Customer Reviews

G3 - Live in Denver

5 star:		(54)
4 star:		(39)
3 star:		(17)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I saw one of the first G3 shows several years ago in Los Angeles and it was a ton of fun. However, I had my doubts when I ordered this DVD as I suspected that it may just be another show of ego with a thousand notes per second. I was pleasantly surprised when I popped it in and found a laid back and fun show. Satch, while relatively less technical then the other two on the ticket, is my favorite because he plays with the most taste and feel. His set is rockin' and the least mechanical of the three. His note choice and style is just more mature and reminds me of what a great electric guitar player sounds like. No frills Joe never disappoints. Vai's playing is maturing nicely and he is starting to play from the heart. He is arguable the best all around electric guitar player alive for his technical ability and music breadth of knowledge is matched by few. Unfortunately, Vai only gets a few songs in this set, so he doesn't get a chance to really shine on this DVD, though I really like his treatment of Hendrix's "Little Wing."

Malmsteen was a great treat to see. Having never seen him live but casually respecting his audio work, I was very interested to see this legendary machine do his thing. What Malmsteen lacks in feel and taste he makes up for in grand style with stunning command of the guitar. Truly, he is an amazing guitar player. His fat fingers move at mind numbing speeds up and down that scalloped maple '73 strat finger board and across the strings in precise fluid motion. Really unreal and something you must see to believe. Segovia would probably scoff at his ability suggesting his is merely a circus act, but I find him fascinating to watch.

Three very different styles highlighted and all possess tremendous talent. Highly recommended for all guitar music freaks.

I don't know where to start. This DVD is awesome!!!!!! I bought the old G3 concert on DVD and that was awesome, but it was nothing compared to this masterpiece. It's a very well made DVD. The sounds are all well mixed and the camera angles are good. I'll review each song. That way those that don't know the setlist can see it.
Joe:
Satch Boogie - great version of it, a little slower than the live in S.F. version, but it sounds great.
The Extremist - awesome version, harmonica solo sounds good as does the solo
Starry Night - glad he played this, it's from his latest album, nice slow song with some great guitar playing in it
Midnight - very cool to hear it, even cooler to see it played
The Mystical Potato Head Groove Thing - this song is always awesome live, sounds very good.
Steve:
I Know You're Here - Wow, awesome intro with a very cool guitar, you'll see what i mean, then it goes into a song with some vocals and then solos, great
Juice - awesome solos, awesome riff, awesome song
I'm the Hell Outta Here - WOW! the whole band gets into this one, I love this song and am really sad that it's not on the CD version, just watch it the whole way through and I promise afterwards you'll be screaming, "WHOA, THAT WAS AWESOME!!!"
Yngwie, definitely a great addition this time, and i don't care what anyone else says, Yngwie f***in' rules!!!:
Evil Eye - fast flying fingers and cool solos between guitar and keyboard
Baroque and Roll - very cool sounding intro and great fast solos
Acoustic Guitar Solo - fast and intense on acoustic, it's, for lack of better words, awesome
Adagio - good sound to it
Far Beyond the Sun - this song has always been awesome, great intro riff and some fierce solos, and then he finishes up the song very brutally (you'll see what i mean)
While these performances are already amazing, now they all come out together!!!!!!
G3:
Rockin' in the Free World - SWEET!!! I've been waiting to see someone besides Pearl Jam to cover this. starts off with some cool feedback, then the powerful, driving drums come in as Steve and Yngwie play some harmony, then the song starts, Joe sings lead vocals, awesome solo session between them all, Yngwie gets a little greedy on one part (just watch Steve) it's funny, then there's a great harmony spot with all of them, then it's excellent from there out
Little Wing - starts off slow and soft with Steve singing, then they do the solo thing and all play together and it sounds GLORIOUS!!!

Voodoo Child (Slight Return) - Oh Hell yeah!!!! Yngwie starts it off and sings! i didn't know he could sing, well actually, it's a good thing there aren't tons of lyrics, hehe, the solos are great and that's all there is to say
That's that. This DVD is so awesome. Seriously this is so much better than the old DVD. I love it so much. If you like any of these guys, this DVD is totally worth buying. It's one of the best concerts ever!!! Buy it now, or i promise you'll be sorry. G3 RULZ!!!!!!!

