joe Satriani Takes on Eddie Van halen: The Challenges of the Best of All Worlds Tour
In a surprising turn of events,Joe Satriani,renowned for his guitar prowess,once deemed Eddie Van halen’s legendary riffs off-limits. Concerned about unintentionally mimicking the iconic guitarist’s style, he made a personal vow to avoid learning any of Van Halen’s signature licks, describing the thought of breaking that promise as “torture.”
However, during the recent Best of All Worlds tour, Satriani found himself stepping into the shoes of the late guitar legend. Teaming up with Sammy Hagar, Michael anthony, and Jason Bonham, he embarked on a journey across the United States to honor Van Halen’s musical legacy.
This endeavor was no easy task, and Satriani has since shared which Van Halen tracks posed the greatest challenges for him. Before even hitting the stage, he faced significant hurdles, including the realization that his live setup was not equipped for the job. To address this, he collaborated with 3rd Power Amps to create a custom tube amplifier that emulated his favorite tones from Eddie’s era.
In addition to revamping his signature Ibanez guitars, Satriani meticulously pursued the nuances of Van Halen’s sound and technique. His dedication impressed Hagar, who acknowledged that while Satriani might not have seemed like the ideal fit for the role, his efforts were commendable.
The Importance of Setlist Order
As the tour progressed, Satriani discovered that the arrangement of the setlist was just as crucial as his performance style. “Kicking off with ‘Good Enough,’ followed by ‘Poundcake’ and ‘Runaround’ is exhilarating,” he shared with Guitar World. “I quickly learned that the sequence of Eddie’s embellishments matters greatly to the audience. While Ed frequently enough rearranged things, fans are familiar with the studio versions and expect specific moments, like the scream here or the harmonic cascades there.”
Despite the audience’s keen ear for detail, certain songs proved especially challenging for Satriani to master. “The intro to ‘Poundcake’ is tough to get right,” he admitted. “The beginning of ‘Summer Nights’ was tricky due to the picking technique and gain structure. I didn’t feel pleasant with the intro until we were halfway through the tour. It felt so foreign to my fingers.”
Mastering Tonal Diversity
Another significant hurdle was achieving the tonal diversity that Van Halen was known for.Satriani designed his Dragon 100 amplifier—now available as a plugin—to capture the essence of Eddie’s sound from the pivotal 1986 era, a period celebrated in the Live Without a Net album. This era marked a transition for the band from David Lee Roth to Sammy hagar and has become Satriani’s favorite phase of Van Halen’s sound.
However, Eddie’s tonal palette was vast. “He had an astounding range of sounds,” Satriani noted. “The shift from ‘Ain’t Talkin’ ’Bout Love’ to ‘Panama’ is substantial, and then moving to ‘Summer Nights’ is a whole different ballgame.”
“He transitioned from mono to a bit of stereo with the Eventide effects to widen the pitch, and then full stereo. He utilized various amps like Marshall, Soldano, Peavey, and EVH, which resulted in significant changes in preamp gain and compression. His sound evolved from a pronounced midrange to a more scooped tone,” he elaborated.
To tackle these challenges, Satriani enlisted the help of Dylana Scott at 3rd Power Amplification. “We aimed for the 1986 Live Without a Net tone,which was characterized by Marshalls but with added stereo depth,” he explained.
This quest for Eddie’s specific sound was not a spontaneous decision. “Years ago, when David Lee Roth and Alex Van Halen first approached me about a tribute, I began a deep dive into Ed’s tone,” Satriani revealed. “His sound was lighter and thinner compared to my JVM, which is designed to make my high notes resonate with fullness.”
Adapting to a New Performance Style
“Typically, my performances consist of two hours of soloing, with minimal chord playing. Though, when I perform with Sammy, it’s about 95 percent rhythm, punctuated by eight or sixteen bars of soloing. It’s a quick burst before returning to the rhythm,” Satriani explained.
In related news, Peavey’s CEO has suggested that Satriani’s signing with the company may have contributed to Eddie’s departure, which ultimately led to the establishment of the Fender-owned EVH brand. Additionally, Steve Lukather has clarified his involvement in a forthcoming Van Halen album, which is being developed by Alex Van Halen and will utilize Eddie’s unfinished demos as a foundation.
