Steven Siro Vai (born June 6, 1960 in Carle
Place, New York) is a Grammy
Award-winning guitarist, composer and record producer
When
growing up, the young Vai became interested in rock giants such as Jimi
Hendrix, Alice Cooper and Led Zeppelin which led him to take up learning
the guitar. Prior to attending Berklee College of Music, Steve took guitar
lessons from now fellow guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani, and played in
numerous local bands. He has acknowledged the influence of many guitarists
including Jeff Beck and fusion guitarist Allan Holdsworth.
In 1994 Vai
received a Grammy Award for his performance on the Frank Zappa song
"Sofa" from the album Zappa's Universe.
Steve Vai's
music has been featured in a number of feature films, including Dudes
and Ghosts of Mars. He appeared onscreen in the 1986 Ralph Macchio
movie Crossroads, playing the demonically-inspired Jack Butler. At
the film's climax, Vai engages in a guitar duel with Macchio, whose guitar
parts were dubbed by Vai and also Ry Cooder, who played the initial slide
work in the duel and Macchio's earlier performances in the film. The
fast-paced neo-classical track entitled "Eugene's Trick Bag"
with which Macchio wins the competition was also composed by Vai. The body
of the piece was heavily based on Paganini's Caprice #5, and has become a
favorite apprentice-piece among many guitar students. He later borrowed the
opening riff from the track "Head Cuttin' Duel" for a song called
"Bad Horsie" from his 1995 album Alien Love Secrets.
Vai's
playing style has been characterized as quirky and angular, owing to his
superb technical facility with the instrument and deep knowledge of music
theory. Vai has been credited with the recent revival of the 7-string
guitar, and has used double and triple neck guitars on many occasions.
An
interesting point to note is Vai's commitment to practice. In several
guitar magazines and texts, he is reported to practice upwards of eight hours
per day, a habit he began as early as his high school days.
