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A piece of advice - if you ever happen to meet guitar superstar Joe Satriani, don’t call him the God of Guitar; he finds it quite embarrassing. At the exclusive afternoon press conference in Mumbai city there are three Joe Satrianis in front of us - a green-tinted, all-black-dressed likeness on the backdrop advertising his concert; a headshot cropped from the same photo, this time in a strangely colour-corrected hue; and then the real thing… the Guitar God himself - oh heck, we can’t help calling him that. Besides, he’s more than earned the title.
Sitting before us in a black jacket with ‘Adidas’ outlined in barely-there gold and equally striking black and silver shoes, the 49-year-old radiates a quiet energy and answers a flood of questions so eloquently that we can’t help but wonder why he won’t add lyrics to more of his extraordinary tunes. In any case, the legend finally makes it to India and for the thousands of fans who didn’t get a chance to meet him, we bring you some insights straight from the man himself.
The Record: Your first ever show in India falls on Friday the 13th. Are you superstitious?
Joe Satriani: No I don’t believe in that. But do you know the history behind the Friday the 13th? Apparently that’s the date the king of France decided to massacre the Knights of the Templar. It was the day he circulated the memo. So that somehow stuck in history and became this unlucky day!
TR: What is your worst nightmare as a guitarist?
JS: Funny you should ask, because it happened just the other night when we were filming a live show for a DVD in Tokyo. In that one evening of filming I broke a string and then, the little input jack in one of my pedals decided that it was ‘dirty’... It created an inconsistent connection to the guitar. So that was a nightmare; we’re recording in front of thousands of people, the cameras are on and my guitar’s creating this odd sound… but you move on.
TR: What is the most interesting sight you’ve seen from on stage while playing?
JS: People having sex. That’s the kind of thing that makes you forget what you’re doing for a while there… [Laughs]
TR: You’ve been a teacher to so many great guitarists. Who was your favourite student?
JS: I know there were a lot who thought I was too tough. [Laughs] I don’t know, they were all good. My favourite student is probably my son.
TR: Tom Morello and Zack De La Rocha are playing concerts to protest a cause. Are you involved in any such shows?
JS: No, you know we’re never really invited to play at any of those. It’s an unusual part of being an instrumental artist. We’re overlooked for concerts like this. I think they just don’t know what the hell I’m thinking! [Laughs] They just probably think I’m some crazy guitarist who can’t think of anything but my wah-wah pedal.
TR: You’ve abandoned your long-haired image from the ‘80s. Comment.
JS: What my Italian heritage gave me, apart from other things is hair loss, as part of my genes. I never really had the hair for being a rock guitarist. In fact I’ve lost an audition for a band called Jephriah because I didn’t have the right hair. I know I’m lucky that I didn’t get that. [Laughs]
You can read the rest of our feature on Joe Satriani in the May 2005 issue of The Record Music Magazine available at your local newsagent.
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