Petrucci is god among men!!

Yeah, the god of boring people to death.

For me this is a tie between Eric Johnson and Yngwie.

Satriani has a great deal of songwriting ability. Sure, a lot of his stuff is wankage but he's got a nice mix overall.

Hill Groove - last.fm/music/Joe+Satriani/_/Hill+Groove
I Like the Rain - last.fm/music/Joe+Satriani/_/I+Like+the+Rain
Mind Storm - last.fm/music/Joe+Satriani/_/Mind+Storm

A few of my favorites (I'd post full links but don't have enough posts...)

Gilbert, since he fit the format and also did more interesting playing than the other fellers. Oh, and he was joined by Bruce Bouillet. Instant win.

EJ was also great, but I don't think he was the right guy in that musical setting. Ditto with Yngwie.

I wouldn't include Satch and Vai, since they're always part of G3. Better just sticking with the guests.

I don't enjoy G3 all that much, mainly because I need more variation in music. With that said I'm a huge fan of John Petrucci, not only because he's able to play fast and in many different styles, but also because I really like his songwriting, his riffs, his melodies. :)
The middle part of Damage Control is one of my favourite musical segments ever! It's crazy how he managed to put so many awesome things into a single song.

(I like Satriani as a person and guitarist too, but his songs aren't that appealing to me.)

I really think you'd like Paul Gilbert, have you checked out any of his solo albums?

I chose paul gilbert because he is the only one up there who is still considered amazing

petrucci is terribly overrated. he is not good, he is not versatile, he is not original, and his band is not awesome

i am a huge fan of yngwei but i dont think he has anything on gilbert

Actually no, only a few songs here and there. :) Could you recommend an album you think would fit my taste? I like variation within the songs. ^^

Aaaw, I dislike the word "overrated" so much. =/ Overrated in what way? Are the people who *LOVE* Petrucci and Dream Theater "wrong"? Sure, I obviously respect that you don't like him, but you should realize that all people don't agree with you, and therefore "overrated" is the wrong word to use! :P

Get Out of My Yard is the perfect album to get into him with, several styles represented there.

Well duh, not good? Damn, here I thought he was one of the world's renowned guitar virtuosos. Boy, do I feel stupid now.