Part 1 The Show:Phew!!! G3 smoked last nite in Toronto Canada!!! Got back stage too, what a bonus. Synopsis: Yngwie was great, Steve was the best, Joe was so/so by his standards (he is really tired and admitted as much back stage). In the case of Joe it was partly his sound; it started a little dry but improved dramatically all through his set. By the time the jam started he had full crunch and certainly was the only one cutting through the din with any real clarity. His power chords and rhythm fills were awesome as always, he is the master of these three at “the groove” and rhythm work. Yngwie did not even bother to chord out any of the jam songs, preferring to throw or slide his Strat to the stage right roadie as each song approached the end point!!! Yngwie is like Blackmore when it comes to “the groove”, let the keyboard player deal with it. Steve was hands down the best of the night. Working his intricate snaky style over an eclectic set of tunes with killer sound and an absolute crackerjack back up unit. We all know bout Tony and Billy but the drummer rocked!!! The fierce interchange between he and Steve was fantastic (Steve introduced him as one his greatest musical finds ever!!!!) Yngwie was Yngwie, lots of flash, tricks and some damn fine playing when he put his mind to it, particularly the blues thing he did (excepting the vocals of course).

Part 2 Behind the scenes: Backstage, all were present except for TMac, who for some reason does not seem to realize how popular he still is!!! Joe was very calm, congenial but definitely tired. Best quote from Joe “I run G3, so we jammed many songs and ultimately I was responsible for selecting the keepers. We didn’t do any Purple coz there is not enough room in the breaks and we dropped La Grange coz some of us here are not disciplined enough to play within the format of that tune” Wonder who he meant there huh?? Steve was a prince, posing and signing for all. Sez there is a lot of great stuff coming in the future on his label. I asked him about getting Blues Saraceno to do something and Steve replied “Tell him to make some good music, it will get on”. Billy Sheehan was friendly and gracious as always, what a great old pro. He told me the band watched the final product of the “Live in London” DVD the night before and it smokes. His best quote was “Wait till you see Virgil Donati’s solo, I’ve seen the Rush DVD and Virgil just smokes Neil. Neil will want to go home when he sees this!!!” This is from a man who knows rhythm at its best so watch out!!

Yngwie was the only person seated and not mingling with the crowd (50 to 60 people). He was however gracious and signed everything put in front of him, including my complete and extensive collection of his work. People have to remember that by the time the meet and greet starts 11:00 PM, Yngwie has been back on his bus for over two hours (probably imbibing in something) so his attempts at humour are somewhat strange and his language is rather colourful. He was making strange comments like “I play guitar as a hobby; I am really the president of the Rolex watch company!! I am not from Sweden but Switzerland, Look at my Rolex!!! By the way he did refuse to sign my Steeler CD oh well!! After he signed my stuff I poked a little fun at him by asking if the big trailer being pulled behind his bus was for his personal supply of food!!! He was not amused, gave me a dirty look and said “Come on man!!! His keyboard player had a hard time to keep from cracking up!! I pulled him aside and said you were almost off this tour!!! Last time Yngwie was in Toronto he had to play as a three piece (with Yngwie on vocals) coz his vocalist and keyboard player were stuck at the border due to improper paperwork. Neither has been heard from since. By the way I know where one can obtain bootleg video of that show where Yngwie rocked out on Purple Hendrix etc. All in all the gang stuck around backstage for at least 45 minutes. Word of some of the postings here must have gotten back to Joe and he has put his foot down, he is the boss!! Hope everyone else’s experience with G3 from here on out is as pleasant as mine was!!! Rock on all!!!!!

First of all, I just recently became a fan of the G3 after my bf from Turkey introduced me to Joe's exceptional music creation. As a result, I had no idea what it would be like to attend their concert. However, last minute I was able to grab a ticket.

