JasonShadrick

Of course, Steve Vai hardly needs an introduction.  As one of the leading guitar virtousos of his generation he has achieved a legendary place in mainstream guitar culture.  We were lucky enough to have Steve as a guest this past summer at NGW and the feedback I heard from the students was amazing.

I am very lucky and thankful to have Steve participate in this project.

Steve is preparing to release his newest live DVD/CD entitled “Where the Wild Things Are “. Here is a short preview of the video:

Describe your first experience playing music.

I walked up to a little spinet organ and played the theme song for the horror flick with Bette Davis called “Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte”. The movie sacred me to death and the melody haunted me until I plucked it out and then I thought…”Hmmm, that’s not so scary”. I think I was 4 years old.

What has been your most significant musical experience?

The most significant musical experience I ever had was in astral projection dreams when I was younger. I’m not sure if that’s even a correct terminology for them. They started as long back as I can remember and would happen once every 4 years or so. The most profound one, and the last one, happened when I was around 22 years old and it lasted for as long as 4-5 seconds.

The sound I hear during these episodes is impossible to describe. It  rages far beyond the dynamics and frequencies of the ability of the physical ears to hear. It has an intensity and weight to it that dwarfs your own being.  It’s like a 10,000 piece orchestra of all different instruments, all playing different notes and rhythms, all tuned differently, but in perfect harmonious and melodic exhalation. It’s all encompassing and comes from all sides. It actually emanates from within and not from anyplace outside.

It permeates everything. The waking from it is akin to slamming the pavement of a 100 story jump. I awake to feel the limitations, (prison) of the physical body and the congested cloudiness of my own cognizant awareness.

The finest music ever created in this world is like a toilet compared to this celestial orchestra. There is no way to capture and reproduce it. In the world I am left grappling for melodic scabs of it’s magnificence, only to feel that my finest work is a feeble attempt at capturing even a glimmer of this glorious inner music. I’m ashamed at my explanation but then again, I did say it was impossible to explain.

I know I’m not the only one that has had this experience.

I believe this sound resonates within the core of every living thing.

What is the best advice on pursuing a career in music you were ever given?

“Keep your Publishing”. Frank Zappa.

What is your favorite sound?

Complete silence to the point of hearing white noise, or… water lapping on a beach at sunset.

Name some of your biggest non-musical influences.

Complete silence to the point of hearing white noise, or… water lapping on a beach at sunset.

What was the most memorable concert you ever attended?

Return To Forever at Hofstra college on Long Island when I was 14 years old.

Put your iPod on shuffle and list the first 5 songs that appear

Rat Bat Blue by Deep Purple

Cry by Michael Jackson

Sonata for Cello and Piano: Allegro by Elliot Carter

I’ll Wait by Van Halen

The Part You Throw Away by Tom Waits

You can tell from the moment you see Paul Gilbert pick up a guitar that he truly loves to play.  I have been lucky enough to work with Paul a few times now and it is always great.  When I came up with the idea for this project, Paul’s name was the first one on my list.

Make sure to visit his website.

His Photoshop skills are unmatched.

Describe your first experience playing music

Around the time I was 5, my uncle let me hold a pick and strum while he fingered the chords on my cheap acoustic guitar. After that, I battled with the boredom of learning sightreading from a guitar teacher at a music store. I lost the battle and retired from guitar at the age of 6. At 9, the music teacher in my 4th grade class demonstrated the steps of the major scale on the blackboard. I wondered if those steps would correspond to the frets on my guitar. I went home and tried it, and a major scale came out of my guitar! I was so excited that I started playing by ear, and I haven’t stopped since.

What has been your most significant musical experience?

I auditioned for a band when I was 12 years old. The other guys in the band were 16-18 years old and played really well. It felt so good to jam with them and to make a sound that “sounded like a record”. They never actually told me that I didn’t get the gig, they just gave me a long list of difficult songs to learn to try to discourage me from calling back. The songs were beyond my ability at the time, but I tried hard to learn them, and I called them up daily to see if I could try out again. They stopped answering their phone, but I ended up learning a lot of good songs.

What is the best advice on pursuing a career in music you were ever given?

When I was 15, Mike Varney told me, “When your demos sound as good as your favorite records, then you’re ready to become professional.” This was scary advice!

What is your favorite sound?

A band that knows the songs. Jimmy Page bending a string in 1971. John Lennon singing in 1965. A real band that plays and sings well enough to not need to be chopped up, edited, and tuned with Pro-Tools.

Name some of your biggest non-musical influences.

My mom and dad.
Charles Schulz
Gary Larson
Carl Sagan
Ayn Rand
Roald Dahl
Thomas Jefferson
Richard Dawkins
The story of Ernest Shackleton and “Endurance”
The invention of e-mail and Google
Learning to cook
Living in Pennsylvania, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Japan and Being married

What is the most memorable concert you ever attended?

It’s a 3-way tie:

Van Halen in 1979

Ozzy with Randy Rhoads (with the original Def Leppard supporting!) 1981

Todd Rundgren in 1990

Put your iPod on shuffle and list the first 5 songs that appear.

“This Will Be Our Year” – The Zombies

“Scarlatti Sonata in A minor L.241/K.54″ – Sergio and Odair Assad

“No Opportunity Necessary, No Experience Required” – Yes

“Boss Jack” – Johnny Cash

“Double Vision” – Foreigner

(Photo Credit: Lee Millward)

If you could ask your favorite guitarist (or artist, or musician, etc..) only 7 questions; what would they be?

I was thinking about ideas for more interesting and relevant content for this blog and it dawned on me that I have access to some of the most amazing and influential guitarists around and it would be great if I could share some of their knowledge with the readers of this blog.

So, I want to get feedback from the guitar community as to what questions I should ask.

Here are a few general rules to remember:

• We will ask the same 7 questions to each participant
• These will most likely be through email, so the questions will need to require a short answer
• I want to stay away from the typical gear questions (what strings do you use?, etc..)
• The questions don’t need to be entirely about music

Please leave your suggestions for questions and participants in the comments section below.