Steve Vai

They also use a humbucker-single coil-humbucker pickup set-up and a locking tremolo bar. The album was followed by a tour of the U.K. and then Europe. They feature a handgrip cut into the top of the body of the guitar. The band changed direction once again in 2003 and released Universal Hall a mostly acoustic album with a return of some celtic influences from the Fisherman's Blues era. Vai also helped design his signature Ibanez JEM series of guitars. By 2001 the core of the new Waterboys included Mike Scott on vocals and guitar, Richard Naiff on pianos and organs and Steve Wickham on violin who returned to the band. He also enjoys keeping bees, which regularly produce a crop of honey that Steve sells for his chosen charity every year through his web site. A number of old Waterboys guested on the album including Anthony Thistlethwaite and Kevin Wilkinson.

Vai is married with two children (Julian Angel & Fire) to Pia (former Bassist of All-Female Group "Vixen", which can be seen in the movie "Hardbodies"). To the surprise of many Mike Scott resurrected the Waterboys name for the album A Rock In The Weary Land with a new experimental rock sound Scott called "Sonic Rock". Steve Vai owns 'Favored Nations', a recording and publishing business which specialises in looking after both newly discovered and already high profile recording artists from around the world. In his frustration at not being able to get a new touring Waterboys band together, Scott left New York, abandoning the Waterboys name and embarking on a solo career. Vai is an accomplished studio producer (he owns two: "The mother ship" and "The harmony hut") and his own recordings combine his signature guitar prowess with novel compositions and considerable use of studio and recording effects. In December Anthony Thistlethwaite left the band leaving Mike Scott as The Waterboys' only member. The next album was completed with session musicians and was released in 1993 as Dream Harder with a new hard rock-influenced sound. Where Vai's contributions to others' material has been constrained by the largely rock or heavy-rock style of those bands, his own material is considerably more esoteric. Scott spent the rest of the year writing new material and moved to New York.

Vai received a Grammy Award in 1991. 1991 began with Trevor Hutchinson leaving the band and a re-release of the single The Whole of the Moon from This Is The Sea becoming a success in the UK charts. The piece was heavily based on Paganini's Caprice # 5, and has become a favorite apprentice-piece among many guitar students. Scott, Thistlethwaite and Hutchinson recruited Ken Bevins on drums to fulfil the tour dates. The 32nd note fast-paced "neo-classical" track (entitled "Eugene's Trick Bag") with which Macchio wins the competition was composed by Vai. Just before the album was released Steve Wickham left the band in an argument over a new drummer and the band started to fall apart. At the film's climax, Vai engages in a guitar duel with Macchio (whose guitar parts were dubbed by Vai himself). The Waterboys' fourth album, Room to Roam was released in September 1990.

He appeared onscreen in the 1986 Ralph Macchio movie Crossroads, playing the demonically-inspired Jack Butler. The Waterboys at this point consisted of Mike Scott, Steve Wickham, Anthony Thistlethwaite, Colin Blakey on whistle, flute and piano, Sharon Shannon on accordion, Trevor Hutchinson on bass and Noel Bridgeman on drums. Steve Vai's music has featured in a number of feature films, including Dudes, Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey and Ghosts of Mars. After further touring the band returned to Spiddal to record a new album. G3 2003 features Steve, Joe Satriani and Yngwie Malmsteen. Due to the number of tracks recorded in the three years between This Is The Sea and Fisherman's Blues Scott released a second album of tracks from this period in 2001 titled Too Close To Heaven or Fisherman's Blues Part 2 in North America. Steve recently teamed up with former David Lee Roth band member Bassist Billy Sheehan for a world tour. Critics and fans were spilt, with some embracing the new folk influenced sound and others disappointed and had hoped for a continuation of This Is The Sea.

Steve Vai continues to tour regularly, both with his own group and with his one time teacher and fellow Grammy award winning guitar instrumentalist friend Joe Satriani (on the G3 series of tours). Fisherman's Blues was released in October 1988 and showcased a host of guest musicians that had played with the band in Dublin and Spiddal. Vai also stepped into guitarist Adrian Vandenberg's shoes to record with British rock legends Whitesnake (after Adrian Vandenberg injured his wrist due to some exercises he found in a book and tried out) shortly before recording was due to begin for the album Slip of the Tongue. In 1988 Scott took the band to Spiddal in the west of Ireland where they set up a recording studio in Spiddal House to finish recording their new album. Then he joined former Van Halen front man David Lee Roth's group to record the albums Eat 'em and Smile and Skyscraper. Some of these performances were released in 1998 on The Live Adventures Of The Waterboys including a famous Glastonbury performance in '86. In the early 80's he replaced Yngwie Malmsteen (a good friend) as lead guitarist in Graham Bonnett's Alcatrazz. The new band spent 1986 and 1987 recording in Dublin and touring the U.K., Ireland, Europe and Israel.