Malmsteen kind of freaked me out. Sure, the guy has plenty of talent but displaying it was rather strange. Nonetheless, he put on an interesting performance. And then Steve Vai came out..I was surprised at his entrance and he didn't want to make himself appear as a superstar cuz he just coyly greeted the crowd and started to play. I was totally blown away with his performance! I mean the emotions he provoked in the crowd, the feelings he displayed while playing was unimaginable. The sound of his music was really exquisite and I must admit, he has one of the best band members I've ever seen! The drummer was superb! And Billy and the other guy really added a great vibe to the overall performance. Another guy mentioned on these posts that Steve appeared as 'he was making love to his guitar.' I totally agree with this. Vai is truly multi-talented. The moment of the night I was most anxious about was Joe's performance. And once he started to play his guitar..I was awestruck! The way his fingers work, his body beating to the tune, and his mouth making numerous expressions, was really enjoyable to watch. He is truly a master at his craft and it showed time and time again during his performance. I just wish it was a bit longer!

The highlight of my night came when Billy and Steve invited me backstage after the show. Again, I had no idea what to expect but again, I was overwhelmed. The guys are super easy to talk to, laid back and just really 'normal.' Steve was extremely friendly and so was Billy. Malmsteen was somewhat of a writeoff. Then came Joe..he was so interested in talking with his fans and actually took time to listen to them. He's much shorter in real life but that doesn't take away from his explosive show at all. To my surprise, he's very soft spoken. I told him about how big his music is in Turkey and my bf (Ali) called my cell..Joe just reached out and said hello to him as if he had known the guy for ages. Little things like that really shows great character. Thank you Joe.

Needless to say, this experience was great! I look forward to attending another concert--hopefully a G2??

Chalang

This show was a tour de force of present day guitar wizardry. It was a pleasure to sit in the audience and watch three virtuosos completely dominate their instruments. I had never seen any of the G3 performers live before and had only seen Joe's Live In San Francisco DVD, which brings me to two minor issues. During part of the lightshow the lighting man thought it would be fun to turn the robotic lights sitting on the stage into the audience. Well I was just about blinded and had to hold my hand in front of my face for about three songs. Not enjoyable. The other issue I had was the lack of a backdrop in Massey Hall. The stage had no set design of any kind which I thought was odd. Even a black curtain would have sufficed. Finally a small point but Joe could do with a wardrobe consultant for he came out in a wool hat and a T shirt and an old pair of jeans. Compared to Steve Vai who looked great, Joe looked like a roadie. Aside from that the show was stunning and I still am buzzing about the performance. Please accept these comments as customer feedback and not unhappiness. I hope all three come back as solo acts very soon. We need more... Keep On Rockin' In The Free World,

Steve Redston

Some quick thoughts -

Yngwie Malmsteen - In the pantheon of electric guitar greats, Malmsteen is right up there with Hendrix and Van Halen - the man re-invented guitar in the early 1980s. The show at Massey Hall showed why.

Yes, he plays a lot of the same licks. Yes, he kicks picks. But nobody has that vibrato, that tone, or the impact that YJM has had on an entire generation of guitarists - love him or hate him, he is original. I thought his set was great, although his bassist and drummer seemed a little weak. Good stage presence, fantastic tone - great addition to the tour.

Steve Vai - ????? What can I say. The tour should be "G1". I feel bad for Joe, having to come on stage after Vai is very anti-climactic. Steve was nothing short of mindblowing - enough said.

Joe Satriani - Of the 3 G's, I've been a fan of Joe's the longest. Joe was great, but having to follow Steve makes it hard to keep the excitement up. Same thing happened in 2001. When I saw Joe OPEN for Dream Theater 2 years ago, I thought he was much better - more exciting.

All in all, fantastic show - thanks for making this guitarist's dream come true - 10 years ago I used to think how cool it would be to see YJM, SV, and JS on the same stage. Who would have thought it could happen?

Regards,

George Kirk

What exquisite music they make; these G3. What a treat to be part of the experience. All, in their own unique way, mesmerized a capacity audience within the confines of our old, beautiful and “Charles Dickens” style Massey Hall. They came, they saw, they conquered.

One can only imagine the pleasure and satisfaction artists of this caliber feel when they have the have the skill and creativity to express themselves so eloquently with their instrument of choice. That they bring us, in the audience, along with them as they play “for us”, helps us feel what they feel. Allows us, for that moment, to be part of their world and thoughts. They give willingly, we take freely. And so it should be.

