“Saying it was an honor to be up there is a wildly drastic understatement”: Joe Satriani, Eric Johnson and Steve Vai have wrapped up the G3 2024 tour – here are the biggest guest guitarists who joined them along the way

When it was first announced that Joe Satriani would be getting the original G3 band back together for a 2024 tour, every electric guitar fan knew it would end up being one of the year’s most notable tours.

Following the triumphant first night in Tucson, Arizona, on January 23, Satch and his fellow G3 pioneers Steve Vai and Eric Johnson have since gone on to play in Las Vegas, Seattle, Salem and more, with a double-header at LA’s Orpheum Theatre last weekend capping off the 13-date stint around the US.

Along the way, the three virtuosos recruited a legion of A-list guest guitar players, all of whom joined the original G3 trio at various points across the tour itinerary for a series of all-star jams and cameos.

That roster included the likes of Nita Strauss, Vic Johnson and Doug Doppler, as well as Plini, Jason Richardson and, as part of a special one-off appearance, Satch’s son, ZZ Satriani.

And, thanks to the internet, footage from most of those guest spots have surfaced online, giving us a generous catalog of collabs from one of 2024’s best guitar tours.

For the penultimate show on the 9th, the trio tapped Strauss for a show-stopping cover of Jimi Hendrix’s Foxy Lady, for which they were also joined by Richardson. Richardson, who had also been on hand for a rendition of Going Down just before, wrote on Instagram: “Saying it was [an] honor to be up there is a wildly drastic understatement.”

It was also during the show on the 9th that Satch invited his son, ZZ, to the stage to perform Summer Song.

The day after, the G3 trailblazers revisited those two tracks once again to close out the ‘24 G3 tour, this time with the help of progressive mastermind Plini, session heavyweight Phil X and Dethklok’s Brendon Small.

Plini, who shared Richardson’s sentiments, wrote on Instagram after, “Never would have even considered this a possible bucket list item to tick off. Thank you for having me G3.”

Earlier in the tour, Satch and co shared the stage with Vic Johnson and Doug Doppler, both of whom donned Satriani’s Ibanez guitars and lent their skills to those tried-and-trusted guest-spot songs of Foxy Lady and Going Down.

“Our show in Oakland was strong and the audience was just off the hook,” Vai wrote on Instagram after the performance. “We were joined by great players @vicjohnson77 and @dougdopplermusic for the jam. It was nice to feel those other players on stage and watch them tear it up so beautifully. 

“Doug is an ol’ friend that I’ve known since the early days of my arrival in Los Angeles in the 80’s. Besides being a key component to the oversight and success of the Vai Academy camps, he’s a powerful player. Check out his “Nu Instrumental” record.”

In response, Doppler replied, “Your releasing Nu Instrumental on Favored Nations opened door after door in my career. I was, am, and always will be eternally grateful to have known you and had the privilege of hearing and seeing you change the world – and me.”

Sammy Hagar was also brought out for one of the January shows, once again helping Satch, Vai and Johnson through Foxy Lady.

As far as list of guest stars go, the G3 2024 tour delivered in spades, delivering diverse displays of cross-genre and boundary-bending fretboard team ups. Strauss trading licks with Richardson, as well as the tour’s OG members, made for an especially notable highlight.

The action doesn’t stop here for Satriani and his peers, though. As previously announced, Satch and Vai will be hitting the road together again later this year for their own tour, while Satriani will also team up with Sammy Hagar, Michael Anthony and Jason Bonham for The Best of All Worlds tour.

Head over to Joe Satriani’s website to find out more.

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