JOE SATRIANI Hopes to Get Clean Bill Of Health By End Of January

Legendary guitarist Joe Satriani is continuing his recovery from a recent bout with pneumonia which has forced the cancellation of several West Coast dates late last month. In a message to his fans posted on his official web site, Satriani writes, "Thank you all so very much for the 'get well' messages, I believe they really made a difference. "Pneumonia is no fun at all and I don't recommend it to anyone, but hearing from all of you has eased my down time quite a bit. Thank you again. "My recovery will hopefully continue and I will get a clean bill of health by the end of the month... "I was unable to post a 'Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year' message due to my illness, and as you know had to cancel most of the end of the year tour. Sorry about that. Make-up shows are being booked as I write this... "The two shows at the Fillmore seem like a fantastic fever-induced dream. Although I could barely breathe, I felt I had to perform as if my life depended on it. Every note was sacred to me. As I played, the tsunami tragedy in South Asia weighed so heavily on my heart. It's still so hard to comprehend the suffering so many people have had to endure. The relief effort will need our continuing support... As well as our troops in Iraq who face incredible danger every day. Let's hope this year will bring some peace to the region, and a home-coming for our troops... "This year will see me and the boys heading to Australia, New Zealand and Japan. We are looking into a few European summer festivals as well... Writing for a new record to be finished by the end of the year is also on the calendar... "Later this month I will be at the NAMM show to debut a stunning new Ibanez Chrome JS guitar, and an awesome Peavey JSX Combo amp, with reverb and a half power switch. I'll be stopping by the DiMarzio and D'Addario booths as well... Hope to see some of you there..."