Steve Via entered the room to a lively and sincere welcome from his fans. The loudest and longest of the night and he had not played a note yet. Displaying poise and presence, he treated us to some of his finest playing. From melancholy ballads to pounding pure rock that clearly had a profound affect on the listeners. Many times did he invoke such emotion and push so many “sonic” buttons that people were moved to tears. A truly wonderful experience. The reports of his accompanying musicians being G3 material are absolutely true. After the music has stopped, Steve truly connects with his audience with his heartfelt comments about the city of Toronto and that the” honor is his to be playing for us”. Now, we find ourselves liking the man as much as his gift of music to us.

Out comes Joe to a warm but uncharacteristically subdued reception. His playing is flawless and his band is of the highest caliber. Joe is no show boater and quickly gets down to business, treating us to some of his classic tunes and a few of his new ones. Starry night is so cool and “catchy”. Heads were bobbin through the whole thing. I am biased with him though since he is my personal fav. And has been for years.

I remain a little confused about Y. Malmsteen though. An accomplished musician to be sure and without a doubt the fastest fret shredder in the business. An amazing experience to be able to watch him do it. In the end, however, I was left a little empty knowing something was missing. It seems he puts so many notes together that it looses a sense of composition. As a result, one gets bored and tired very quickly. The reports of his stage presence are absolutely true. He has a very real sense of arrogance about him. An “in your face” type of attitude that makes it easy to dislike him so I am not at all surprised by the listeners negative reviews. Not to say it isn’t entertaining; it is. Anyone that has seen a true egotist and self absorbed individual strut their stuff around others will know of what I speak. (Bobby Bitner of SCTV comes to mind). YM’s keyboard player was an outstanding performer last night. He made those keys do things I have never heard and all in the style of an electric guitar lead solo. It was absolutely mind-blowing.

This was also the loudest show I have attended in a long time. However, this music style should have it loud. It’s the way most of us play it at home and we definitely want it loud live. There were a few times though, where my eardrums were being taxed to the max with little twinge of pain, Pushing the decibel envelope so to speak. There were times when the music and notes were not coming through at all. Just a barrage of electric guitar noise.

Thank you Joe, Steve and YM. You, sirs, are welcome back anytime either as individual acts or another G3 tour. You will have no lack of fan support in our fair city.

Mike Ettles Mississauga

Let me start off by saying that this was my first time attending a G3 performance. I have seen the DVD of the 97 G3 performance and decided I had to check it out when the opportunity presented itself. That opportunity came last night at our wonderful Massey Hall here in Toronto.

I went into the concert with an open mind expecting to be entertained to the max by the 3 G's and their incredible bands. Overall I was not dissapointed! I never thought I'd ever see and hear (and feel) such superb music right before my eyes.

This is what I thought of the show based on the segments as they were presented.

YNGWIE MALMSTEEN: "Do you know what time it is? it's time to ROCK!

I had almost forgotton that I had seen him open for AC-DC in Toronto many years ago. I have not really listend to his recordings or seen him live since then. What I did remember about him was his super fast classical arpeggio style and psuedo Hendrix antics. Well, that's about we got...nothing more nothing less. I would have to say that he has amazing technical talent but lacked the ability to put all of that amazing talent together in one piece. It was weird...he just kept wailing out non stop and it kind of made the tunes disjointed to a certian extent. He was good but as they say "sometimes less is more!"

STEVE VAI: "How about that Yngwie..is he a freak of nature or what?!!"

This was by far the highlight of the concert for me. From the moment he and his band hit the stage, I was blown away. I have never seen a rock guitar performance that completely captivated me and evoked such emotion and joy as when he played "A whisper and a Prayer" All I can say is, you had to be there to know what I mean...it was pure musical entertainment that even Amazing would have thought was amazing!

JOE SATRIANI: "Thank you, Toronto"

This was another electrifying performance. As with the other G's, Joe is of course an electric guitar wonder. His band was super good and tight. I wish he played some more of my fave tunes but with the shorter sets of the G3 show it was not possible. This was the part of the show that took full advantage of the sound and lights. I hope he comes back to Toronto as a solo act or on a double bill with Steve Vai....now that would be wicked!

