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THE MUSIC BIZ: SUPERSTAR
GUITARIST SATRIANI REFLECT UPON INDUSTRY CHANGES |
Wed Mar 26,
2007
From
www.nashvillecitypaper.com
By Ron Wynn, rwynn@nashvillecitypaper.com
Guitarist Joe Satriani never
thought about stardom when he began recording in the late ’80s.
“I actually thought I was going to be a full-time guitar teacher, because I knew
absolutely nothing about the music business and didn’t really think that what I
wanted to play would be considered commercial,” he said. “Actually, I really
didn’t approach music in that way and still don’t today.”
Yet Satriani has become one of the world’s best-selling (and technically
formidable) guitarists, indeed one of the most successful instrumentalists in
rock and pop music history. Despite appealing to a limited audience by
specializing in solos that involve an array of intricate effects that are
delivered in blistering fashion, the guitarist has sold more than 10 million
albums and received 14 Grammy nominations.
Satriani is also a pioneer in the touring arena, having created the G3 tour in
1996. This year’s event, which co-stars fellow guitarists John Petrucci and Paul
Gilbert, comes to The Ryman Auditorium Tuesday night (8 p.m., 116 Fifth Ave. N.,
$35, $45, $55, 889-3060) and Satriani acknowledges it’s been an interesting
challenge keeping the tour going through the years.
“For one thing you’ve got to always be conscious, when you’re choosing other
participants, about personalities and whether you can work with people over a
lengthy period of dates and appearances,” Satriani said. “One thing we’ve shown
over the years is audiences will come out to support instrumental music. That
was one of the things that I used to hear when it (the tour) started, that other
than guitar freaks, we wouldn’t have any people in the seats. Of course today
it’s become a lot bigger and we do more publicity and outreach than the earlier
days. Still, it’s sometimes a matter of luck in terms of getting the people you
want. We’re extremely happy this year that Paul was finally available to join us
full time. And now that he’s joined John and myself, I think G3 will really be a
fantastic experience this time out.”
As a teen, Joe Satriani’s introduction to the music world came from the jazz
end. He studied music at age 14 with reclusive (and notoriously demanding)
pianist Lennie Tristano and guitarist Billy Bauer. After moving from his native
New York to California in 1978, Satriani became famous as an instructor.
Over the years, some famous pupils have included Metallica’s Kirk Hammett, Third
Eye Blind’s Kevin Cadogan, Charlie Hunter, Primus’ Larry LaLonde and longtime
friend and former G3 participant Steve Vai.
Satriani’s 1986 debut Not of This Earth and other releases such as Surfing with
the Alien (arguably his most popular date) as well as Dreaming #11, Flying in a
Blue Dream and Time Machine established the artist’s popularity, even as they
differentiated him from the rock norm.
“I never really thought about making hits or doing singles, just playing as well
as I could and doing compositions that weren’t cliché or predictable,” Satriani
said, laughing. “That didn’t always work out so well with the label marketing
people. They were never quite sure what to call a lot of what I was doing, and
then the people in the record stores didn’t always know where to put the albums.
They’d wonder about the use of science fiction, television shows and literary
references (songs such as “Borg Sex,” “Ice 9” from the Vonnegut novel Cat’s
Cradle), and sometimes speculate whether I was getting too experimental or
esoteric. But the audience never seemed to have that problem. I remember when
Surfing became a hit, there were label people that were shocked. I’ve been a
little surprised myself that it’s still so popular today, especially
internationally.”
Though he’s also done plenty of all-star session work, especially an acclaimed
stint in Deep Purple during the band’s 1993 Japanese tour, Satriani prefers
either G3 or solo dates to group appearances. Another area where he marvels at
changes is technology, where constant changes and updates are now the rule
rather than the exception.
“There was a time when even the most hardcore guitar fan couldn’t really keep
track of everything happening in the field,” Satriani said. “But now, people
come up to me at concerts and ask detailed questions about picks, tuning,
strings, brands, everything. We pretty much planned a lot of the tour by
computer, e-mailing each other about songs, venues and dates. The whole focus on
gear has also gotten more extensive, and there’s so much more attention paid to
it now than ever.”
His most recent releases include Super Colossal and Satriani Live!, a two-disc
CD/DVD set recorded at the Grove in Anaheim, Calif., plus more guest appearances
on Deep Purple vocalist Ian Gillian’s solo CD/DVD release Gillian’s Inn. Several
Satriani compositions are also included in the video game series NASCAR 06:
Total Team Control and his “Summer Song” is part of the individual game Gran
Turismo 4.
“I think what you’re seeing today in terms of the music business is a disconnect
between the business and the consumer,” Satriani said. “The impact of
downloading, while significant, hardly explains all the problems. What’s
increasingly happened is that the fans found other ways to get the music they
wanted, and now the industry as a whole has to find a way to deal with that. The
explosion of satellite and Internet radio, plus iTunes and all the other sites
show there’s no lack of interest in music. What has happened is that the
marketplace has grown and changed, something not everyone in the business
understands or has been willing to change with it.”
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