I saw this show when it came to Oregon, but they held it in this concrete building which has terrible sound (I heard they had been having sound problems in general on this tour); so I was eager to see how it sounded on DVD. I think there's some problems in the balance between all the different guitars, especially during Vai's set, you can barely hear Tony McAlpine (...)! I notice a lot of people criticizing Satriani; saying that he shamefully reproduces his recordings note for note live and that he sounds the weakest in the jam. Satch is a master composer; he does a little improv in his legato lines and such, his music is tightly arranged though. If he didn't play it for the most part like it is on a record then it would fall apart, thus it's stupid to hold this against him. I think Satch has the broadest style of all of them; he's the blues guy with metal technique, Ynwie's style is dominated by classical influence combined with a technique known as "tendonitis", and I don't know what Vai is. Vai's stuff is too...out there, it's composed fastidiously but it sounds like a jam, and his squealing often annoys me. Ynwie is an astounding musician, listen to any of his solos during the jam; all of the right notes are there, but he has a habit of obscuring the musical quality of his playing with masterbatory technique. His acoustic guitar solo is great, and his set will certainly glut your appetite for sonic sensory assualt, though ultimately his stage antics and ADHD playing especially during the jam leave me trying to picture him in a clown costume. I miss the Satch set from the first G3 video; The Extremist aside, this one just makes me want more. They could have chosen a better mix of songs for one thing, I can't believe Always with me Always with you still hasn't made it on to a G3 video. I don't know Vai's career too well so I can't say much about his set, I think it's pretty lame, but that's me. A good video overall, worth it if you like any one of these players. The poor set selection keeps it a star short of five.

As a 43 year old guitarist myself, i've been a fan of Satriani, Vai, and Malmsteen for many years, but purchased this DVD with some trepidation. Man, was I wrong in thinking it would be 'just another' guitar DVD. These guys are so masterful and accomplished that almost anything they do on the guitar 'turns to gold'! Their technical abilities AND ability to play passionate, moving guitar is a killer combination that makes this live DVD ever so much more powerful in it's ability to connect with conoisseurs of great world-class guitar music! I can't wait to see the next incarnation of 'G3'... I am hoping perhaps Michael Schenker or Uli Jon Roth might be offered a crack at it!!!

As guitar player of about 15 years now and just getting back into it, I was pleased to discover this DVD. Most of my familarity with Satch, Vai and Malmsteen was from their earlier years and were most inspiring to me to start learning in the first place. I found all guitarists enjoyable to watch, though they still sounded pretty similar to they did when I first heard them 15 years ago. In this regard, after about the third watch, I was ready for something else a bit different, though I guess maintaining a certain style continues to keep your style definition distinctive as you can always tell its a Satch riff or Malmsteen lick. And I guess no matter how familiar these guys are, its still impressive to see them play and wish you could play as half as good.
Satch's performnace was easy to listen to as he usually has some memorable melody central to his compositions, and still using his trademark artifical harmonics, which I thought at times were a bit overdone.
Vai was interesting to listen to as he still comes up with quirky sounds. I did find his overall guitar sound a bit benign, expecially in the jam session. Not sure what set up he was using but it had no real edge to it.
Malmsteen as always was a showman (though entertaing enough) and at times during the jam session almost seemed to over shadow the others restraint. Some who find the less is more approach better may find his repetitive appregios and sweep picking superfluous, but thats just Malmsteen, love him or hate him. His acoustic number was a good contrast but it seems he forgot himself a bit when he started strumming it before going back to his neoclassical self. I did find it amusing though, having not seen a picture of him for a few years, he's now a much fuller version, but still sporting the leather pants, puffy shirt and air leg kicks.
The sound was pretty good, but that may depend on what system you play your DVD's through. I find music DVD's always sound fuller in stereo. The whole surround sound thing for music just doesnt work for me as when you see a musician perform live, they're going to be in front of you, not behind you like your surround sound speakers. The camera work was good too, showing fret board close ups regularly. If you buy a DVD to see guitar playing, you're not so interested in the expressions on the players face as much as what their hands are doing.
Anyway, overall, still immensly impressed by their talents and abilities, the DVD quality and production was high, but there wasnt anything really groundbreaking by these guitarists. I guess the average person would buy this not because of what they might do, but because of what they have already done and so want to hear/see it again.

