“If you don’t do your homework, he’ll fire you”: Alex Skolnick reveals what Joe Satriani was like as a guitar teacher
Joe Satriani raised a generation of great guitar players, with students including Steve Vai and Kirk Hammett. However, he wouldn’t tolerate laziness, according to Testament’s Alex Skolnick.
During an interview with Defender of the Riff with Daniel Dekay, Skolnick reveals what Satriani was like as a teacher and also recalls how they crossed paths.
READ MORE: Joe Satriani and Steve Vai unite to form The SATCHVAI Band
“I took lessons from this guy, Danny Gill, and I took lessons from a couple other guys,” Skolnick explains [transcribed by Ultimate Guitar]. “And at some point, I felt like I was catching up to them, and I wanted to study with their teacher. And the guys in the neighbourhood had all studied with a guitar player named Joe.”
“I didn’t know anything about him,” Skolnick continues. “I just knew he’s an Italian guy. His name’s Joe, and he’s a very serious musician. If you don’t do your homework, he’ll fire you as a student. And, of course, that was Joe Satriani.
“And years later, everybody knows who that is. But at the time, he was this local legend. So I studied with him for a couple years, and that obviously had a huge impact.”
Following his tutelage under Satriani, Skolnick joined a band named Legacy in 1985, who eventually changed their name to Testament.
In other news, Satriani recently teamed up with former student Steve Vai for a new project. As The SATCHVAI Band, the duo will embark on a tour across the UK and Europe in summer 2025, and have plans to release new music. They previously toured together last spring.
“The SATCHVAI Band Tour is happening! I’m so looking forward to sharing the stage with Steve again,” said Satriani at the time. “Every time we play together, it takes me back to when we were teenagers, eating and breathing music every second of the day, pushing, challenging, and helping each other to be the best we could be. I guess we’ve never stopped!”
Vai added, “Touring with Joe is always a pleasure and an honour. He is my favourite guitarist to jam with, and now we have another opportunity to take it to the stage. I feel as though we are both at the top of our game, and the show will be a powerful celebration of the coolest instrument in the world, the electric guitar!”
The post “If you don’t do your homework, he’ll fire you”: Alex Skolnick reveals what Joe Satriani was like as a guitar teacher appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.
Source: www.guitar-bass.net
