Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I'll take this DVD over "G3" every time. "Joe Satriani - Live in San Francisco" is a superb combination of great playing, great sound, and good camera work and editing.
This concert, recorded at the Fillmore in December of 2000, showcases 24 songs plus a short blues introduction (not listed) and a bass solo. Eight studio albums are represented, from "Not of This Earth" (1986) through "Engines of Creation" (2001; not yet released at the time). "Crystal Planet" (1998), "Surfing With the Alien" (1987), and "Flying in a Blue Dream" (1989) were the most represented, with six, five, and four songs, respectively.
Overall, the performance has all the ingredients that make for a superlative rock 'n' roll concert: well over two hours of music, tight playing (one of the band's "on" nights), enough variation on the songs to make them "live" without losing the essence of the music, varied camera views (without going overboard on the tilted angles, thank you), and expert sound mixing. Disc 1 features thirteen songs, with very little down time between numbers; no need to go into detail about every song; they're all great. Disc 2 adds eleven more, plus a little more flavor with the opening blues intro and a bass solo by Stu Hamm that incorporates classically themed arpeggios, popping/hammering techniques and even a rendition of "Foggy Mountain Breakdown." Also, "Big Bad Moon" features Joe singing and playing a harmonica that doubles as a slide (clever). As opposed to his G3 "power trio," Joe enlisted the services of Eric Caudieux, who added rhythm guitar and keyboards, which is a smart move since as the "middle" was severely lacking from the G3 show. Still, I would have preferred that Eric made it out front even more often, similar to what guitarist Mike Keneally does in Steve Vai's band. Jeff Campitelli keeps his driving drum beats going throughout. Even with my audio system set to "DVD Stereo" the tunes still rocked. Users of 5.1 will be really pleased.
For the most part, the camera work is very good. Lots of angles are available both from the boom-mounted unit over the audience, and a few hand-held "roamers." The vast majority of the time, what's on the screen is exactly what I want to see: Joe's playing posture and fingering are highlighted 80% of the time, as it should be. Seeing the cameramen moving around all over the place was a little distracting at times, but not enough to damage the video presentation. Check out the feature that allows for four different camera angles on three of the songs: the hand-helds provide a more intimate dynamic perspective, mostly from on stage. Also worth watching is the nine-minute backstage commentary where Joe explains his influences, describes his pedal effects, etc.
Satriani fans MUST get this DVD. It's great for other guitar/rock fans as well.
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JOE SATRIANI: LIVE IN SAN FRANCISCO - DVD Movie
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