Satch Bus, Outside Gothenburg Hotel.
The sound onstage was contained & concise. Apparently the FOH was very difficult: the sound came off the stage and died.
Soundscapes: new areas. The booing was quieter than the last two nights, but then so was the applause for Joe. Overall, a Northern European response from a supportive audience.
Good Vai & Satch sets. Always went much further than usual: a stomper that had me bouncing on the side of the stage & the audience clapping politely. Anyone who has toured Japan knows this approach: a measured response during the performance, and then (perhaps & hopefully) mucho enthusiasm at the end.
The G3 jam: properly, a G2 jam with support from behind. G2 are quite astonishing & with enough information for any guitar enthusiast. The Lunar Module dropped half of my sound, which had John on the floor looking at stuff & (successfully) figuring the problem (a dummy plug in the back of the GR30). Briefly, my soloing was weak and inadequate, but offered & accepted in good spirit.
12.15
Hotel Acceptable, Stockholm.
The Satch Bus arrived in town around 10.15.
News arising in the past day: a death & a serious operation in the wider family. Good wishes fly out.
15.16 Venue, Stockholm.
While standing with Mr. Drummer in the hotel lobby, waiting for our runner to arrive, Steve Vai came up to us: he was speaking to Adrian Belew last night from his tourbus, and King Belewbeloid sends good wishes.
On the topic of good relations within band members, from Bill Rieflin's diary for yesterday --
I can't remotely imagine what a project like this must be like between musicians who aren't speaking, who harbor years of unresolved and festering resentment, who are disagreeable, bitter and angry, who are uncooperative, who want for themselves over the needs of the music.
No comment.
17.00 At line check, Tommy (Steve's tech) has shown me a new tuner: a Peterson. It even has a setting for the Buzz Feiten system (which I use on my road guitars). This is the first tuner I have ever used that convinces my ear. I find tuners useful as rough indicators of pitch, particularly during shows, but for fine tuning I have to use my ears. Today, for the first time, I have used a tuner to tune my guitar.
Also, fine-tuning programmes to better fit the G3 timbral mix.
Guitarist With Fruit --
23.10 Soundscapes - transitional.
Good jam. Accepting the advice of Joe, Steve, Jeff, Matt & my Wife, I am becoming more myself. For example, playing a Soundscape behind Steve & Joe's sustaining guitars, rather than adding a third sustained guitar line.
Conversation with Steve afterwards: he auditioned with Eddie Jobson for UK when Alan Holdsworth left, and saw me at the UK NYC Palladium gig (1977). But UK decided to continue as a trio. This is a show I remember well, for several reasons. One of them is that Polydor paid $8,000 for the aftershow event; and Polydor gave me $10,000 to cover two months' tour support for Exposure. This is a small example of the madness & lack of proportion in the operations of major companies at the time. There is also a detailed commentary available on UK, this gig, Polydor, EG and Mr. Alder, but this is not the time.
Steve's family have arrived.
"Nothing is compulsory, but some things are necessary."
