Because I'm All About the Guitar Volume 2, Number 1: Chords of Life

Welcome to the revamped, renewed Because I'm All About the Guitar! I have been wanting to breath new life into this series; it was the one thing I could really latch on to and write with passion every time I put thought to page. My problem was that I was running out of ideas. So, this is the new format - every week I'm going to review a song by an accomplished artist. There might be some background information about the musician, depending on who it is, and maybe something about the song. Mainly, it's going to be about why the song I've picked kicks so much ass.

The song is embedded at the end of the post.

This week's song is Chords of Life by Joe Satriani. Satch is one of the most recognized of today's virtuoso guitar players. He taught Steve Vai, Kirk Hammett (Metallica), Larry LaLonde (Primus), George Lynch (Dokken, Lynch Mob) and many others. He is a guiatarist's guitarist.

I picked Chords of Life not only because it's one of my favorite Satriani pieces, but because it illustrates several of the things about his playing that makes him so good.

The first thing you'll notice is that the song automatically sets a mood. It doesn't leave you any room for guessing. Satch knows what he's doing with arrangement and key choice. It's a tentative feel, with a lot of promise.

Next, and most obvious throughout, around 41 seconds, the killer tone. That's probably what Satch is best known for, the amazing depth of his sound. Listen to the melody and the slight tinny sound of the lead guitar. It's almost Telecaster like, but has a resounding depth of a more solid instrument. This isn't the kind of thing that you can fake with effects.

Then the acoustics kick in around second 48 and the lead melody adds yet another subtle layer of depth to its sound. It's no longer tinny, but is obviously the tone. Now its more mellow and at the same time, around 1:03, when the bass and drums kick in, it's more urgent, pleading even. Pay careful attention to the drums in this part of the song, this marching beat seems to counter what the guitar's trying to say, but hear it out.

At 1:24, everything just gels. There's a definite groove and every instrument is in the same zone. Pay close attention to the lead guitar in this passage. Gone are any traces of the tinny or the mellow. This is an assertive, wah wah laden, masculine guitar passage. It's talking loud and clear. Letting its presence be felt. Let's not forget the tempo change either. We're steadily rocking here where before we were slowly building up to this activity.

Around 2:05 we revisit the introductory passage. Notice here that there's a lot more going on in the background than before. The subtle drum click and bass hum. Even the guitar has more authority. It's slight, but it's different. Now, that plaintive wail from the guitar seems more poignant. There's something more behind it, like someone crying for a love lost.

At 2:45 we hit my favorite part of the tune. Again, revisited melody, but this time it's spiritually uplifting instead of song building. Listen to those notes and tell me they don't quicken your pulse or stir your heart. If not, you're not really listening.

As the acoustic guitar comes in again and the lead plays a familiar part, listen closely at how subtly different the lead guitar is. The echo just a bit stronger. The edge just a little more sharp.

Near 3:58 things calm down again after a maelstrom of bluesy genius. We ride out much as we were brought in, on gentle notes, but they're not the same that brought us into the song.

This is one of the best guitar pieces released in the last 10 years. You can't dissect much music this way, nor would you want to. On the surface, this is a cool guitar song. Below that though it tells the story its name implies - the chords of life. We come in struggling and mellow, assert ourselves, make a mark, and leave mellow and struggling again. It can be a beautiful thing when thought about that way. I'm sure there are those that could write songs in this context and make a song nowhere near as pretty or as good. But this is Joe's outlook and his song. And I'm damn glad he wrote it.