Time Machine is the fifth studio album by guitarist Joe Satriani, released on October 13, 1993, through Relativity Records and reissued in 1998 through Epic Records. It is a double-disc album: the first disc contains a selection of new tracks, outtakes and unreleased studio recordings, while the second disc is composed of live recordings from 1988 and 1992.
The album reached No. 95 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and remained on that chart for eight weeks, as well as reaching No. 72 in the Netherlands and No. 87 in Germany. "All Alone" was released as a single, reaching No. 21 on Billboards Mainstream Rock chart along with "Speed of Light" at the 1994 Grammys, Satriani's fifth and sixth such nominations. Time Machine was certified Gold on October 27, 1994. Five tracks were originally recorded during the sessions for The Extremist (1992): "Crazy", "Banana Mango II", "Thinking of You", "Speed of Light" (featured on the soundtrack to the 1993 film Super Mario Bros.) and "Baroque". Four other tracks were previously released on Satriani's 1984 self-titled EP: "Banana Mango", "Dreaming #11", "I Am Become Death" and "Saying Goodbye". A fifth track from the EP, "Talk to Me", was not included due to its master tape being damaged.
Recording locations
Disc one
The first disc was recorded in the following locations between 1984 and 1993:
- The Barn (Bearsville, New York) – 1990
- Hyde Street (San Francisco) – 1986–87
- The Plant (Sausalito, California) – 1991–93
- Record One (Sherman Oaks, California) – 1991–93
- Ocean Way (Los Angeles) – 1991–93
- Alpha and Omega Recordings (San Francisco) – 1986–87 and 1990–91
- Fantasy Studios (Berkeley, California) – 1990 and 1993
- Coast Recorders (San Francisco) – 1990–91
- The Site (Marin County, California) – May 1993
Most of the above locations were also used to record and mix his 1992 album, The Extremist.
Disc two
The second disc uses live recordings from three shows on the Extremist Tour and one show on the Surfing with the Alien tour.
The recordings taken from the Extremist Tour are from the following shows:
- Tower Theater (Upper Darby Township, Pennsylvania) – December 3, 1992
- Orpheum Theatre (Boston) – December 23, 1992
- Hammersmith Apollo (London) – February 5, 1993
The recording taken from the Surfing with the Alien tour is from the following show:
- California Theatre (San Diego) – June 11, 1988
This show originally aired on the King Biscuit Flower Hour radio show on July 31, 1988. Three songs (Ice 9, Memories and Hordes of Locusts) were also used on the Dreaming #11 EP.
According to a 2014 interview with Joe for MusicRadar.com, the Roseland Ballroom show in New York City (December 5, 1992) was also recorded for this album but wasn't used.
The Hammersmith Apollo show was recorded for and broadcast by BBC Radio 1 on May 1, 1993, and repeated on October 23, 1993 (both times at 19:30). It was produced by Jeff Griffin and recorded by Mike Robinson.