C.D. Review: Steve Vai - Passion and Warfare. April 08/2

The trouble with epithets like genius and virtuoso is that they get thrown around with so much regularity in the music business that they lose any real meaning. But rest assured that when they are applied to Steve Vai, they attach themselves easily. His third solo effort, Passion and Warfare, released in 1990 on Relativity Records, at a time when Vai had finished his work with David Lee Roth vaulted him into the national spotlight. It is agreed amongst both critics and fans alike that this could be the best Vai in his impressive catalogue.

The 14 tracks on Passion and Warfare run the gauntlet from quasi-patriotic "Liberty" and the scorching "Erotic Nightmares" to the bone crushing "The Animal" and the ethereal, drifting dreamlike sequences of " For The Love Of God". There's a hint of humor-tinged anger under the track "Greasy Kid's Stuff" and a sly smile and a chuckle into the sleeve on the "The Audience Is Listening". Perhaps it was my own imagination but you can hear the subtle influences of former instructor, neighbor and long time friend, Joe Satriani as well as the meandering, heady impact of former boss Frank Zappa on "I Would Love To" as well as the shades of Allan Holdsworth coming through on the jazz-tinged "Blue Powder".

Each track offers a glimpse into the real gifts of Steve Vai; although some only know him as the lanky, long haired screaming metal guitarist behind Alcatrazz, David Lee Roth and Whitesnake, his true genius is in composition and in his startling work in the progressive and experimental hard rock arena.

Vai picked up the guitar at the age of 13 and took lessons from fellow Long Island native Joe Satriani. He attended the Berklee College of Music and during that time he became enamored with the work of Frank Zappa. He began creating note for note transcriptions of Zappa's rather eclectic music and sent him a copy of "The Black Page". Zappa was so impressed with Vai's transcription and guitar playing skills that he offered him a job in his band doing transcriptions for Zappa's almost endless supply of experimental rock.

He toured with Zappa's band occasionally and recorded on several of his albums being listed as the "Little Italian Virtuoso" and "stunt guitarist". He later recorded his first solo effort "Flex-Able" to minor accolades. He joined up with David Lee Roth for his solo work after first leaving Van Halen and recorded "Eat 'em and Smile" and "Skyscraper", both of which highlighted his screaming and insane lead guitar work. Many of the critics of the time compared him favorably to Eddie VanHalen, the reigning rock and roll guitar king. After his work with Roth, he left to record another solo effort and then joined up with Whitesnake for an album and tour when their usual guitarist, Adrian Vandenberg had sustained a wrist injury. His work on Whitenakes "Slip of the tongue" is still considered some of the finest example of heavy rock and roll on disc.

He released "Passion and Warfare" at roughly the same time and has said many times that this album had been burning in the back of his mind for years. In the guitar music book of the disc, he claims that the concept for the disc came from a series of dreams that he had as a teenager. When asked to describe the concept, he said "It's Jimi Hendrix meets Jesus Christ at a party Ben Hur threw for Mel Blanc". That, it seems to me, to be as accurate a description as any I could come up with.

Aside from discovering artists that I may have over-looked in the past or finding new discs to add to the collection, one of the most interesting things about doing these reviews is learning about the artists themselves. Vai is an amazing talent with the guitar. That much is obvious. What may not be so obvious is that he is a shrewd businessman in that he owns two recording studios and his own label (Favored Nations) through which he seeks to record guitarists who may never get the break they need as well as high profile acts. He is a designer as well. He helped design the Ibanez JEM series of guitars (a shredders dream axe) as well as the Universe seven string guitar for Ibanez that would eventually become a stock addition to the metal sound of the mid to late Nineties bands like Korn and Limp Bizkit. He has made an appearance as the devils guitarist, Jack Butler, in the film "Crossroads" as well as penning and recording tracks for "Dudes", "Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey" and "Ghosts of Mars". Vai has made a habit of guest appearing on several other artists work including Alice Cooper, Al DiMeola, Joe Jackson and former Sex Pistol, John Lydon.

Vai, a deeply spiritual man, is married with two children and spends his rare quiet moments tending to his beehives. He harvests and sells the honey collected to make money for Make A Noise, a charity that he is very active in which provides musical instruments for children that would not otherwise be able to afford it. Of the bees, Vai said "Bees are fascinating creatures and taking care of them can be a Zen like experience if you let it be. It's one of the few times of the day that I really do something that's entirely for me. I can forget about all the contractual obligations and just hang out with the bees."

In ways it is hard to put the various parts together; maniacal mad man guitarist with howling fretboard skills, businessman, composer, family man, philanthropist and bee keeper. And yet, it all seems perfectly in tune for Steve Vai.