Forgotten Guitar: Yngwie Malmsteen Plays Drums, Sitar and an ES-335 in Rare Footage

Aside from that time he played an Aria Flying V (for about 30 minutes) in the mid-Eighties, it’s difficult to imagine Yngwie Malmsteen with any other electric guitar besides his original Seventies large-headstock, CBS-era Strat with scalloped fretboard or newer signature model.

However, in this amateur footage, it seems that when the Swedish guitar virtuoso is at home, he enjoys trying some other brands—and instruments, including a very sweet-looking Gibson ES-335, a sitar and a drum kit (for a few bars).

The short clips are thought to be from an early Nineties homemade documentary that focused on the behind-the-scenes life of Malmsteen shortly after the release of his sixth studio album, Fire & Ice.

The project was never completed; today only a few low-resolution extracts seem to remain, three of which can be seen in the clips below. Enjoy!

Jonathan Graham is an ACM UK graduate based in London studying under the likes of Guthrie Govan and Pete Friesen. He is the creator of ForgottenGuitar.com, a classic-guitar media website, and is completing his debut album, Protagonist, due for release in 2016. Updates also can be found at Graham's YouTube channel.