OF ALL THE shredders that emerged in the ’80s, Joe Satriani is perhaps the guitarist whose style is most rooted in the history of classic rock and blues, something that both Mick Jagger and Deep Purple clearly picked up on, as he had touring stints with both acts. His later rock supergroup, Chickenfoot, with Sammy Hagar on vocals, made it clear that Satriani was as comfortable in a band setting as he was fronting his own music.
“It’s a very different discipline to be part of a band as opposed to fronting my own solo material,” Satch explains. “It can be a bit of a relief when you’ve got a born front person like Sammy Hagar or Ian Gillan, and you realize, Oh, I can just hang out back here near the drummer. It’s kind of nice for a person like me, who’s shy. However, if you’ve had those moments where you’ve played your own instrumental music in front of 90,000 people and they’ve cheered, that feedback is so powerful. You don’t get that direct audience connection with your own music when you’re part of a band.”
As a solo artist, Satriani has amassed a body ofplaying the parts. It’s very different going to see a band like Free: There’s a singer, bass, drums and guitar. They can move with the audience; they’re not bogged down with ridiculous parts.”
