Al Pitrelli, guitarist and musical director for Trans-Siberian Orchestra and a key player in Megadeth during the early 2000s, recently reflected on his surprising stint with the Dave Mustaine-led band. In an interview with WRIF's Meltdown, Pitrelli shared the story of how he ended up joining Megadeth during a transitional period for both the band and his personal life.
"I had met him a couple of times over the years. Savatage was on a few of the festivals with him. I remember when I was with Alice Cooper, Dave had done the soundtrack — he cut 'No More Mr. Nice Guy' for one of the Wes Craven films; I don't remember the name of the film off the top of my head, but I remember meeting him back then," Pitrelli explained. "And, obviously, listening to the music on the first few Megadeth records. Then-Megadeth drummer Jimmy DeGrasso, who, he and I played in clubs together back in, I guess, the late '70s, and early '80s, was the one who recommended me to at least substitute for Marty Friedman until they found a permanent replacement. So, that was an education and a half."
Initially, Pitrelli knew his position in Megadeth was temporary. He explained, "Yeah, that was the original thing. Marty wanted to leave. They were in the middle of a pretty lengthy tour. And they basically needed somebody just to fill in until they found somebody permanent. And I was supposed to be there for three, four, five weeks. And then Dave said, 'Well, would you come…?' I think they had dates booked in Korea. And he's, like, 'Would you come over with us?' I'm, like, 'Yeah, listen, I'm here until I'm not. Let me know.' And then, all of a sudden, he was, like, 'Well, you're in the band.' I'm, like, 'Okay.' And I think I was with him for a better part of two years, just up until 9/11 kicked in, and then the whole world fell apart for a while."
When asked whether Mustaine reached out to him again in 2004 after taking a break from the band, Pitrelli explained why he didn't return. "No, he didn't re-contact me. He knew that my first love was this thing called the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. Because we recorded the first song in '95, and in '96 we put a record out, I think in '97 or '98 we put the second record out. We sold millions and millions of records. And we did the first tour in '99."
"And that's when Dave asked me to kind of sub for Marty for a little while," Pitrelli reminisced. "And so it was kind of like my home was being established with Paul [O'Neill, Trans-Siberian Orchestra mastermind], and I mentioned Paul, I said, 'Listen, they offered me this opportunity.' I was going through my first divorce. Financially, I needed some help. He goes, 'Go do what you gotta do. Go make money. You come home as soon as you're ready to come home.' Which, that's the heart that Paul O'Neill had. He was like my big brother. And Dave was kind enough to take me, and he knew my heart laid elsewhere. But I tried to do a really good job for Dave to continue on with them. And then, after 9/11, I know he went through a couple of personal issues that he had to contend with. And when he came and put the band back together, I wasn't called, but I was already spoken for. I was back home where I belonged."
Pitrelli previously touched on his time with Megadeth during a 2010 interview with New York Hard Rock Examiner, shedding light on the dynamics of working with Mustaine. "I thought Mustaine and I got along pretty good as long as I always kept in mind that his work was lore, it was his band, his vision, and he's the boss. You know, it's like anything else — you go to work, and either you like your boss or you dislike your boss, it doesn't really matter, it's whether your boss likes you. I went in there, he pulled me out of a pretty troubled personal life and he helped me get through a lot of things like that, which I was real appreciative of, and he was pretty hard, he's a hard guy to work for. If you don't bring your game every day, you're gonna catch his wrath, and that's something that you probably don't want to do more than once."
Despite the intensity of the job, Pitrelli respected Mustaine's vision and success. "When he was being strict and disciplined me, well, dude, it's your thing, y'know? I mean, he got kicked out of Metallica and created the second-largest metal band on the planet, so, you know, whatever you're doing seems to be working. I'm all ears, let me learn from you, because you did pretty good for yourself. There were nights we'd get along like two brothers, and there were other nights where he'd want to throw me off the bus, so it is what it is."
