Surfing with the Alien

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Surfing with the Alien
Surfing with the Alien cover
Studio album by Joe Satriani
Released 1987
Recorded 1986
Genre Shred
Length 37:33
Label Relativity Records
Epic Records (re-release)
Producer Joe Satriani and John Cuniberti
Professional reviews
Joe Satriani chronology
Not of This Earth
(1986)		 Surfing with the Alien
(1987)		 Dreaming #11
(1988)

Surfing with the Alien is the second album by instrumental rock solo artist Joe Satriani, released in 1987. Surfing with the Alien helped Satriani establish his reputation as a respected rock guitarist.[citation needed]

The album contains fast and complex songs such as "Surfing with the Alien" and "Satch Boogie", plus the stranger-sounding "Crushing Day" and "Lords of Karma", in contrast to songs like "Always With Me, Always With You" and "Echo" that are very restrained, slow and melodic and make a change from the faster songs. Also notable is "Midnight", which utilises the technique of two-hand tapping at great speed for a sort of Latin-American effect. There are also Nashville tuned guitars (on "Echo") and key changes (on "Always With Me..." and "Echo") to vary the album.

The title and cover of the album reference the Marvel Comics character Silver Surfer. The track "Ice 9" references Kurt Vonnegut's novel Cat's Cradle.

Along with Satriani's releases up to his 1995 self-titled album, Surfing with the Alien re-issued in 1997 on Epic Records and again in 2007 for a legacy edition celebrating the 20th anniversary of its release. The Relativity Records version is now out of print.

Contents

[edit] Track listing

All songs written by Joe Satriani.

  1. "Surfing with the Alien" – 4:25
  2. "Ice 9" – 3:59
  3. "Crushing Day" – 5:14
  4. "Always with Me, Always with You" – 3:22
  5. "Satch Boogie" – 3:13
  6. "Hill of the Skull" – 1:48
  7. "Circles" – 3:28
  8. "Lords of Karma" – 4:48
  9. "Midnight" – 1:42
  10. "Echo" – 5:37

[edit] Personnel

  • Joe Satriani - guitar, bass, keyboards, percussion, drum programming
  • Bongo Bob Smith - drum programming, sound design, percussion
  • Jeff Campitelli - drums, percussion
  • John Cuniberti - percussion
  • Jeff Kreeger - pre-production programming and sound design

All songs written by Joe Satriani
All songs published by Strange Beautiful Music/ASCAP
Produced by Joe Satriani and John Cuniberti
Engineered by John Cuniberti[1]

[edit] Album Cover

The album cover depicts the Marvel Comics character the Silver Surfer on the front and the hand of Galactus on the back. The image is from Silver Surfer #1 (1982). The artist, John Byrne, has noted that the image was used without his permission and that he has never received payment for its use. [2]

[edit] Reissue

Epic/Legacy Records reissued the album on August 7, 2007. The two-disc reissue includes a CD of the original album remastered in 2007, expanded liner notes by Joe with amusing stories that comment on the recording of "Surfing..." such as the writing process for the album, how they went over 2x over budget for a low-budget instrumental guitar album, that the iconic name we all know was actually a second choice for the album after the original was mixed, and how in the days before Pro Tools and non-destructive edits, editing decisions were not to be taken lightly as they required physically cutting sections out of the master tape with a razor blade and splicing the ends back together. Also included is a DVD containing a live concert at the Montreux Jazz Festival in 1988, the music videos for "Satch Boogie" and "Always With Me, Always With You" and additional bonus material.

[edit] Track List for DVD

  • Ice 9
  • Memories
  • Midnight
  • Rubina
  • Circles
  • Lords of Karma
  • Bass Solo
  • Echo
  • Hordes of Locusts
  • Always with Me, Always with You
  • Satch Boogie
  • Satch Boogie [Video]
  • Always with Me, Always with You [Video]
  • Bonus Material [DVD]

In addition, Satriani will also be playing exclusive club gigs in select cities.[3]

[edit] Charts

Surfing with the Alien is notable for being one of the first instrumental rock albums to appear in the Top 40 charts at all, although Flying in a Blue Dream beat its position in 1989.

Album - Billboard (North America)

Year Chart Position
1987 The Billboard 200 29

Singles - Billboard (North America)

Year Single Chart Position
1988 "Satch Boogie" Mainstream Rock Tracks 22
1988 "Surfing With the Alien" Mainstream Rock Tracks 37

[edit] References

  1. ^ Original LP liner notes
  2. ^ John Byrne. Byrne Robotics Frequently Asked Questions Archive. Retrieved on 2008-03-15.
  3. ^ "Joe Satriani Set to Play Exclusive Club Dates", JustPressPlay.net, 2007-07-12. Retrieved on 2007-07-17. 
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