Steve Vai made his name playing 'stunt guitar' with the legendary rock performer, composer, music producer, and publishing mogul Frank Zappa. The band's lineup changed once again with Scott, Wickham and Thistlethwaite now joined by Trevor Hutchinson on bass and Peter McKinney on drums. Vai is best known for his self-composed, performed and produced guitar instrumental music, but he has also played on the recordings of several other rock acts. At the request of new member Steve Wickham, Mike Scott moved to Dublin and becomes influenced by the traditional Irish music there as well as country and gospel. Steve Vai, born Steven Siro Vai, is an American guitarist and composer, born June 6th, 1960 in Long Island, New York (making him six years old on the sixth day of the sixth month in 1966, as he noted in the introduction to his guitar transcription book of Frank Zappa). At the end of the tour Karl Wallinger left to form his own band World Party.
. and North America with Macro Sin replacing Martyn Swain on bass.

For help, see How to Edit a Page and the Style and How-to Directory. The album release was followed by successful tours of the U.K. After the article has been cleaned up, you may remove this message. charts hampered by Scott's refusal to perform on Top of the Pops and mime. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of article quality. The Waterboys released their third album This Is The Sea in October 1985, their most successful up to this point it managed to get into the top 40 and the single The Whole of the Moon reached number 28 in the U.K. Real Illusions: Reflections (2005). Late in the sessions Steve Wickham joined and added his violin to the track The Pan Within after Scott had heard him on a Sinéad O'Connor demo recorded at Karl Wallinger's house.

The Infinite Steve Vai: An Anthology (2003). The band began to record new material in spring 1985 for a new album. Elusive Light and Sound 1 (2002). The release of the album was followed by further touring including support slots for The Pretenders and U2 and a show at the Glastonbury festival. Alive In An Ultra World (2001). A Pagan Place was released in June 1984 preceded by the single The Big Music whose title was used by some commentators as a description of The Waterboys sound. The Seventh Song (2000). The band also made some new recording and over dubbed old material in late '83 and spring '84 to be released as The Waterboys second album.

The Ultra Zone (1999). The band at this point consisted of Mike Scott on vocals and guitar, Anthony Thistlethwaite on saxophone and mandolin, Karl Wallinger on keyboards, Roddy Lorimer on trumpets, Martyn Swain on bass and Kevin Wilkinson on drums. Fire Garden (1996). After the release of their debut The Waterboys began touring, their first show being at The Batschkapp Club in Frankfurt in February 1984. Alien Love Secrets (1995). Their music, influenced by Patti Smith, Bob Dylan and David Bowie, was (inevitably) compared by critics to U2 in its cinematic sweep. Sex and Religion (1993). The Waterboys then released their self-titled debut, The Waterboys, in July 1983.

Passion and Warfare (1990). The Waterboys performed as a five piece, including Anthony Thistlethwaite on sax and a new member, keyboard player Karl Wallinger. Flex-Able Leftovers (1984). This was shortly followed by The Waterboys' first performance on the BBC's Old Grey Whistle Test. Flex-Able (1984). In March 1983, Ensign released the first recording under the name The Waterboys, a single titled A Girl Called Johnny. The name was taken from the Lou Reed song The Kids, from his album Berlin.

In 1983, Scott's label Ensign Records wanted Scott to release an album of these recordings as a solo artist, but Scott decided to start a band he named The Waterboys. These would become divided between the Waterboys' first and second albums. During 1982, Scott made a number of recordings, both solo and with Thistlethwaite and Wilkinson. During the same period, Scott formed the short lived band The Red and The Black, with saxophone player Anthony Thistlethwaite, after hearing him play on a Nikki Sudden record. Thistlethwaite introduced Scott to drummer Kevin Wilkinson, who would drum for the nine shows The Red and The Black would perform.

These would form the basis of the first Waterboys album. Mike Scott, founder and the only permanent member of The Waterboys, made a number of solo recordings while in the band named Another Pretty Face (who changed their name to Funhouse on later releases) in late 1981 and early 1982. folk rock. They are known to play in a number of different styles, but most often their music can be described as a mix of Irish folk music with rock and roll, i.e.

The Waterboys is a band formed 1983 by Mike Scott. The Live Adventures Of The Waterboys (1998). The Secret Life Of The Waterboys 81-85 (1994). The Best Of The Waterboys 81-90 (1991).

Universal Hall (2003). Too Close To Heaven (2001). A Rock In The Weary Land (2000). Dream Harder (1993).

Room To Roam (1990). Fisherman's Blues (1988). This Is The Sea (1985). A Pagan Place (1984).

The Waterboys (1983).