Tom Morello, the "guitar genius," produces the awesome guitar of Rage. Tom describes his guitar sounds as being just a bunch of screeches, but many consider him to be one of the greatest guitarists ever. His solo in "Bulls On Parade" got him number 23 of the top 100 best guitar solos of all time in Guitar World magazine. He has earned much recognition for his work as a musician, and an activist. Tom Morello was born in New York in 1964, and grew up in Libertyville, Illinois. Tom Morello also has a degree in Social Studies at Harvard. Tom's Mom founded the "Parents for Rock and Rap" organization, and Tom says that she is even more of a rebel than he is. "I lived in Libertyville for 18 years, and in the whole town there were maybe three or four other blacks and an equal number of Asians. My mom used to play the Temptations, War, and James Brown at home. I got a guitar when I was 13 or 14, and I was determined to become Jimmy Page or Ace Frehley of KISS. But I got disenchanted with taking lessons and stopped playing for four years. I didn't pick it up again until I heard the Sex Pistols album. Seeing the Clash in Chicago was a life-changing experience. They were more powerful than any band I'd ever seen because of the conviction, the realness behind it." "My Harvard friends went on to become professors, doctors, lawyers, bankers. They had a difficult time understanding why I wanted to be a socialist rock musician. My musician friends had the opposite problem...In `86, I moved to Los Angeles. The glam scene was in full effect--I was appalled! In `88 I joined Lock Up. We made an album for Geffen, toured, eventually broke up. I met Brad Wilk when he auditioned for Lock Up, and he and I had a great playing chemistry together. He was the first guy I called when I left the band. We started auditioning a lot of people, looking for the right chemistry, while I taught guitar to support myself." -Tom Morello