Satriani may be the perfect guitar player. Into his 50s, he hasn’t lost a step; he’s dexterous enough to compete in speed trials with the fastest of them, yet able to draw wonderful soul and voice from his slow hand notes. His attack just always feels perfect, whether he’s shredding through a thousand notes, wah-wahing masterfully through a sing-along lead melody, or just hitting the vibrant rhythm track.

Joe has led the instrumental guitar genre since the mid-80s, when his "Surfing With The Alien" album was released. With the primary focus on songwriting, with guitar as lead vocalist, and with most songs founded in classic rock and groove motifs rather than Metal, he’s managed to remain relevant and appealing for a wide range of audiences, from jazz to shred to metal to pop rock and so on. Yes, I’m one of the faithful and converted - - but I’m still able to deliver an unbiased review of his companion DVD/CD release: "Live in Paris: I Just Wanna Rock".

The audio between CD and DVD is identical, so I’ll leave it to you to decide whether you need both, or just one or the other. Both are excellent representatives of a Satriani concert, conveying well the energy of the performances and the dazzling guitar displays. DVD fans should be pleased; the visuals are far beyond any of his previous live videos; the performances are rich with graphics and well-done effects. I especially like the hand-drawn skulls throughout "Satch Boogie". The DVD Extras also contain a nice interview where Satch discusses songwriting, his influences, and his family.

And the music itself? Live albums tend to be concert performances of the artist’s greatest hits, but that’s not the case with "I Just Wanna Rock". Instead, this is an evening captured from Satriani’s 2008 tour in support of his "Professor Satchafunkilus and the Mysterion of Rock" album. "Satchafunkilus" is ok, but was not his strongest album release, and so this live set does have a few clunkers, including the title and opening track. There are only a few, however, and that’s why your CD/MP3 player has a Track Selector button. The rest of the album is a sequence of highlights, especially the obscure ‘Time Machine’ and Stu Hamm’s fantastic bass solo. Due to the nature of Satriani’s instrumental material, the songs have been able to evolve and change through live performances over the years. If you only know the ‘Always With Me, Always With You’ album version that your cousin danced to at her wedding, then you really need to hear how it’s grown. Older songs like ‘Always With Me’, ‘Cool # 9’, and ‘Flying In A Blue Dream’ sound as new and fresh and vital on "I Just Wanna Rock" as they did the first time you heard them.

If you enjoy instrumental rock guitar or if you’re a Satriani fan, then this purchase is a no-brainer. Get the CD or the DVD or both - - whichever suits your style. If you’re merely Satch-curious, then I’d recommend digging through his older material first ("Surfing With the Alien" and "Is There Love in Space?" would be great places to start), then coming back to this one.