Crystal Planet

Updated on Dec 22, 2023

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Length 67:37 Release date 3 March 1998 Genre Instrumental rock		Artist Joe Satriani Label Epic Records

Released March 3, 1998 (1998-03-03) Recorded The Plant Studios in Sausalito, California; The Site; H.O.S. Recording; Hyde Street Studios in San Francisco; Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, California Producer Joe Satriani, Eric Valentine, Mike Fraser, John Cuniberti Crystal Planet (1998) Engines of Creation (2000) Similar Joe Satriani albums, Instrumental rock albums

Crystal Planet is the seventh studio album by guitarist Joe Satriani, released on March 3, 1998 through Epic Records. The album reached No. 50 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and remained on that chart for eight weeks, as well as reaching the top 100 in five other countries. "Ceremony" was released as a single, reaching No. 28 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart and notably featuring Satriani's first recorded use of a seven-string guitar, namely the Ibanez Universe. "A Train of Angels" was nominated for Best Rock Instrumental Performance at the 1999 Grammy Awards; this being Satriani's ninth such nomination.

Reissues

Crystal Planet has been reissued twice. The first was on June 16, 2008 as part of the Original Album Classics box set, and most recently as part of The Complete Studio Recordings, released on April 22, 2014 through Legacy Recordings; this is a box set compilation containing remastered editions of every Satriani studio album from 1986 to 2013.

Critical reception

Stephen Thomas Erlewine at AllMusic gave Crystal Planet four stars out five, calling it "an instrumental record with a difference" and Satriani's "finest all-instrumental effort since Surfing With the Alien." He praised Satriani for "taking more chances than ever" and further developing his technique, saying that it reaches "new, uncharted waters."

Track listing

All music composed by Joe Satriani, except where noted.

Personnel

Joe Satriani – guitar, guitar synthesizer, keyboard (tracks 5, 7, 13, 14), bass (tracks 2, 13, 14), harmonica, clapping (track 7), mixing (tracks 14, 15), production (tracks 13–15)

Eric Caudieux – keyboard (tracks 3, 7, 9, 12), programming, orchestration, editing

Eric Valentine – keyboard (track 14), drums (tracks 13, 14), percussion (tracks 13, 14), bass (track 14), engineering (tracks 13, 14), mixing (track 14), production (tracks 13, 14)

Jeff Campitelli – drums (tracks 1–12), percussion (tracks 1, 4, 6, 8–12), clapping (track 7)

Elk Thunder – percussion (track 8)

Rhoades Howe – percussion (track 14), engineering assistance (tracks 13, 14)

Stuart Hamm – bass (tracks 1, 3–12)

Mike Manning – clapping (track 7)

Mike Fraser – clapping (track 7), engineering (tracks 1–13), mixing (tracks 1–13), production (tracks 1–13)

John Cuniberti – engineering (tracks 14, 15), mixing (tracks 15), production (tracks 14, 15)

Kent Matcke – engineering assistance (tracks 1–10, 12)

Kevin Scott – engineering assistance (tracks 1–12), mixing assistance (track 14)

Stephen Hart – engineering assistance (track 15)

Judy Kirschner – engineering assistance

Zac Allentuck – mixing assistance (tracks 1–10, 12, 13)

George Marino – mastering

Songs

1Up in the Sky4:10
2House Full of Bullets5:34
3Crystal Planet4:35

References

Crystal Planet Wikipedia

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