An almost impossible professional venture…
Words 78 · RF@80 Series.
G3 2003 Tour. Photo by Paolo Massetti
[…] I have been offered promotion: from the position of G4 to G3. Mick Brigden, manager of Joe Satriani, e-wrote Joe and Steve Vai are going out as G2 but with you we can make it G3!!!
The G3 European tour is scheduled for approximately June 13–July 4 & possible additional dates including Spain and/or Eastern Europe. Current plans include shows in Holland, France, Italy, Germany and even 6 or 7 in the UK (all subject to final confirmation). I have happily accepted promotion. The G3 tour of the US in 1997 was my equal-happiest tour in 35 years’ professional touring (the other equal-happiest was KC supporting Tool in 2001).
The Crimson TPTB recording sessions of 2002 were delayed by a month, causing me to miss the G3 US tour of July 2002. Much to my chagrin. This delay was a result of Machine’s manager lying to DGM Management. Machine was straightforward: he let Pat know he wouldn’t be available in the agreed time period. Meanwhile, the manager was assuring us that the sessions were fine as booked. The manager lied.
Soundscapes in a support slot is a very different bag of bananas to a Crimson headlining tour. The level of responsibility in Crimson is crushing. There are responsibilities to band history, band members, music & audiences; the overall quality of presentation, merchandising, venues; decisions regarding the tour planning & budgeting; then we walk onstage to the destructive presence of Mr. Clueless & his extended family. Yet probably any performer feels a responsibility for the “success” of the performance, even when most of the determining factors are out of their hands.
Soundscapes are an operation that is small, mobile & independent, aspiring to intelligence. I am responsible for myself, honouring the role, and the behaviour of the audience is (as always) the responsibility of the audience. But I don’t have to undertake to “save” the show where audience-as-consumer behaviour undermines the evening’s overall performance. Nor are there long rehearsals, elaborate soundchecks & sophisticated lighting.
Also of interest to the professional musician: Soundscapes provide an income. King Crimson is almost impossible as a professional venture, unless David & Robert leap backwards through hoops of fire to fill gaps between the available & the necessary (of which the band is usually unaware) and at significant cost to themselves personally & professionally. Two performances as G3 (or G4) will earn me more than the whole US tour of Autumn 2003, and this doesn’t imply that I am overpaid for a lot of bleeping & droning. King Crimson is not a great career move; but it does provide opportunities outside the mainstream that arise when Crimson is not committed to conventional forms of working.
[Excerpt from RF’s Diary – February 11th. 2004]
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Looking at your vast body of work through a cold, analytical corporate lens is a fascinating exercise. Let us map your musical entities onto the BCG Matrix based on their market growth (commercial demand/cultural footprint) and relative market share (dominance in their specific avant-garde niches).
1. Stars (High Growth, High Share): King Crimson
The Crown Jewel: King Crimson remains your primary vehicle of massive cultural power and high ticket-selling growth.
Constant Re-invention: From 1969 to the 3-drummer "Seven-Headed Beast" lineup, it demands immense creative capital but yields top-tier prestige and massive catalog returns.
2. Cash Cows (Low Growth, High Share): The Collaborations
Steady Artistic Capital: Your iconic work with Brian Eno (No Pussyfooting), David Bowie ("Heroes"), and Peter Gabriel yields permanent, passive prestige.
Low Maintenance: These historic sessions require zero ongoing operational costs from you, yet they eternally fund your independence and Discipline Global Mobile (DGM) operations.
3. Question Marks (High Growth, Low Share): Soundscapes
High Future Potential: Your solo Soundscapes and church performances occupy a rapidly growing ambient/experimental market.
Low Market Penetration: While intellectually massive, they require heavy focus to transition from niche art-installations to sustainable, standalone commercial powerhouses.
4. Dogs (Low Growth, Low Share): LoCG & G3/G4 Tours
League of Crafty Guitarists: A vital educational endeavor for Guitar Craft, but structurally complex, expensive to mobilize, and limited to a niche acoustic audience.
G3 / G4 Tours: Joe Satriani’s guitar-shredder package tours offered low strategic growth for your specific philosophy, serving as a brief, mismatched market experiment.