Joe Satriani and Steve Vai hire Pete Thorn, Marco Mendoza and Kenny Aronoff for new their new touring band

[shar-vell Dan]

When it comes to talent you either got it or you don't. Pete's got it. Im sure he'll do fine.

 

[Random Hero]

No he has played with bands that have simple song structures.

Comparing song structures from Henley, Erheridge and Cornell to Vai and Satch is comparing a Ford Pinto to to a Ferrari.

Yes both are cars, but one is technically superior to the other. You may not personally value that technical ability but it exists.

It’s not up for debate as far as I’m concerned.

If you think Pete has moved up to that level, good for you. I don’t think he has.

Define "song structures". I'm curious?

I would actually go as far as to say that I don't think Val and Satch could necessarily cover the ground Pete has in his career. It's completely horses for courses and they have their lane, and in that lane, they're the kings. If you don't think Pete can handle a bit of chugging on Surfing With the Alien though, I'm not sure I can help you.

 

[Nashville Riff Co]

Define "song structures". I'm curious?

Verse Chorus Verse with Lyrics. Tempo, Key Changes. Those are the building blocks of any song. Would you say these are the same or comparable between Henley/Etheridge/Cornell compositions vs. Vai/Satch?

I think Vai/Satch's compositions are way more complex. I've shared an example of what Vai's backing band is capable of below (it's long but its worth listening to imo), I think this is way more difficult to do than be in a backing band for the other musicians Pete has backed (and yes I'm sure it was rehearsed). To be abundantly clear, this example doesn't take away from those other musicians being legends in their own right as incredibly gifted songwriters. But Vai and Satch are guitar virtuosos.

It's like when Vai was given the opportunity to play for Zappa. It was a step up. I hope Pete succeeds and this gig brings him to a much larger audience and he puts out more solo music as a result of it, but its a definite step up in my book.

I'll even go further and mention when EVH had to step onto the Baked Potato stage with Lukather and Landau iirc. That was a step up for Eddie and a lot of people agree he was a fish out of water. EVH will always be one of the greatest guitar players of all time, but even he had his limitations.

And fwiw, next time Pete does a live hang, i'm going to send him a superchat and ask him whether he feels it will be more difficult than his past gigs or not from a preparation standpoint and from a mental standpoint. Who better to ask than the man himself?