The Infinite Steve Vei






Some guys are strictly there for the guitar and have little or no concerns with the costumes, stage show (or setting the guitar on fire in addition to being a guitar virtuoso.) In the mid 80s', a whole crop of technically dazzling whiz kid guitarists took claim of their part of the music world. Among the most visible and acclaimed was Steve Vai. Steve was born on Long Island, and after discovering music in high school and formed a band with another guitar playing buddy, Joe Satrini, (Hey, do they grow these guys on Long Island or what?) After high school, Vai was a shoo-in for Berklee in Boston. It was while a student at Berklee. In storybook fashion, he contacted one of his musical role models, Frank Zappa with a transcription of one of Frank's more challenging pieces. The normally unflappable Zappa was so impressed, he recruited Vai to join his band.

Vai was an intrinsic member of Zappas band during the golden (almost) commercial age of Zappa's career. In the early '80s. through Tinseltown Rebellion, Valley Girl and You Are What You Is. Steve was the fella with the blue hair who achieved notoriety vis a vis the song Stevie's Spanking, which was included on Them Or Us.

After Steve left Zappa in 1984, he released Flex-able and Flex-able Leftovers in 1984. It wasn't long before more commercial environs beckoned, and Vai soon joined Graham Bonnet in a short-lived hard rock outfit called Alcatrazz. Vai also appeared in the movie Crossroads as the devil's guitar player.

Steve's biggest break occurred when he joined buddy Billy Sheehan in David Lee Roth's band. Vai's guitar mastery , coupled with Dave's whack-job persona w/ 1986's Eat Em and Smile Vai continued on with Roth until 1988's Skyscraper (which he co-produced).

Unlike his former lead singer Roth, Vai had always put music #1, and he worked with guitar manufactuer Ibanez on his own line of guitars, the Jem 777 series. After joining Whitesnake for one album (Slip of the Tongue), Vai left to concentrate on his solo career. 1989s' Passion and Warfare became one of the few instrumental rock albums in recent memory to hit the gold sales plateau. Steve also created another line of guitars for Ibanez - with seven strings!

Playing against his usual type for the first time, Vai started his own rock band with a vocalist in 1993. In an era marked by grunge and alternative, though, the album failed to dent the charts. Vai soon returned to his first love - instrumental guitar. He released a slew of albums in the 1990s', including Alien Love Secrets, Fire Garden and The Ultra Zone. Along with his high school friend, Joe Satrini, he performs every year on the all guitar virtuoso tour G3. Ardent fans of fast-fingered instrumental guitar can follow all the nuances of Vai's career on The Secret Jewel Box, a just-released ten CD retrospective.



Deb's Top 5 Songs Of The Day:

Black Eyed Peas, My Humps
Creedence Clearwater Revival, Brown Eyed Girl
Rolling Stones, Under My Thumb
John Mellencamp, Authority Song
Hamell On Trial, Hail

Local Artist Of The Day:

Bobby Blades