AFTER picking up a guitar at the age of 14, the self-taught virtuoso Joe Satriani has amazed fans and music lovers with his original and impressive style of play.

He now makes a welcome return to Bournemouth when he plays a one-night gig at the Pavilion Theatre on Wednesday.

Since the late 1980s, Satriani has left his mark on the rock industry and emerged as one of the most sought-after guitarists. He has taught legions of big-name guitarists, from Metallica's Kirk Hammett, to Counting Crows' David Bryson, as well as jazz fusionist Charlie Hunter.

It has now been 20 years since he shook the world with his debut solo release, Not of This Earth, and since then has achieved ten million sales of 11 solo albums, (two platinum, four gold), 13 Grammy nominations, three platinum DVDs, the historic G3 guitar summits and tours or sessions with everyone from Mick Jagger to Deep Purple and Spinal Tap.

Despite having such an impressive back catalogue, Satriani is convinced his new album Super Colossal will stand out: "People who picked up on my records early on knew that I couldn't easily be pigeonholed," he says, "I was never a metal player or a fusion player or a straight-ahead rock player, though these are all elements of my personality. I think I go further into each of those places now, especially on Super Colossal. To me, there's more variety here than on any other album I've done."

Joe Satriani last visited Bournemouth in 2004 when he performed with G3 now he is back and ready to rock don't miss your chance to see him live!

n Tickets, priced £25, from the box office on 0870 111 3000.