THE 3 G's

This was the fun part of the night, where Yngwie, Steve and Joe all got together to jam on some Hendrix and Neil Young...I never thought I'd hear "Rocking in the Free World" done by these guys...but they pulled it off! It was great but Yngwie, being Yngwie was a little excessive on the guitar. Still a smashing performance tho.

So all in all it was a great night had by everyone and we hope to see more of the amazing G's B's and D'd coming to our town again!!

To the people that have tickets for the end leg of the tour...get ready to ROCK!!

ywngie starts it off, blah. he played icarus's dream suite though, that was cool. Vai took the stage after, very very well done, dances like water as he's groovin away. It seemed he must have had a bad night or something, he wasn't a happy guy by the sounds of things. Then joe came on \m/. ROCK ON JOE, starts it off with satch boogie and from then on, I was just pumped. Seeing joe, my idol, play live for the first time, so so so amazing. WOW! Thank you Joe. Backstage was amazing as well, hung out with jeff camitelli (campanoa, haha) for a while waiting for joe's crowd to settle down. Joe, wow, you're a very polite gentleman, funny story about the car doors.

I look forward to seeing another joe satriani concert, but as for another g3? nah, my heart's set on joe only. See you next time joe? You bet!

I have seen every G3 tour passing through Toronto and Satch in various venues since 1989. First off it must be hard for Joe and Steve to find a third player for these tours as the 2 of them are in a class of their own and on a wavelength that no other player can match. It's a nice compliment to see a third player but these two gentlemen are so far advanced and in tune with the times that nobody from this planet can touch them. As an 80's die hard it was nice to see Malmsteen live after some time. He has put on a few pounds (look at me talking, married, 2 kids, and a beer gut hehe) but he can still shred that Strat with a presence that has imortalised him in the neo-classical genre. I don't want to be overly critical but I found after 30 minutes it grew quite stale, especially with the pick kicking act. One's things for sure, whoever has stock in his pick manufacturer is probably going to be quite wealthy by the end of this tour.

I think the best part of the night for me, even as a die hard Satch fan, was Vai's entrance. Walking out with the lights up and catching everyone off guard was a statement that he was there to see each and every one of us in the crowd. Sitting in the chair with the glasses on playing that triple neck, he looked like the professor displaying his years of talent to a class of senior students. As always, his selection of musicians he hires to tour with him is stellar. It was great to see Tony M trading licks with Steve. The biggest dissapointment on the night for me was that Sheehan didn't return for the jam. Vai's ovations by the Toronto crowd proved that his popularity and style have a rock solid foundation for any future endeavors he may pursue. Many thanks Steve for cranking out 'Juice' (my all time fave Vai t00n), I was the bloke on the floor who yelled 'Shut up, we know you can play....Jesus' at the end, with many a head turning with laughter.

Now to Mr. Satriani. I was a little dissapointed with the crowds response to Joe but after Vai's performance it was no surprise. As always, Joe puts on performance like no other, a little melow compared to shows I've seen in the past but his musicianship and tonal presence is yards above anyone from this planet. His rig had a great sound and it was great to see Midnight performed live. If there was any musician on the planet who can play live with studio perfection it is Joe. I got a real chuckle with the band, dressed as though they were off for a night of bowling and a few beers. This basically told me what I have known for years, that these guys are so down to earth yet so talented that they are all in a league of their own.

The reason I have to give this show an 8 was the jam at the end. I wasn't to impressed with the chemistry displayed by Malmsteen. He is off on his own 90% of his time and his rendition of Little Wing was complete overkill with the scale shredding. Sometimes it's better to leave stuff out than to play with excess. Steve and Joe look so comfortable jamming together it is wonderful to watch. I just wish a better selection of songs to jam on. Their are millions of better toons than Rocking in the Free world. It almost degraded the style of playing that these gentlement are capable of.

Anyways, still a joy after all these year and hopefully many more to come.

Bruce Hopkins Toronto.

Let me start off by saying I am a huge Satriani fan, have all the albums and have seen Joe 4 times in concert. This was my first G3 concert.

