Dream Theater

Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band formed in 1985 under the name Majesty by John Petrucci, John Myung and Mike Portnoy — all natives of Long Island, New York — while they attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. They subsequently dropped out of their studies to concentrate further on the band that would eventually become Dream Theater. Their current lineup consists of Petrucci, Myung, vocalist James LaBrie, keyboardist Jordan Rudess and drummer Mike Mangini.

Over the course of various lineup changes, Petrucci and Myung have been the only two constant members. Portnoy remained with the band until 2010, when he was replaced by Mangini after deciding to leave to pursue other musical endeavors. After a brief stint with Chris Collins, followed by Charlie Dominici (who was dismissed from Dream Theater not long after the release of their first album), LaBrie was hired as the band's singer in 1991. Dream Theater's first keyboardist, Kevin Moore, left the band after three albums and was replaced by Derek Sherinian in 1995 after a period of touring. The band released one album with Sherinian, who was replaced by current keyboardist Jordan Rudess in 1999.

To date, Dream Theater has released fifteen studio albums. The band's highest-selling release is their second album Images and Words (1992), which reached No. 61 on the Billboard 200 chart. The albums Awake (1994) and Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence (2002) also entered the charts at No. 32 and No. 46 respectively, and each received critical acclaim. Their fifth album, Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory (1999), was ranked number 95 on the October 2006 issue of Guitar World magazine's list of the greatest 100 guitar albums of all time. It was also ranked as the 15th Greatest Concept Album in March 2003 by Classic Rock Magazine.

As of 2018, Dream Theater has sold over 12 million records worldwide and has received three Grammy Award nominations (including one win in 2022). Along with Queensrÿche and Fates Warning, the band has been referred to as one of the "big three" of the progressive metal genre, responsible for its development and popularization.

Band members
Current members

John Petrucci – guitars (1985–present), backing vocals (1989, 1996–present)[156]
John Myung – bass (1985–present)
James LaBrie – lead vocals (1991–present)
Jordan Rudess – keyboards (1999–present), occasional guitar parts
Mike Mangini – drums (2010–present)[157]
Former members

Mike Portnoy – drums (1985–2010), backing vocals (1989, 1996–2010)
Kevin Moore – keyboards (1986–1994)[158][159]
Chris Collins – lead vocals (1986)[158]
Charlie Dominici – lead vocals (1987–1989)
Derek Sherinian – keyboards (1995–1999,[160] unofficial touring member beginning in October 1994[161][162]), backing vocals (1997)
Timeline

Notes

Chris Collins was the shortest-serving band member, having only been an official member for a few months; first joining them at the same time as Kevin Moore in the summer of 1986, but parting ways after they did some initial touring following recording their 6-track demo.[158]
In the wake of Charlie Dominici's departure from the band in October and November 1989[163][164] the band worked with several singers on a temporary basis before fully committing to James LaBrie; they first worked with John Arch, though he was not seriously considering joining the band, then John Hendricks, then Steve Stone (who had a one-off live appearance with the band),[165] then finally Chris Cintron, who they were ready to commit to and officially welcome into the band before James LaBrie's audition arrived.[166][167]
During the 1997-1998 world tour, the band would switch their instruments around for brief "Nightmare Cinema" interludes in the concerts; John Myung played the keyboard, Derek Sherinian played the guitar, John Petrucci played the drums, and Mike Portnoy played the bass. They would often cover Perfect Strangers by Deep Purple during these segments.[168]
In 2004, Charlie Dominici and Derek Sherinian joined the band as a one-off on stage during the encore of the March 6th show as guests, to celebrate the 15th anniversary of When Dream and Day Unite.[169] This was documented on When Dream And Day Reunite.
Discography
Main article: Dream Theater discography
Studio albums
When Dream and Day Unite (1989)
Images and Words (1992)
Awake (1994)
Falling into Infinity (1997)
Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory (1999)
Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence (2002)
Train of Thought (2003)
Octavarium (2005)
Systematic Chaos (2007)
Black Clouds & Silver Linings (2009)
A Dramatic Turn of Events (2011)
Dream Theater (2013)
The Astonishing (2016)
Distance over Time (2019)
A View from the Top of the World (2021)

(All text came from Wikipedia)