By Chris Cooper
The G3 tours are a traveling celebration of the virtuoso rock guitarist. Joe Satriani developed the concept of G3 in reaction to his sense of isolation from other artists in his genre.
Always finding himself touring different towns, if not different countries than his friend and former student Steve Vai, he decided to create the opportunity for like-minded instrumentalists to tour together, rejecting the perceived competition between them. His concept came to life in 1996, with an amazing string of shows that included Texas wunderkind Eric Johnson along with Satriani and Vai. Subsequent tours found Robert Fripp (King Crimson), Kenny Wayne Shepherd, and prototypical shredmeister Yngwie Malmsteen joining the ranks.
The most recent of these tours is G3 Live In Tokyo, with Dream Theater guitarist John Petrucci opening the show. Anyone familiar with his main band is aware of his prowess as an instrumentalist, and his chops are prominently on display here.
It’s a bit of relief to hear him in the context of a power trio (with bassist Dave LaRue and DT drummer Mike Portnoy) rather than the sometimes overwrought prog of Dream Theater. “Glasgow Kiss” opens his set, a rolling major key excursion that he and the band deliver flawlessly. Petrucci’s allegiance to the Steve Morse/Dixie Dregs style of composition is fully apparent, but it doesn’t come off as thievery: more of an inspired tribute.
He follows with “Damage Control” and leans into the more metallic side of things. The solo in this particular tune is nothing short of jaw dropping. Petrucci plays like he’s got something to prove here, which has its pluses and minuses, musically. Nevertheless, it’s inspiring and the energy is undeniable.
Vai is a magician. That’s all there is to it. Kicking off with “The Audience is Listening” from the classic Passion and Warfare album, the whole band is set on stun from the downbeat. Multi instrumentalist (and guitar monster in his own right) Tony MacAlpine provides impossible harmonies and keyboard layers while Billy Sheehan flings more notes around than any bassist should be allowed to.
The more recent “Building The Church” follows, but it’s “K’m-Pee-Du-Wee” that’s the star of the set, recalling Vai’s time spent with Zappa in it’s stream of consciousness improvisation. The band dares to feel “loose,” which is normally such a no-no in the context of instrumental rock. It’s wonderful and whacky, which is exactly what we’ve come to love about Vai as a musician.
G3 godfather Satriani takes the third set, and he’s easily the most accessible of the bunch, unafraid to dig into the blues for the meat of his soloing. This isn’t to say he doesn’t deliver the head-spinning guitar theatrics we expect — just that he does so with heart and a sense of melody that’s often missing in this music. “Up In Flames” opens with his signature strutting boogie thing, but it’s not until the middle of “Searching” that he goes for the gut, digging deep into the Hendrix-isms that are such an overlooked part of his playing. It works.
He closes with “War,” a tune that he rarely performs live, and injects it with an urgency that sends the searching quality of the melody right over the edge. The thing with Satch is you come away with his songs stuck in your head, not just shocked by his technical ability.
They close with the classic “G3 Jam” which continues the note splattering over the classic tunes “Foxey Lady,” “La Grange” and, yes folks, even “Smoke On The Water,” with all three guitarists contributing to the sonic damage. The solos are furious, ridiculous and just don’t seem to end. But the three of them have such distinct musical personalities that you always know who’s doing what, even if you’re reaching for the Advil at this point.
But that is the point, isn’t it? When was the last time you actually heard anything like a guitar solo, let alone a virtuosic one, on modern rock radio? When did it stop being cool to actually play the guitar? You know what? It never did. These guys won’t let it happen. 5 big fat stars. I’ve got to go practice.