This probably isn't the best cd to start off with for Joe Satriani. It only contains four tracks, three of which are live (from 1987 and 1988) and the other is a new studio track.
The first track 'Crush of love' is the studio track, and it is actually excellent. Just a sort of mid-tempo, upbeat song with a great use of wah-wah guitar. Definately one of Satch's best earlier songs. The other three songs are live, first is 'Ice nine', which is the live version from the song in the 'Surfing with the alien' album. There is nothing too much different about it, in comparison to the studio version. It's just interesting to hear it played live. Track 3 is 'Merories', which is a live version from the 'Not of this Earth' album. Frankly I don't really like it. The studio version is 4:06 mins, this live version is about 9 mins, so the song gets extended quite a bit, and it kinda gets boring. The final song is, in my opinion, the highlight. It is a live version of 'Hordes of locusts', which was also on 'Not of this Earth'. If you haven't heard it, it's quite a hard-rocking, heavy song, with some great soloing thrown in. For me, it is better than the studio version.
So, if you're a fan of Satch's earlier albums, or you just want to extend your Satriani collection, give this a look. It is worth it just for track 1 and 4.