I just bought the dvd and i think it's amazing. They are all 3 fantastic guitarists.You know, if you don't like Yngwie that's your taste. The question is: Can you do the same thing ? Every guitarist has their style. Satriani:rock, blues. Vai: hard rock, with a lot of different things like taping, alternate picking, sweep, etc Yngwie:very fast with alternate picking, classical influence(arpeggios,sweep,etc").If you start saying that he's just fast, that he knows his scales well, don't you know that music is based on scales and modes. He plays and compose alot of great classical melodies.A show is a show if you're a real guitar player and you really like it(passion), you're gonna love this video. Because they still are Satriani, Vai and Yngwie Malmsteen.

I saw G3 in Boston, I believe it was 1998 or 99. John Petrucci of Dream Theater was in the line-up and it was an unbelievable show. This line-up with Yngwie Malmsteen is just jaw-dropping. Yngwie definitely spiced up the show. The jam at the end was the best. They all played together beautifully, going off into their individual leads and then coming together. Although all the songs are great, I have to say my favorite is Little Wing. I watch/listen to this DVD every morning on the treadmill and the 30 minutes just flies by.

Dude I was impressed with this dvd, it really rocks, I mean wow it gave me the goosebumps! And hey Amazon reviewer you should buy some kindergarten music books dude, and stop hearing britney spears and backstreet boys man, they don't work for this. So next time, Amazon, try to find better reviewers for specfic tasks would ya?

When I watched Vai play live in Athens a couple of years ago I was just shocked!!! I couldn't believe my eyes!
And with this DVD I was just as shocked!
Malmsteen is awesome too, although I have never been a big fun of his classical stuff and the endless "I-think-i-have-heard-this-solo-before" shredding. However when he goes pentatonic he is blowing you away! I wish he would do that more often. Satch kicks butt as well.
The performance in the jam was simply out of this world... Little Wing was superb, and Yngwie singing on Voodoo child simply left me begging for more!
Definitely gonna get it on audio as well!

This disk is loaded with stellar guitar playing and showmanship. It's broken down into 4 sections: 3 with the name players with their respective bands, 1 with the 3 name players all jamming together with Joe Satriani's band. The dvd starts with Joe Satriani's performance. The 4 songs included have all been recorded live elsewhere so there's nothing new here. However, I loved the performances. I never thought Joe was a player who uses his music to showcase his technique. Nothing about his performances on this dvd has changed my opinion. I like the vibe that Joe has throughout his set: cool and laid back while playing aggressive sounding songs. Steve Vai's set is next and I found it very exciting. Steve has a way of being showy but without seeming like it's coming from someone who is arrogant. Not an easy thing to pull off in my opinion. The first song, which he did with the "three headed monster", was interesting if not exactly memorable for its melodic content. "Juice" is an energetic boogie with some of Steve's patented smooth as silk playing. Watching Billy Sheehan's performance, on this song, is also worth its weight in gold. The guy was truly "into it". Watch how Steve pulls his entire band together for the last song in his set "I'm The Hell Outta Here". The section where they're all taking turns kind of reminds me of the Dixie Dregs "Cruise Control". Yngwie Malmsteen is the last of the solo sets. He played various instrumentals pulled from several albums. After a while, the songs all sound the same to me. Double bass drums, muted rhythm guitar and squealing keyboards. But I enjoyed it. I'm one who tends to enjoy Yngwie's music in small doses and 4 songs here were just enough. I personally didn't like the sound of a pick being used to play a nylon string guitar on his solo piece but that's uh, nitpicking. Finally, the jam. Of course, it was used as a vehicle for each player to solo over sections of a well known rock song but I loved the beginning of "Rockin' In A Free World" where they all harmonized. It was amazing to hear how their own guitar sounds meshed so well together. The last two songs, both from Jimi Hendrix "Little Wing" and "Voodoo Chile - Slight Return", were played so sloppily I found little to enjoy. That is except, of course, the solos. Yngwie played a million notes that, to me, were all worth hearing. Steve's solos showed his versatility in various techniques and settings. Joe's solos showed his cool, laid back, into the song - vibe. All in all, an enjoyable dvd if you love guitar playing.