Hey Joe (or anyone else that can possibly answer this question for me, for that matter)

There is a technique you use in many of your songs, such as Satch Boogie, and that you use in many of your endings for songs live. It sounds to me like its a type of pinch harmonic, and I've heard rumors you use an alan wrench to do it, but watching live I don't see any alan wrench, to me, it looks like you fret the neck pickup with your thumb, hit a pinch harmonic, and use the tremolo bar for additional sounds, is that any close to the real thing? I have been trying to figure out how to do it for quite some time now, slow-moing live videos and such hasn't helped much, can you please help me with a step by step instruction as to how to perform that technique?

Thank You For Your Time

Dcube where are you that it is so cold? ...it was 68 F here in southwestern virginia sunday....tonight it is supposed to be down to about 8 F....

you're welcome, always glad to support Satch.

Hi Joe heard u r thinking of doing a european tour. all i gota say is please do cause i havnt seen u yet and i will definitely be up for it. i also wanna bring my mates, i got them into ur music and they are very exited about ur albums. since hendrix, u have been my favourite guitarist, not just cause ur good but beacuse ur songs r unique. aswelll as being technically talented i hear great melody in ur playing a sort of structure that is normally lost when people get that technical and fast.

Thanks a lot for the inspiration.

Hey Joe..... don't forget your spanish friends!!!!!, come on, we love you... don't explore the european tour and come with us.

Clarky: Getting lashed in the mosh pit and leaving your mum stranded at Gatwick Airport... lmao, and when you finally did go to pick her up she would be unleashing some furious lashing of her own!!.... lol.... On MacAlpine, lol.... he is just so unreal and so great at both instruments, alot like Kennealy (although I've never seen Mike live) and those kinda guy's only come along once in a blue moon, lol....

michelle: lol on that cute old lady that used to say "Where's the beef", lmao, and Pacino's version is better cause of the accent, lol!!.... Oh, and on Tinkerlake.... hehe, that's from the forced entertainment we get on the radio, and I just love singing that one!! ;-)....

mick87: I think that Free Alex guy walked with him out to the parking lot, lol, and Alex didnt seem aware of the sign, lmao!!.... Good idea on making the signs up to get on the news, and make sure you wear a bloddy shirt, lol!!.... btw, sounds like you had a nice session there and dont forget to wipe her down when your done ;-).. Oh, and thank's for the info on Pablo!!.... Great to see him back and funny as ever!!....

KenCampbell: Like the backing, lol, nice and spacious!!....

Yeah T Mac is talented as all hell!!! Do not forget he dates back to the very earliest days of technical shred in the 80ies with the likes of Yngwie, Vinny Moore, Greg Howe and Kotzen!!!

At the meet and greet in Toronto, Tony, humble as always did not come out to steal thunder from the "main" players. I had to get Dave Wiener to go and find him. Tony signed about a dozen CD's for me (ok I am a maniac) and added hilarious commentary to the various "looks" he has had over the years ie "my Jamaican Holiday look" my muscle man look etc etc!!! A true gentleman.

mikesb: Thank's for the info on Tony man!!.... I'll definately be looking for that dvd and will let you know if I find it!!.... Great story on the meet and greet, lol, sounds like you had a dream come true!! :-)

Sammy - To play fast legato lines you need to be able to do three basic techniques: hammer-ons, pull-offs, and finger slides. Legato is not a technique, but a type of phrasing. It simply means 'fluidly'. The way to build up speed, as with anything, is to practice it constructively. Try this exercise: set your metronome or drum machine to a pretty slow tempo, around 70bpm, and trill between your first finger and the open string using even sixteenth notes for one minute (or as long as you can before your hand aches). A trill involves hammering-on and pulling-off repeatedly, ie. you'll only need to pick the first note, if that. Then repeat the exercise using all possible fingerings, on all frets, and on all strings. Do this everyday and you'll notice an improvement in your stamina and dexterity very soon. Regarding the Time Machine line, you may want to start a little simpler. Satch's legato figures are some of the best, using complicated rhythms and fingerings. Although the majority of these rhythms (like quintuplets, septuplets, etc.) are probably down to feel rather than rigidity. Joe often uses the analogy of rolling a ball of mercury around when describing his legato lines; they constantly change shape and have no definite stucture at any given time. Also a bit like falling down the stairs, if you will.... Start simple, and then build up to this kind of stuff. I hope yhat helps you, dude!!! If you want to hear some insane legato then check Brett Garsed and Allan Holdsworth.

Dcube..ok...that explains the temps...guess I coulda figured that out if I had excercised a lil noodle power ...lol...thanks, was just curious..

Sammy -Well, just practice playing scales without using the pick. At all. Another good source of legato is just about any jazz sax player. Also, 'Another Day' by Dream Theater has an amazing sax solo and the player does this killer legato line right at the end - it sounds like he's floating over the top of the music, if you know what I mean? I don't know if you like Dream Theater at all but you should definitely check that song out, even it's just for that passage....

Kirby: From the Road section of this site, find the gig that you are going to attend and click on the a icon.... There you can list yourself as attending and be eligible for a backstage pass giveaway.... Read the directions from there, and good luck in your future tries.... :-)

Neil Morgan: Great talk there on Legato, lol, it's hard not to try to go crazy fast at first, and coordination comes in time.... Then the finger pressure issue, lol, all in good time.... Like you said, slow at first.... Slow at first, lol....

KenCampbell - That's a cool backing track. I like the chorus bit (I guess I can call it that...the bit from 0:47 to 1:28)...especially when it gets weird throughout the last half of the song.

EDIT - LOL...Mike, you beat me to it!

ok,

my favorite cd of 2003 is dah da da dAAA!!

The Mars Volta - de-loused in the comatorium. This cd has hooked me like no other this year, every time I hear it I just want more , I think I might be addicted.

I also loved the new radiohead Hail to the theif, not as great as works like kid a, but still great harmonies & melodies there that I love nonetheless

I am sure I have way more on my list, but hey there you go , a great year in music & some killer shows in 2003 as well!!!