) is a American musician who has been the lead guitarist for the Boston-based hard rock band Godsmack since the mid-1990s. Tony Rombola has been cited as 'an extraodinaire' in the guitar world, by Guitar World magazine. and is cited to be the only guitarist to keep an 'original soloing style' during the nu metal period, earning him the respect of the guitar industry. He's also one of the most influential guitarists of the last decade. And is also a guitarist for the band Another Animal, formed at the beginning of 2007 and just released their self-titled debut album in October.
[edit] History
Born in Norwood, Massachusetts, Rombola is a self-taught guitarist. He first picked up a guitar at age 11. According to his father, the first song Tony learned was a song by Black Sabbath. The first introduction to Rock Tony encountered was the albums Led Zeppelin III, 2112 and of course We Sold Our Soul for Rock 'n' Roll. He also never took guitar lessons, he learned everything he knows from guitar magazines, like Guitar World. His first guitar was an SG copy, before moving to custom Les Pauls that he enjoys now. Before he was in Godsmack, he played cover bands, funk, rock, classic rock, and metal, before meeting up with Godsmack vocalist Sully Erna and bassist Robbie Merrill in the mid-90's. The two encountered Rombola playing the local circuit with some band playing covers of Alice in Chains and Rage Against the Machine. They knew they needed someone with Rombola's skill to reach the success they have with Godsmack. They recorded an EP in 1997 which later became their self-titled debut album in '98. Which went on to sell over 5 million copies (5* platinum) in just a couple of years. This was largely because of Tony's original sound in the album, relating to some of the world's most renowned guitarists like Jerry Cantrell and Jimmy Page. The song 'Keep Away' was inducted into the top 100 greatest rock songs labelled under 'Guitar legends'. He was also a carpenter before he joined Godsmack. Tony says if it was not for the band, he would still be working as a carpenter. Tony is married and has three step kids. Tony Rombola is seen by many guitarists as an icon, by guitarists such as Kirk Hammet of Metallica, and K.K. Downing and Glen Tipton of Judas Priest. Tony also enjoys playing video games and golf as hobbies.
- Les Paul Guitars
- McNaught Guitars
- Ovation Acoustic and Electric Guitars
- Takamine Acoustic Guitars
- Splawn Amplifiers
- Diezel Amplifiers
- Dunlop Picks
- GHS Strings
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