8,000 people showed up at the MMRDA grounds in Mumbai on the 13th of May expecting to be treated to two hours of jaw dropping guitar music courtesy of one of the premier modern guitar players. What they got was an exhilarating performance from Mr. Satriani that lasted almost three hours!

Although the gates opened over an hour after the stipulated time, the show itself commenced earlier than most people expected. The sun was yet up when Joe Satriani made his unexpected entry onto the stage in his customary black T-Shirt and shiny black pants with a pair of sleek shades, which of course, were also black!

The energy level of the band was right up there form the start. Satriani's more than able band comprised Matt Bissonette (bass), Jeff Campitelli (drums / percussion), and Galen Henson (guitar).All of whom have recorded or toured with a variety of big names in the music industry. Although the band is on a promotional tour for the latest Satriani album called "Is There Love In Space", they performed a variety of tracks from all his albums.

One wouldn't expect to see so many people at a "guitar" gig in India. But Satriani's music has rightfully gained a reputation of being accessible; as he also incorporates a lot simple sing along melodies that anyone can relate to. The crowd erupted when Satch and the band launched into his popular track, "Satch Boogie" right away and followed it up with "Cool #9". He incorporated a different intro to Cool #9, which had everybody guessing as to what was coming his or her way!

Satch seemed to be in his element as he relentlessly improvised solo after solo with a certain nonchalant ease that is not only highly admirable but also makes for more enjoyment. He churned out signature Legato guitar lines combined with those inevitable "Satch blues licks" much to the excitement of not only all the several musicians present at the gig, but to the thrill of everybody to cared to listen…or even just watch for that matter! Almost every guitar player from Mumbai / Pune was at the concert to experience, what for them, is the ultimate gig. Joe Satriani is known to be a precursor of sorts in the genre he plays. He epitomizes the image of the "new age" guitar player with his cutting edge sound and his mastery of guitar harmonics and the use of the whammy bar. All of which he demonstrated to the fullest the other night.

What was definitely the most memorable part of the concert was when the crowd sang along while he played the melody of his popular track, "Always with me, Always with you". Much to Satch's surprise, the crowd was pretty loud…and accurate! He played a beautiful, extended version of this otherwise pretty concise song, adding a new progression to the track and as always, improvising tastefully on it. Right from the beginning of the show, one could hear cries of "Flying In A Blue Dream". And when Joe Satriani obliged, the crowd almost couldn't believe it! "Flying In A Blue Dream" and "Summer Song" are probably the two most popular "guitar" songs written. And the crowd's response to both was uncompromising loud!

The drum and bass work was pretty straight throughout the show, as one would expect since it is Satriani gig. When the band came back on stage to oblige with encores after performing "Flying In A Blue Dream", Satch announced that he'd like to play a track that the band hadn't planned on doing as he dug into the riff to "Going Down", the Jeff Beck track popularized by Satriani on the 1997 G3 tour with Steve Vai and Eric Johnson. Joe Satriani ended his three-hour virtuosity marathon with "Surfing With An Alien".

If what Satch said on stage is to be taken seriously, we here in India should be seeing him again pretty soon!