Review & photos by Junkman
G3, the collaboration of a trio of talented guitarists, led by Joe Satriani, and featuring fellow guitar maestros Steve Vai, and Eric Johnson, wrapped up their 11-city tour with a two nights of sold-out shows at the marvelous Orpheum Theater in Los Angeles, and I was lucky enough to be in attendance for the final show. The excitement in the crowd leading up to showtime was electric, and as always, the performers did not disappoint.
G3 was conceived in 1995 by the multi-Grammy nominated guitarist Joe Satriani. The inaugural G3 Tour took place in 1996 ,bringing together three of the most iconic and virtuosic guitarists of their time: Satriani, Eric Johnson, and Steve Vai. Based on incredible technical prowess, musical innovation, and unique styles, the G3 tour is a celebration of guitar mastery that’s become extremely popular, captivating audiences worldwide. Though the lineup has continually changed over the last 29 years since its inception, Satriani is celebrating G3 in 2024 by reuniting the original trio: Satriani, Johnson and Vai.
Over the years, many of the most well-respected guitarists of a variety of genres have joined in the festivities, including Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Yngwie Malmsteen, John Petrucci, Robert Fripp, Paul Gilbert, Steve Morse, Steve Lukather, Uli Jon Roth, Michael Schenker, Adrian Legg, Phil Collen along with many other special guests including Al Di Meola, Tony MacAlpine, Johnny Hiland, Keith More, Chris Duarte, Andy Timmons, Neal Schon, Gary Hoey, Brian May, Billy Gibbons, Johnny A, George Lynch, Patrick Rondat, Guthrie Govan, Alejandro Silva, and Eric Sardinas. The first show also featured, as special guests, guitarists Nita Strauss and Jason Richardson.
The onstage action started early, as Steve Vai and his band — Dante Frisiello and Dave Weiner on guitars and keyboards, Philip Bynoe on bass, and Jeremy Colson on drums — thrilled the still arriving crowd with “Avalancha” a track from his 2022 Inviolate album. All eyes were on Vai as he demonstrated his unique skills as a showman, through his extraordinary technical skills and his use of his equipment. He manipulated not only his tremolo bar to produce new measures of sounds, but also used his network of pedals to extract specific squeals and accents, all the while bending notes on his custom Ibanez guitars, that had the crowd enthralled.
The songs “Little Pretty” and the bluesy “Tender Surrender” spotlighted the jazz and blues influences on Vai’s playing styles. Besides the obvious speed and control that he has over his instrument, what makes him stand out so much as a live performer, is the smoothness that he has in demonstrating these skills and changing direction in the blink of an eye. In the case of “Tender Surrender,” he starts out slow and soft, and then effortlessly erupts in a burst of shredding guitar mastery that is so quick and masterful that you are almost unsure of what has hit you sonically.
Vai’s long time drummer Jeremy Colson, and bassist Bynoe laid down a solid foundation for the straight-ahead rock number “Zeus In Chains” that spotlighted the heavier side of Steve Vai’s song catalog. An intro and “unveiling” of his tri-necked “Hydra” guitar led to the crowd-pleasing “Teeth Of The Hydra” which is a show unto itself. Vai’s performance on this magnificent instrument with its three necks and winged tailpiece is something to see. He used all three necks simultaneously and brought out incredible sounds that actually made one think they were witnessing three guitarists at once. I guess the term “G3” was already taken!
Vai switched back to a six-string, and he and the band finished their brief set with a rousing “For the Love Of God,” a classic from his 1990 Passion And Warfare release that gave the audience everything that we love from Steve Vai — great passionate guitar licks, grinding tone, and flashing performance combined with great leaps and flying melodies from his magical fingertips. It really is a treat to see a master of his craft perform, and the evening was just getting started.
After a quick set change, Austin Texas-based guitarist Eric Johnson and his band hit the stage, with a fun, hand-clapping sing-along of the old Chris Kenner song, “Land Of 1000 Dances,” made famous, way back when by Cannibal &The Headhunters as well as by Wilson Pickett. It was a cool way to start a set, that mostly, consists of dreamy instrumental guitar numbers. Johnson, smiling, provided the lead vocals on this and a few other songs in the set.
Johnson and his band, bassist Roscoe Beck, drummer Wayne Salzmann II, and keyboardist and guitarist Dave Scher, kept things rocking with “Righteous” a very bouncy, instrumental number from his 1990 Ah Via Musicom release, the record that I first became aware of Johnson as an artist. Johnson again, used his soft, tenor vocals for the up tempo “Trail Of Tears” that spotlighted his clear, chiming tones from his Fender Stratocaster guitar.
Johnson and his band reached into their collective bag of tricks for a wonderful take on John Coltrane’s classic “Impressions,” which included many interludes and trade-offs with Scher’s guitar playing, as well terrific drum breaks from Salzmann and solid bass playing from Beck that really solidified the band as a unit. Johnson dedicated “Freeway Jam” to the memory of the late Jeff Beck. Johnson added his own flair to this number, and it was interesting to see Salzmann play the song as a straight-up shuffle as opposed to the stops and starts on the recorded and live versions that Beck and his band had done over the years. My respect to Eric Johnson and his band for putting a new spin on an old favorite.
