Surfing With The Alien
| Surfing with the Alien | ||||
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| Studio album by Joe Satriani | ||||
| Released | October 15, 1987 | |||
| Studio | Alpha & Omega Recording and Hyde Street Studios in San Francisco | |||
| Genre | Instrumental rock, jazz fusion | |||
| Length | 37:37 | |||
| Label | Relativity | |||
| Producer | Joe Satriani, John Cuniberti | |||
| Joe Satriani chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Surfing with the Alien | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
| Encyclopedia of Popular Music |  |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | |
| The Village Voice | C+ |
Surfing with the Alien is the second studio album by American rock guitarist Joe Satriani. It was released on October 15, 1987, by Relativity Records. The album is one of Satriani's most successful to date and helped establish his reputation as a respected rock guitarist.
The album was recorded on a budget of $13,000. It contains fast and complex songs such as the title track and "Satch Boogie", which helped to further popularize shred guitar during that time, in addition to the strange-sounding "Crushing Day" and "Lords of Karma". By contrast slower, melodic songs such as "Always with Me, Always with You" and "Echo" provide a change of pace. "Midnight" utilizes the technique of two-handed tapping at high tempo, evoking a Spanish fingerstyle effect. There are also Nashville-tuned guitars ("Echo") and key changes ("Always with Me, Always with You" and "Echo") for variation. "Ice 9" references the fictional apocalyptic substance from Kurt Vonnegut's 1963 novel Cat's Cradle.
The cover art depicts the Marvel Comics character Silver Surfer on the front, with the hand of Galactus on the inside cover. The artwork is taken directly from Silver Surfer #1 (1982). The artist, John Byrne, has noted that the image was used without his permission and that he has never received payment for its use. However, the album's back cover lists a Marvel Characters, Inc. copyright statement.
Released on October 15, 1987, by Relativity Records,Surfing with the Alien charted at number 29 on the Billboard 200, proving to be Satriani's third highest-charting album in the United States. It remained on Billboard 200 for 75 weeks, the longest run of any of his releases.Surfing with the Alien was certified Gold on February 17, 1989, and Platinum on February 3, 1992, having shipped one million copies in the US. It was Satriani's first album to earn platinum certification, and remains his only studio album to have done so.
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