I remember notable music related moments with the clarity of a recent memory. Joe Satriani's CD Flying In A Blue Dream was much awaited as it was his first CD since his iconic Surfing With The Alien. The first track of Flying In A Blue Dream (titled Flying In A Blue Dream) catches your attention within about 3 seconds and does not let go. It is the sort of song that can only come from inspiration. And having read an interview with Satriani about the song, it was fascinating to learn that the voices in the intro were the result of radio signals accidentally being picked up by the studio recording equipment. You just can't plan that. And those opening voices really do set the mood of the song with their dreamy quality.

The first 8 measures of the solo to Flying In A Blue Dream feature extensive use of legato technique. In this guitar lesson, we look at the next 16 measures. Unlike the first 8 measures, these next measures are not characterized by one dominant technique. These measures instead feature a wide variety of approaches to phrasing. It is this variety of phrasing that makes the solo so memorable.

Above is the tab for the next 16 measures of the solo. The tab is identical to tab I found online at this site. As with any guitar solo, do not worry about playing this note for note. It is the essence you want to capture. As you listen to my recording and compare to Satriani, it should sound fairly similar but is by no means note-for-note.

Note: The audio for this portion of the lesson starts at about 23 seconds into the audio clip.

The first two measures of this section of the solo feature a nice descending arpeggio run, which is a typical Satriani technique. From here he goes on to some whammy bar phrasing in measures 57-59 followed by some slow, fluid, melodic lines in measures 60-62. In measures 63-65 he plays a repeating pattern that goes up two octaves. The pattern consists of 3 half step pairings of notes: F# and G; A# and B; D# and E. He plays this sequence of notes 3 times and this leads him to a nice high bend at measure 66. In measures 67-68 Satriani employs yet another phrasing technique, this time opting for a wide interval lick that repeats 7 times before leading into some melodic lines that segue into an ascending scalar run. We'll pick up at this point in the next lesson.

Note: I used the backing tracks from this site for my recording.

I suggest you listen to Satriani's recording. You can find it on Rhapsody. Listening to Satriani will not only help you get a feel for the solo, but it will help you get a feel for timing. This isn't one of those solos where every accented note is falling predictably on down beats. Satriani gives himself as lot of breathing room in the solo and that makes for a very personal feel. In fact, trying to match Satriani's timing was the most difficult aspect of the piece for me.

We will go over the rest of the solo in upcoming guitar lessons.

Enjoy!

Brian