Ghost in the Ruins – A Tribute to Criss Oliva

Ghost in the Ruins – A Tribute to Criss Oliva is a live album by the American heavy metal band Savatage, recorded between 1987 and 1990. Many of the tracks on this album have since been added to the re-releases of other albums in the Savatage discography by the German label SPV GmbH in 2002. The Japanese version of the album, titled Final Bell - Tribute to Christopher Michael Oliva and released by Zero Corporation in 1997, shows the track "Criss Intro" as "Criss Oliva Guitar Solo" on the track listing.

Ghost in the Ruins – A Tribute to Criss Oliva
Live album by Savatage
Released	December 15, 1995
Recorded	1987–1990
Genre	Heavy metal, power metal, progressive metal
Length	63:51
Label	Nuclear Blast America (US) Fresh Fruit/SPV (Germany) Zero Corporation (Japan)
Producer	Paul O'Neill, Jon Oliva
Savatage chronology
Dead Winter Dead (1995) Ghost in the Ruins – A Tribute to Criss Oliva (1995) From the Gutter to the Stage (1996)
Final Bell cover

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal	8/10[1]
Metal Hammer (GER)	7/7[2]
Rock Hard	10.0/10[3]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Recorded at	Length
1.	"City Beneath the Surface"	Criss Oliva, Jon Oliva	The Ritz in New York City, 1990	5:39
2.	"24 Hours Ago"	C. Oliva, J. Oliva, Johnny Lee Middleton, Paul O'Neill	The Spectrum, Philadelphia, 1988	4:48
3.	"Legions"	C. Oliva, J. Oliva	The Spectrum, Philadelphia, 1988	5:06
4.	"Strange Wings"	C. Oliva, J. Oliva, O'Neill	The Spectrum, Philadelphia, 1988	4:01
5.	"Gutter Ballet"	C. Oliva, J. Oliva, O'Neill	Los Angeles Palace, 1990	6:14
6.	"Temptation Revelation / When the Crowds Are Gone"	C. Oliva, J. Oliva, O'Neill	Hollywood Palace, 1990	7:10
7.	"Of Rage and War"	C. Oliva, J. Oliva, O'Neill	Lamour, Brooklyn, 1990	4:29
8.	"The Dungeons Are Calling"	C. Oliva, J. Oliva, Keith Collins	Nassau Coliseum, Long Island, 1988	4:48
9.	"Sirens"	C. Oliva, J. Oliva	Nassau Coliseum, Long Island, 1988	3:37
10.	"Hounds"	C. Oliva, J. Oliva, O'Neill	Lamour, Brooklyn, 1990	7:20
11.	"Criss Intro" (instrumental)	C. Oliva	Agora, Cleveland, 1987	1:13
12.	"Hall of the Mountain King"	C. Oliva, J. Oliva, Middleton, O'Neill	Lamour, Brooklyn, 1990	6:38
13.	"Post Script" (instrumental)	C. Oliva	Sound check, Hollywood Palace, 1990	1:42

2011 EarMusic CD reissue

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Recorded at	Length
14.	"Devastation"	C. Oliva, J. Oliva	Agora, Cleveland, 1987	3:37
15.	"Stare into the Sun" (acoustic version)	J. Oliva, O'Neill		4:55

Personnel

Savatage

• Jon Oliva - lead vocals, piano, co-producer
• Criss Oliva - lead guitar, acoustic guitar
• Chris Caffery - rhythm guitar
• Johnny Lee Middleton - bass guitar
• Steve "Doc" Wacholz - drums and percussion

Production

• Paul O'Neill - producer
• Robert Kinkel - engineer
• Ken Lewis, Joe Johnson, Mike Scielzi, Joe Daily - additional engineering
• Steve Corson - assistant engineer
• Dave Whittman - mixing at Soundtrack Studios, New York
• Ben Arrindell - mixing assistant
• Leon Zervos - mastering

References

1. Popoff, Martin (August 1, 2007). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 3: The Nineties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. pp. 383–384. ISBN 978-1-894959-62-9.
2. Schöwe, Andreas (March 1996). "Savatage – Ghost in the Ruins". Metal Hammer (in German). Retrieved 2018-05-08.
3. Kühnemund, Götz (1995). "Review Dynamit : Savatage - Ghost In The Ruins (A Tribute To Criss Oliva)". Rock Hard (in German). No. 106. Retrieved April 29, 2018.