Steve Vai On Tour With Joe Satriani

JGT contributor Joe Barth checks in with Steve Vai to discuss his summer tour with Joe Satriani.

Above Photo credit: Haluk Gurer

Joe Satriani and Steve Vai have been making music together for a long time, going way back to a young Steve sitting under the weekly guitar lesson of Joe, who was a few years older and experienced.  They later parted ways, each achieving fame in their own artistic endeavors.  Their paths crossing from time to time, they are now reunited for their ambitious “Surfing with the Hydra” tour.

JB:  Joe and you have known each other for a long time.  Talk briefly about the one thing that you learned from Joe while taking lessons from him when you were a kid.

SV: Whenever Joe played anything on the guitar, whatever came out always sounded like music. That was perhaps my biggest takeaway. 

 JB:  Your career has been mostly in rock music, but can you share two or three jazz guitar albums that impacted you deeply, and what was it about them that struck you?

SV: Yes, Ted Green’s Solo Guitar record. He was forever improvising brilliantly with his “in the moment” harmonizations. He was truly remarkable.  Then there is Joe Pass’ Virtuoso. This was the first time I heard a guitar carry an entire piece of music fluently and brilliantly. 

Then, Frank Zappa’s Jazz From Hell may not be a traditional jazz record, but sort of like jazz put through a melodic-robotic blender and spitting out alien jazz. 

JB:  Your career has been so rich with experiences from Frank Zappa to David Lee Roth to your solo work.  Whatever the style, what do you find so rewarding about improvising and crafting a guitar solo?

SV: Being in the moment with the notes. 

JB:  You have done trio projects with Joe Satriani and Eric Johnson (G3).  Tell me about the musical connection you have with those two guitarists?

SV: We sort of live on the same playground. Both those musicians are intuitive and know how to listen when communicating musically. 

 JB:  I’m sure you composed new music for this tour with Joe. Talk about the compositional process of a couple of the songs.

SV: It’s been a totally joyful experience working with Joe on new music. We both resonate with similar interests, and when we are coming up with ideas together, it feels like the sum is greater than the parts. 

JB:  Talk about how you weave your guitar lines around what Joe’s playing?

SV: Much of it is call and response when we are trading. We complement each other’s riffs, noises, and melodies. But when we are improvising together, that’s when the real connection comes. It sometimes feels as if we are one mind. 

JB:  Talk about the guitar-amp setup that you are using on this tour that musically gives you the sound you envision in your mind.

SV: I’m using my Synergy custom Vai pre-amp module with a Fryette power amp, and my Ibanez Jem “Flo” for most of the set. “Flo” is like a warm place I call home, and the Synergy  has the warm smooth tone of the Carvin Legacy I designed. To get that sound it took 3 years of testing, changing, testing some more, etc… I’m blessed in that I have various companies that have the patience to design things around my interests. Those items were created to give me the sound in my mind. 

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