Search - Joe Satriani: The Satch Tapes on DVD

Watch the genius known as Joe.

Guybert | 07/10/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"What a tape! This basically covers the period from "Surfing With the Alien" up to the recording sessions for "The Extremist." There are some great hints at what was to come on "The Extremist" and whet peoples imaginations at the time (the video was originally released in 1992). This video also has a few music videos; "Always With You, Always Wtih Me" is nice. It looks like a scene from some artistic drama. "Surfing With the Alien" is basically Joe standing in a room with the camera going around him. It's pretty good, as you get to see how he plays it and the technique behind all that speed. "Big Bad Moon" is crazy. He looks like some greaseball mafia guy in this video for one of his coolest songs. "Summer Song" is my favorite video on this tape. It takes place at a destruction derby and features some very sharp editing. Amazing song, as well. Besides all these videos, you get to see what makes the man tick, with comments from Joe and other musicians, including another superhero of the axe, Steve Vai. It is nice to find out what inspires him and how he started out. There are also some hilarious comments from Christopher Guest as his alter-ego Nigel Tufnel of Spinal Tap. The last comments he gives about hygiene and playing guitar are great! I give this video my highest recommendation as it is an absolute must-have for fans of Satch and is great for any fan of the guitar."

Eighties proof

The Sanity Inspector | USA | 07/15/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I gotta confess: I pretty much skipped the Ibanez era of rock music. Eighties metal seemed utterly hollow to me. Few things were more boring than all that, bluesless, soulless, speed-for-speed's-sake shredding by all those over-coiffed fret-wankers in the Eighties. Like Elvis said, That don't _move_ me!So when I came into possession of this tape, I played it with middling hopes. I had heard Satriani's name, and maybe heard a song or two on the local radio over the years. What a nice surprise! For instance, I was surprised to learn that he is almost as old as the Seventies stadium rockers I grew up with, though he didn't hit the big time til the late Eighties. For another, I was very pleased to hear quite a lot of musicality underneath all that flash. "Summer Song" is the most appealing track to someone with classic rock tastes, a turbo-charged road tune. The others at least convinced me that this guy does more than just noodle over triplets of 32nd notes. So I don't know what my review is good for! Probably you are already a Satch fan, or have at least been aware of him for ages. But if, like me, you are a Fender/Gibson/Rickenbacker type, wondering if there is any gold in all the Ibanez dross, it says here that yes, there is."

Behind the Scenes with the Best

Elderbear | Loma Linda, Aztlan | 12/29/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"When Satriani heard that Jimi Hendrix had died, he quit his high school football team and took up guitar. This video unfolds tantalizing bits and pieces of this master's career. It spans history from the days when he taught guitar lessons for $5.00 each (Steve Vai, another master guitarist was one of his students) through the early 90's. The movie is made up of interviews with Satriani, his peers, and his producers, interspersed with concert footage and music videos. Comic relief is provided by "interview" footage with Spinal Tap's guitarist.If you like excellent guitar work, if you worship creativity and excellence, if you simply want to get some clue as to how Joe works his magic with his axe, you need to own this movie. If, on the other hand, your taste in guitar is more firmly grounded in Juaquin Rodriguez or the Romeros, you'll be rather disappointed with this incredible Blues/Rockfest."

A must have for serious guitar players!

Marco Mels | Rotterdam, The Netherlands | 12/26/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This video is a real must have for all serious guitar players. It shows you some cool guitar technics and a few video clips. For example, the famous and classic songs: Big Bad Moon, Always with me, Always with you and Summer Song. However, the video also shows you how Joe performed for a live audience. I would not consider this video as a "wanna have", but more as a "must have". Check it out, it is cool!"