Strange Beautiful Music

Go behind the scenes with the musician The New York Times called “a guitar God!” Oft-hailed as the Jimi Hendrix of his generation, living guitar legend Joe Satriani has long transcended stylistic boundaries with a sound that raises the bar like a new horizon for the broader genre of instrumental guitar rock. Joe’s 6-string secrets have astounded listeners around the world for nearly 30 years.

In Strange Beautiful Music: A Musical Memoir, Satriani and coauthor, music biographer Jake Brown, take fans on their first authorized tour of the story behind his climb to stardom and the creative odyssey involved in writing and recording a storied catalog of classics including “Surfing with the Alien,” “Summer Song,” “Satch Boogie,” “Always With Me, Always With You,” “The Extremist,” “Flying in a Blue Dream,” “Crowd Chant,” and more.

Featuring previously unpublished photos and hours of exclusive, firsthand interviews with Satriani, Strange Beautiful Music offers a unique look inside the studio with Joe, giving fans a chance to get up close and personal like never before. With insider details about his collaboration with multi-platinum supergroup Chickenfoot, exclusive interviews with Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony of Van Halen and Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, commentary from fellow guitar legends such as Steve Vai, Metallica’s Kirk Hammett, Primus’s Larry LaLonde, and legendary music producers including Glynn Johns and the late Andy Johns, this memoir offers a rare inside look for die-hard Satriani fans, guitar enthusiasts, and anyone who loves to rock.

About the Author

For three decades, Joe Satriani, the biggest selling rock instrumental guitarist in the Soundscan era, has traveled the world, playing to sold-out crowds as both a headliner and as founder of the all-star "G3" guitar extravaganza. His studio and live recordings have sold more than 10 million copies worldwide, and of his many solo albums, two have gone platinum and four others went gold, with 15 Grammy nominations between them. His side project, Chickenfoot, featuring former Van Halen front man Sammy Hagar, former bassist Michael Anthony, and Red Hot Chili Peppers' drummer Chad Smith saw their debut album certified gold. In 1988, Mick Jagger invited Joe to perform as lead guitarist on his first solo tour, and in 1994 Joe toured with Deep Purple as their lead guitarist. Music sensation Nicki Minaj sampled the classic Satriani song, "Always With Me Always With You" in her song, "Right Through Me" from her 2010 multi-platinum debut album.

In 2011, Satriani recreated his National Anthem performance in the film "Moneyball." In May of 2013, Satriani celebrated the release of his 14th studio album, "Unstoppable Momentum." Award-winning Music biographer Jake Brown has written 35 published books in his decade-long career, featuring many authorized collaborations with some of rock's biggest artists, including 2013 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees Heart (with Ann and Nancy Wilson), living guitar legend Joe Satriani, heavy metal pioneers Motorhead (with Lemmy Kilmister), late hip hop icon Tupac Shakur (with the estate), late Funk pioneer Rick James, superstar country music anthology "Nashville Songwriter," and the all-star rock producers anthology "Behind the Boards," among many others. Brown has also appeared as the featured biographer of record on Fuse TV's "Live Through This" series and Bloomberg TV's "Game Changers" series. In 2012, Brown won the Association for Recorded Sound Collections Awards in the category of Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research.