this was by far the best concert i have ever been to. not only was the music amazing, but the musicians are at the top of their craft.

the show started off with paul gilbert playing at his usual best. i've recently become a big fan of his work with mr. big and racer x, along with his solo stuff, and was very pleased when i heard he was going to be on the tour. not only was his technique spot on, but his charisma and chemistry with bruce (who i was also glad to see) was perfect. emi, who i had never seen before, was great, and mike and jeff only added to the awesomeness of this performance, as would be expected of the two.

next was john petrucci, the guitarist of the ever so popular band dream theater. i've been a huge fan of john since by friend introduced me to the band a few years back. he was as accurate as always and played some of the best songs from his solo album. his fellow bandmate mike portnoy was there and put on a show of his own. larue filled in on the bass guitar and did an excellent job.

i've heard a lot of good things about joe satriani, and now i know why. he was just as amazing as everyone said. with larue, jeff, and galen playing with him, his band was as solid as anyone could hope. the only thing i disliked about this set was that galen got very little spot light. he is obviously a very skilled musician, but he didn't get any chance to shine. but i guess that comes with the territory of playing with some one as talented as satriani.

at the end they all came out and had (as i've heard it been called) a face melting, dna altering solo fest. it was as astonishing as you could imagine. every one played their best and showed what excellent players they really are. the only thing was that paul's volume wasn't at the same level as the other two, which was a little disapointing because he had so much to offer to the jam.

overall the show was just indescribable. i had come to see john and paul, but i left with a new respect for all three of them (and a few new shirts).

I, like everyone else, am just blown away. Since, unfortunately, I didn't have anyone to go with me (I never do) , I get to share my experience with you guys! Anyway, going it alone has it's advantages - by getting 1 ticket in the pre-sale, I had a 3rd row seat in the center up with the "Club Joe" people and it was as good as I could have wanted. I've gone early to Joe shows in the past to get in the very front, and while it is great to view the show, Joe always throws his picks over your head. Well, this time - I got one! Got a Paul pick, too! Made me so happy...I guess it's the little things in life... but it got better...

I don't know what to say that hasn't already been said about the music. I mean, you guys have seen and heard Joe and Petrucci before, or at least I have - spot on, great tone, just amazing. I've been playing guitar for 20 years and they could take a dump on their guitar and what would come out of the amplifier would be 100 times more musical and interesting than anything I could play in my finest moment. Paul Gilbert - man, I could not WAIT to see him. I've lived in Atlanta for 10 years and I don't know when, if ever, he's been here during that time. It was the highlight of the show, for me. I had been reading the reviews and knew that Bruce was with him and they would play "Scarified". But they followed that up with "Scit Scat Wah"!!! It was too much!! 2 Racer X songs! Most of it was the new stuff - which is amazing - go to Amazon and get GOOMY - you'll love it. The only thing that would have made it perfect would have been for him to play "You Kids" or "Technical Difficulties", but I'm not complaining. Ok, I want make this review informative and not just my opinion, and I while I couldn't get the stage hand to give me another of Paul's picks, I managed to beg the set list off of him. Like to hear it?...here it go...

1. Get Out of My Yard 2. Hurry Up 3. Castle Dragon 4. Rusty Old Boat 5. Radiator 6. SCARIFIED!!! 7. SCIT SCAT WAH!!! 8. Spaceship One 9. Twelve Twelve 10. Solo to To Be With You 11. Down To Mexico

You will not be disappointed. I wish I could have been the Human Capo for Get Out of My Yard, but Bruce did an excellent job. His playing is really good. You could tell he was really excited to be there. He was so nice meeting him after the show. He inscribes what he autographs with "G4". How cool would it have been to see him participate in the Jam? Which leads me to the jam...at one point Paul picks up the drill. It was only for a few seconds, so have your cameras ready. Another note: this venue normally doesn't allow cameras, but I think the artist are agreeable if the venue is, so remember to bring your camera as it is a good possibility that it will be allowed.

In summary GREAT, GREAT show. More observations, for geeks like me: I met Bruce, Paul, John, and Satch after the show before they got on the bus. Great guys - they signed my guitar and were very willing to pose for a quick photo. I even saw one guy give his phone to Paul Gilbert so he could talk to one of his fans (at 12:30 in the morning) that couldn't make it to the show. Paul just rules. What else...didn't get Petrucci's set list (a physical copy), but I did take an upside- down photo of it with my camera while they were setting up.

1. Jaws of Life 2. Glasgow Kiss 3. Lost Without You 4. Curve 5. Wishful Thinking 6. Damage Control and, MIKE PORTNOY PLAYS DRUMS ON ALL OF THESE!!!!!

There. I hope I didn't ruin it for anybody. Just wanted to share some observations that I think will make it more fun for anyone who reads this. To anyone who is thinking of bringing a camera or trying to meet the guys after the show - it happened for me. Doesn't guarantee it by any means for any of the other shows, but it does, in my opinion, mean it's very likely, so hope it helps!

I've got some decent pics of the concert if anyone wants to trade pics, or if anyone wants to trade G3 guitar picks for pics (photos)! My email is in the attendance for the Tabernacle.

Thanks for reading. ENJOY THE SHOW!