Satriani

Last Thursday I travelled to the Royal Oak Music Theatre to take in Joe Satriani. His performance was on par with my expectation which is to say completely over the top, 100mph and loud. Leslie West and Mountain opened the show, with some of their great classics like Mississippi Queen.

Widely considered one of the most talented guitarists ever to take the stage, Satriani did not disappoint. Joe started the show as expected, with the fog machine completely filling the air, as he walked out onto the stage, completely shredding it right out of the gate, with his opener I just Wanna Rock. It struck me how effectively he took control of the audience with his playing, bringing the crowd higher and higher, then setting them down only once or twice throughout the night, only to raise the energy level even higher with his playing, bringing the crowd to a frenzy. I could see looks of amazement around me in the crowd.

I was able to work my way to the front of the crowd to watch the performance and to take in the nuance of his playing. Even at full throttle, Satriani plays with a controlled, deliberate and intimate feeling unlike most. Stu had a great Bass solo in the middle of the concert where he just went off across a diverse musical soundscape to include even a favorite Zep tune of mine. A great backdrop of LED lights set in a black curtain kept up with the tempo of his music. Leslie West came out at the end of the show and did an improvisational Jam with Joe, trading off leads for a nice ten minute session. It was cool to see them play together, their styles matched nicely, as Joe played with a duplicate copy of Leslies famous guitar.

Looking back on the nights performance, it was cool to see a musician have such a direct connection with the crowd through their playing. Frenzied sound poured out of Joe's guitar which just took control over the crowd.

Keet was able to join me for the concert, and he too was blown away by the performance. We really enjoyed catching up and talking music as we planned to get together for more soon. I've got some great shows to go yet this fall.



Leslie West

Photo credits to Imagesbygene