The first album that “floored” Steve Vai
American guitarist Steve Vai got his start in the industry after he was hired as Frank Zappa’s transcriptionist while studying at Berklee College of Music. Soon after, the avid musician was invited to play with Zappa on tour, introducing him to the world as an incredibly virtuosic talent.
The musician had always been drawn to the guitar ever since he saw a young boy playing the instrument when he was six. He once explained, during an interview with Make Weird Music: “I saw this nine-year-old boy playing the guitar in my grade school auditorium, and that was another epiphany that I had. It was my first recognition of the instrument. When I saw that guitar and I saw this kid playing it, I knew instinctually that I was going to play the guitar someday, and that it would be my instrument. Don’t ask me how I knew, I just knew. It was the coolest thing I had ever seen.”
Vai has been lauded for his intricate guitar skills, which he has honed through a dedicated practice schedule. Since his three-year stint with Zappa, Vai has gone on to work with a bunch of other successful musicians, from Whitesnake to Motörhead. The guitarist has even earned 15 Grammy Award nominations, winning three, including ‘Best Rock Instrumental Performance’ for the song ‘Sofa’.
However, Vai wouldn’t have become such an incredible musician if he had not studied the work of other classic artists, like Led Zeppelin. He cites their 1969 album Led Zeppelin II as life-changing, discussing the record’s mammoth impact on him during various interviews.
He explained: “My older sister, Pam, had this great taste in rock music. She was always listening to really cool stuff, and through her I first heard Led Zeppelin II. From the moment Jimmy Page’s solo on ‘Heartbreaker’ came on, that was it for me. Page’s guitar playing and Robert Plant’s singing totally floored me.”
“The truth is, I could easily put the next six Zeppelin records on this list and not be too far off,” he continued. “But we’ll just say Led Zeppelin II here as the anchor for a huge awakening into my deep association with the energy that comes from rock music”.
Vai also explained how hearing Led Zeppelin inspired him to actually pick up the guitar rather than just admire it. “My younger sister, Lillian, had a guitar. I loved the guitar, but I just thought there was no way I could ever play it – it’s too cool. But hearing Led Zeppelin made me say, ‘I’m going to play the guitar, and that’s it.’ I bought a five-dollar Teisco Del Rey guitar from a friend, and I started taking lessons from Joe [Satriani]. I was about 12 or 13 at the time.”
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