The guy is an astounding guitarist, but here’s my beef with Satch’s music. Have you watched the movie Amadeus? Mozart presented a four-hour piece of music, during which the Hapsburg Emperor yawned. When Mozart asked the Emperor what he thought of his music, the Emperor said “too many notes.” That is my criticism of Satch’s music. But I bought Satchurated anyway to see if any of his music since The Extremist has mellowed any. I also wanted to see if my own attitude to his music has changed in almost twenty years. In short, my attitude is unchanged. I can take Satch’s music in small doses, but after hearing one shredfest after another, that “sameness” that I mentioned earlier was still there. Satchurated comes roaring out the gates with Ice 9, and doesn’t let up until Pyrrhic Victoria – nine songs later. The first thing resembling a slow song doesn’t come until the second disc’s Littleworth Lane. For those keeping track, it’s the seventeenth song in the set. That’s a long time to wait for a change of pace. One of his more deliberate and better known songs, Always With You, Always With Me doesn’t show up until near the end of the set. I read one author say this of Satch’s live presentation – “Joe Satriani knows almost everything about playing the electric guitar. He knows very little about how to effectively pace a concert… most of Satriani's solos emphasize technique over feeling.” Let me echo that sentiment – I tried to watch a Chickenfoot show on the Palladia channel awhile ago. For the first time ever, a rock show bored me. Need I say more?
Not all is lost on Satchurated. There is some fine music here – one just has to have the patience to sit and wait for it. Songs I really like – the aforementioned Flying in a Blue Dream, Dream Song, Premonition, Revelation [I’m sensing a theme here…], God Is Crying [a good guitar-keyboard duel with keyboardist Mike Keneally, the same guy who used to work with Frank Zappa], Andalusia [acoustic!], War, Why, Pyrrhic Victoria, Crystal Planet, Satch Boogie [ALWAYS a good one]. There are two new studio tracks at the end – Two Sides to Every Story and The Golden Room. Satch successfully resists the urge to shred his brains out and produced something [dare I say] melodic. These two songs are very, very good. As a result of listening to this album, will I be going out of my mind to acquire all the solo stuff and the Chickenfoot stuff there is? Carol will be glad to read this – the answer to that question is “no.” This CD will serve as my fix for wanting to hear awe-inspiring technique, if I don’t already get that fix from the otherworldly guitarists that I listen to [David Gilmour, Ritchie Blackmore, Tony Iommi, et al]. Since this a 2-CD set, I’m glad I paid only $14.99 + tax for it. Otherwise I think I’d really be pissed. If non-stop shredding and jaw-dropping technique is your thing, this collection is for you. Satchurated: Live in Montreal is a bit of a mixed bag. There are some excellent songs here, but those take up about only half of the album. I wanted to like this album, but after hearing a few songs I want something else in the CD player. It’s small doses of Satch for this guy.
Everyone has their own strategy for deciphering the Kentucky Derby. Some handicappers spend hours deciphering speed ratings, pace scenarios, pouring over pedigree charts and past performances with dreams and hopes of scoring a big payoff. 
Pedigree should the first step by handicappers to figuring out whom to keep on the Derby list. It is essential to identify the horses that will love ten furlongs, those who could finish in the money and the ones that couldn’t get the distance with an oxygen mask. The most important pedigree factor in deciding if your Derby hopeful is a contender or pretender is the progeny stakes records of the sires and damsires. 
s are forecasted Saturday. It’s doubtful that we’ll see the quagmire that was present in the 2009 and 2010 Kentucky Derbies, but should the track be off or labeled “good,” the handicapper should again turn to pedigree to figure out who has experience or breeding for the mud. Both Mine That Bird and Super Saver had superior pedigrees for the mud the years that they won their respective Derbies. This year, nine Derby hopefuls have raced over an off track and five were winners. Other colts, such as Bodemeister and Alpha, have superior mud breeding. 
An important factor in determining the current form of Kentucky Derby contenders is how they finished in their final prep race before the Derby. In the last 11 years, only two Derby champs finished worse than second in their final prep. Only three Derby champs didn’t win or place in a Grade 1. Six of the Derby heroes won their final Derby prep: 
Here’s another important fact. Think those one run plodders are the horses to watch in the Derby? Guess again. Every Derby hero has been close to the lead by the quarter-pole and since 1950, 77% of the winners had the lead at the eighth-pole. 98% of the horses who have the lead at the eighth-pole finish in the trifecta. These stats prove that the Derby winner must have a brilliant three furlong explosion and that jockey timing is everything. The majority of the Kentucky Derby winners have tactical speed. Only when there is dominant speed in the race (such as 2001 & 2005) does a stone closer have a legitimate shot at winning, and even then, that closer must have a strong three furlong move. 
