Handful of Rain
Handful of Rain is Savatage's eighth studio album, released on 16 August 1994 through Bullet Proof Records. It follows Edge of Thorns and arrived as the first record since the death of founding guitarist Criss Oliva, who had helped write two of its songs, "Taunting Cobras" and "Nothing's Going On", before he died. That gives the album a weight of its own in the band's story.
The line-up was reshaped along the way. Alex Skolnick recorded the lead guitar, making this his only Savatage release, while Jon Oliva covered drums, bass, rhythm guitar, piano, keyboards and backing vocals. Johnny Lee Middleton and drummer Steve Wacholz were both credited and appeared in promotional photos, though Wacholz had already left by the time of recording. The music draws on heavy, progressive, power and thrash metal, and it is well worth hearing as a record made through loss and change.
Handful of Rain: tracklist, credits and charts
10 tracks · 49:01Tracklist
- 1Taunting CobrasO’Neill, Oliva, Oliva3:22
- 2Handful of RainPaul O’Neill and Jon Oliva5:01
- 3ChancePaul O’Neill and Jon Oliva7:50
- 4Stare Into the SunPaul O’Neill and Jon Oliva4:43
- 5Castles BurningPaul O’Neill and Jon Oliva4:39
- 6Visions (instrumental)Paul O’Neill and Jon Oliva1:26
- 7Watching You FallPaul O’Neill and Jon Oliva5:21
- 8Nothing's Going OnPaul O’Neill and Jon Oliva4:08
- 9SymmetryPaul O’Neill and Jon Oliva5:04
- 10Alone You BreathePaul O’Neill and Jon Oliva7:29
- Produced by
- Paul O’Neill, Jon Oliva, Jon Oliva
- Recorded at
- Morrisound Recording (Tampa)
- Recorded
- 1994
- Engineered by
- Howard Helm, Robert Kinkel, Jim Morris, Tom Morris, Judd Packer, Mark Prator
- Labels
- Bullet Proof Records, Atlantic (US and Canada), Bullet Proof/Intercord (Europe), Zero Corporation (Japan)
- Length
- 49:01
Line-up
- Jon Oliva · bass guitar, guitar family, keyboard, membranophone, piano
- Alex Skolnick · guitar family, guitar
- Zak Stevens · lead vocals
- Johnny Lee Middleton · bass guitar
- Steve Wachholz · drums (drum set)
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| German Albums · 2022 | 20 |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
Released the same week
Also released on 16 August
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Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + wikidata; also seen: 1994-08-10 (musicbrainz)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 10 August 1994 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 16 August 1994 | |
| Wikidata | 16 August 1994 | |
| US release | 16 August 1994 | earliest US date |
8 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | DE | Bullet Proof Records | 4006759930083 | other |
| 10 August 1994 | JP | Zero Corporation | 4959407001478 | original |
| 16 August 1994 | US | Atlantic | 075678266027 | other |
| 8 June 1998 | DE | Steamhammer | 4001617180228 | other |
| 2002 | DE | Steamhammer | 693723745527 | other |
| 2011 | DE | earMUSIC | 4029759072942 | other |
| 2 December 2011 | — | earMUSIC | 4029759072942 | other |
| 15 July 2022 | XE | earMUSIC | 4029759170761 | other |
Cover art sources
deezer · upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25)
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| deezer ✓ | 1200×1200 | upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25) |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |
| coverartarchive | 936×930 | upscaled |