Johnson again took lead vocals for “Desert Rose” and his lovely guitar tone, heavy on harmonics during with a guitar solo was the perfect lead into “Cliffs Of Dover,” perhaps his most popular number that woke up the entranced crowd who screamed and applauded this rocker from Ah Via Musicum. It’s a very happy-sounding instrumental, and its double time shuffle beat is always a treat to hear in a live setting. Johnson and his band switched gears to finish their set with a rousing “Venus Reprise.”
G3 tour organizer Joe Satriani was next, and he gave the crowd exactly what they had been waiting for. It was fabulous set, featuring blazing guitar playing from one of the best in the business, and an equally strong backing band, anchored by legendary drummer Kenny Aronoff, and featuring bassist Bryan Beller, and keyboardist Rai Thistlethwayte. This is the same touring band that Satriani has been working with the last few years, and to say that they were incredibly tight, would be an understatement.
Hitting the stage to the sounds of “Raspberry Jam Delta-V” certainly got the band noticed, but the crowd erupted as the band launched into a couple of numbers from 1987’s Surfing With The Alien release. The title track locked Satch into the crunchy, ballsy guitar tone that made him famous, and his dive bombs and guitar theatrics, including playing his guitar with his teeth, thrilled his guitar-loving audience. “Satch Boogie” from that same album spotlighted his tight band, especially Aronoff, who drove the tempo — from his hi-hat breaks, to his crashing snare drum hits — that accompanied Satriani’s quick fingerboard runs like a machine.
“Oh man, the last night of the tour. It’s so sad,” Satriani told the audience with a smirk. After introducing his band and performing a hypnotizing “Sahara” from his 2022 The Elephants Of Mars LP, the band kicked it up a notch with one of my favorites, a blistering “Nineteen Eighty” from his 2020 Shapeshifting release, a rocker that shows off so many of his guitar skills at once. It’s one of those songs, that when performed live, elicits gasps from the audience.
“Big Bad Moon” had Joe Satriani taking a rare throaty vocal, along with some harmonica, in addition to his guitar duties. Bryan Beller’s, steady thudding bass lines set the songs pace. Satriani again addressed the crowd, and dedicated his lovely “Always With Me, Always With You” to “Everyone.” Its soaring melodies and tones were identical to the recorded version that was released so long ago and has been a staple in many action films and even wedding video’s that I have seen over the years.
Satriani announced: “As you know, we’re making a live record, so make some NOISE,” as the crowd responded accordingly. He added that his son ZZ Satriani, who has been following him all over the world for years, would be directing a documentary about the history of G3. ZZ came up on stage carrying a custom Ibanez guitar, and he rocked out with his dad to a fiery version of “Summer Song,” a huge radio hit in 1992. It was a nice father-son moment to witness.
Things then went to the next level. Satriani took the microphone and thanked the crew for their hard work on the tour. Then he welcomed Steve Vai and Eric Johnson onstage, and together they rocked Robert Johnson’s classic “Crossroads.” Trading guitar solos throughout, it was done in the style that was made famous by Cream in 1967, only with MORE guitars!
Eric Johnson then took lead vocals for an exciting version of Jimi Hendrix’s “Spanish Castle Magic” as he, Satriani and Vai channeled their “inner Hendrix” and continued to blow the crowd away with their guitar improvisations. The song ended with Satriani and Vai making their guitars harmonize and cry as the band waited for the crescendo to join in. The audience stood and roared. Thistlethwayte then took lead vocals on a version of Steppenwolf’s “Born To Be Wild,” driven by the thunderous drumming of Kenny Aronoff, which also included a snippet of Cream’s “Sunshine of your Love” near the end.
Satriani again took the microphone and acknowledged the players. “The thing about guitar players, I always knew, in the back of my mind, that we DID want to hang out with each other, and just go crazy on the guitar, and a lot of people said we couldn’t do that, but that is what G3 is all about, sharing, challenging.”
He then welcomed Australian guitarist Plini, Dethklok-Metalocalypse mastermind Brendon Small, and guitarist Phil X, to join the band onstage and jam. “I think we all agree that this song is in the key of A,” Satriani joked, and the band, which now included six guitar shredders up front, did a long, extended version of Freddy King’s classic “Going Down” that went incredibly well, considering how many players were involved. Each brought their own flair to the song, but it stayed within its bluesy foundation. Thistlethwayte provided the lead vocals and keyboards, which were outstanding.
Phil X, who has been playing with Bon Jovi, provided vocals for the show closer, another Jimi Hendrix classic, “Foxy Lady,” that absolutely brought the house down. There were notes upon notes that were played that I had never heard before. There was a wide diversity in styles amongst the various players.
Joe Satriani brought out all the players from all the bands. As they took one last bow, the Orpheum Theatre was shaking on its foundation from the amount of applause. A beaming Joe Satriani followed his friends offstage, obviously elated with a fabulous performance and a job well done.
<
