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submission courtesy of alexparker
Artist: Joe Satriani
Album: Surfing With The Alien
Released: 1987
1. Surfing With the Alien 4:25
2. Ice 9 3:59
3. Crushing Day 5:14
4. Always With Me, Always With You 3:22
5. Satch Boogie 3:13
6. Hill of the Skull 1:48
7. Circles 3:28
8. Lords of Karma 4:48
9. Midnight 1:42
10. Echo 5:37
Along with teaching some of the top rock guitar players of the '80s and '90s, Joe Satriani is one of the most technically accomplished and widely respected guitarists to emerge in recent times. Born on July 15, 1956, in Westbury, NY, and raised in the nearby town of Carle Place, Satriani -- inspired by guitar legend Jimi Hendrix -- picked up the guitar at the age of 14 (although he was initially more interested in the drums). Quickly learning the instrument, Satriani began teaching guitar to others and found a kindred spirit in one of his students, Steve Vai. By the late '70s, however, Satriani had relocated to Berkeley, CA. With his sights set on his own musical career, "Satch" kept teaching others, including such future rock notables as Kirk Hammett (Metallica), Larry LaLonde (Primus), David Bryson (Counting Crows), and jazz fusion player Charlie Hunter.
In the early '80s, Satriani got a gig playing guitar with power popster Greg Kihn, doing some session work and touring with the group (an archival release recorded around this time, King Biscuit Flower Hour, was later issued in 1996), and issuing his own solo self-titled EP in 1984, financing and releasing the project entirely on his own. But when Vai hit the big time as the guitarist of David Lee Roth's solo band in 1986, he offered praise for his good friend and former teacher in several major guitar publications, leading to widespread interest in Satriani's playing. The timing couldn't have been more perfect for Satch, as he'd just issued his first full-length solo album, Not of this Earth, which automatically made ripples in the rock guitar community.
But the best was still to come, in the form of his sophomore release, 1987's Surfing With the Alien.
The album starts out with the title track, which (if you hadn't guessed from the title) is a hard rocker with a fun "surfer" feel to it. Both the main rhythm guitar riff and the melodies are extremely catchy in this song, and the song has two dazzling and creative guitar solos. It's a really great song.
Next is "Ice 9," another hard rock song with a really cool driving rhythm and one of the wildest and most unpredictable guitar solos on the album. "Crushing Day," the third track, features catchy verse/chorus melodies and my favorite guitar solo on the entire album. It's not only blindingly fast, but extremely melodic, interesting, and creative as well.
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