Malmsteen: I can take or leave his style. I agree with another post here - often it seemed he was trying to overplay just for the sake of trying to impress - sometimes less is more, especially in blues numbers. The stage antics got a bit much towards the end with the pick kicking and guitar throwing - one time the tech wasn't there to catch the guitar so he just threw it across the floor. For sure a great talent but lacking the range of the other two and very one-dimensional.

Vai: Vai gave the best performance of the night. His style, range, tone, and sheer technical ability to will his guitar to do almost anything is downright amazing. He got a standing ovation from almost everyone in the crowd and seem honestly in awe of the fact. 'For the Love of God' was played almost perfectly, note for note and tone dead on.

Satriani: As always, Satriani plays with a sense of melody and timing that defines his sound as truly unique. I found the performance last night a bit flat emotionally. Also, he only played for about 40 minutes thanks to Yngwie overplaying his turn. Maybe too many of the Satch favourites - most of the audience has probably heard those songs more than once live. 'Midnight' was a special treat played perfectly.

G3: The jam was a bit of a disappointment for me. Yngwie was shredding all over the place, Vai and Satriani were on the opposite side of the stage. With 3 guitars playing it was almost impossible to hear what was going on. I was expecting more of a 'duelling' type scenario with players taking their turn, trading licks, etc. Instead it was more of a wall of sound, impressive at certain moments (some runs in Little Wing played in 3 part harmony), very blurry most of the time. Still, to see 3 of the greatest players together was a great experience.

Well, here's my rundown on the Toronto show. I had never seen any of these guys before even though i'm a fan of all three. I went with two friends who knew NOTHING about them, so it was interesting to see their reactions. Interestly, their reactions pretty much matched mine.

Malmsteen -- he was interesting. I didn't think he was as flashy as some of the other reviews... yes he has a unique stage presence, but it wasn't too bad. The pick-kicking thing got out of hand though. I think it really distracted people from the music. Malmsteen was best when he was playing stuff all by himself. Although I didn't care for when he solo'd over the pre-recorded orchestra piece.. what a waste of time. I didn't care much for his band, really. Malmsteen is clearly a great guitarist, but I believe that Vai and Satriani have MORE RANGE. They can do what Malmsteen does, and they can do MORE. Malmsteen showed that he can't play the blues and shouldn't try. His version of Red House was pretty lame. All in all, I'm glad I got to see Malmsteen in person, but I think one time is enough.

Vai -- Vai was the best of the night. He walked on stage without any fanfare and looked at the crowd in a joking way, as if to say "hey, what are you people doing here???" His best song was the slow one, which I forget the name of. One of my buddies thought that was the highlight of the night because Vai was so expressive (i agree). Vai showed a range of playing that Malmsteen just doesn't have. Vai seems mystical -- like he's doing stuff that humans shouldn't be able to do. He showed he has the best musical taste of the three. Also, his band was the best band there. They had style and chops -- Satriani and Malmsteen's bands had no energy to them, particularly Satriani's.. the bass player and the rhythm guitarist looked like they wanted to go home before the show was over.

Satriani -- Satriani was good, and played my fav, Always with you, always with me. But as my friends both commented, he didn't have much energy up there. He basically stands in one place and plays his songs. It was like listening to a recording. That's not a bad thing, but I was expecting more excitement. And I got tired of the extended endings on songs.... sometimes a band just needs to END IT. But overall it was a very good set.

The Jam -- this was good, but Malmsteen ruined Little Wing by shredding in it. Malmsteen has no sense of taste -- he doesn't know when it's appropriate to play fast and when it isn't. Vai and Satriani have a sense of taste.

As much as I love shred, and I own a number of malmsteen albums, he clearly has become a cliched player. He's great at what he does, but I'd rather listen to Vai and Satriani, who resist playing a cliched style.

During the jam, Malmsteen was trying to make the songs fit HIS style.. forcing neo-classical shred into songs that are better played without it. Vai and Satriani seemed like a team up there, and Malmsteen seemed like the outcast.

In the crowd on the street after, reactions were positive to the whole show, but people were laughing at Malmsteen's cliched style.

By the way, the people who say "ohh, you couldn't play better than malmsteen so don't complain" are idiots. I suck compared to Malmsteen, but in comparison to Vai and Satriani, Malmsteen is clearly lacking.