Vai songs - hardest to date?

Big Job · #1 07-31-2001, 01:32 PM

Some you you guys must try and play vai tunes if so what ones and what do you find hardest of all?
:shoot: :bash: :shoot:

carlos seo · #2 08-01-2001, 12:48 AM

"Tobacco Road", with David Lee Roth.

trouble311 · #3 08-01-2001, 01:00 AM

Hardest Vai song:

D: *All of the above....LOL

I dunno....that 7th song on Flex-able Leftovers isn't real difficult

vwall · #4 08-01-2001, 02:07 AM

Painted Love

from Alcatrazz

I have to edit this!! I chose this cuz the last time i messed with this song was like 5 years ago! OOPS!!!
I forgot that i have improved much over that time:biggrin:

I just picked up the tab to it and played it almost effortlessly... WITHOUT a short scale guitar (on my GMC)

So, right now, i dont know what the hardest to play to date is???
I dont spend a whole lot of time playing other peoples music, mostly my own

scott

(Edited by vwall at 1:07 am on Sep. 11, 2001)

littlegreenman · #5 08-01-2001, 02:36 AM

Painted love isn't bad, you just need a short scale guitar!!!! hehe

vwall · #6 08-01-2001, 03:43 AM

yeah, thats doable but man how cool is his techniques in that era!! incredible!!

Devo · #7 08-01-2001, 04:43 AM

all of em really!

I dont like to play Vai though, I like everyone else Ive ever heard play Vai, sounds like a bad midi file. totally expressionless trying to nail the technique, Its tricky to do both and its not enough to do just one of em well.

just my .02

Steve

trouble311 · #8 08-01-2001, 03:09 PM

Hear hear Devo! *I have a penchant for noodling around with FTLOG on my Les Paul during spurts of inactivity during band rehearsal, but I suck....no one sounds like Steve, but that's the point...he once told me personally, and I quote: *"Listen closely to the quiet realms of your inner ear, and your own creativity will tell you what to do".....so basically, innovate, don't imitate....

Abe

jem7vwh · #9 08-01-2001, 03:36 PM

the hardest earlier song I had trouble with was "Big Trouble". *That huge cascading tapped solo always fooled me. *I finally have it down.

Of his new material, I guess the hardest one I can play is "Juice"

carlos seo · #10 08-02-2001, 01:19 AM

Why everybody can play "Juice" and I can't?? I think I have a real problem with this song!

Big Job · #11 08-02-2001, 06:17 AM

Not trying to start a big arguement here I find juice easy, well I can do it, and I think well. If you want real hard on the Vai frount try 'Kill the guy with the ball' that gives me nightmares and I have spent a lot of time trying to do it. However thats just me......

Kramom · #12 08-02-2001, 12:41 PM

Talking about difficulties...
The Audience is Listening sounds rather hard to grasp to me. Although SV's newer albums have lots of unimaginable blazin' shockin' ear-tearin' songs (aka solos - 8-) I've always considered the song very exquisitely f@#&in` my ears - yeah, I wanna break me ears and fingers every time I listen to it, and I still can't get enough of it. (Sorry for the language - I love SV so much 8-)
Jibboom is rather hard to reproduce too...

Cory Bottone · #13 08-03-2001, 01:30 PM

Hey Carlos, I said the same exact thing about juice on a topic a long time ago. I can't play it either! It seems everyone here can but me! The hardest one I've came across is probably Fire Garden Suite (because of that end sweeping part) and Juice. But then again, I've never tried anything from P&W except FTLOG and Blue Powder.

jem7vwh · #14 08-03-2001, 02:20 PM

Quote:

Quote: from Big Job on 6:17 am on Aug. 2, 2001
Not trying to start a big arguement here I find juice easy, well I can do it, and I think well. If you want real hard on the Vai frount try 'Kill the guy with the ball' that gives me nightmares and I have spent a lot of time trying to do it. However thats just me......

i think I play this song very well now, however just being able to do something doesn't make it easy. *The things that Michael Jordan seemed effortless when he did them, but I doubt even he would say that he's athletic performances were easy. *He had just trained enough so that his skill made his performances possible.

ripl3y · #15 08-03-2001, 06:47 PM

I don't attempt many of his songs to be honest, I seem to have more joy with Joe's work.

But one I have spent a ridiculous amount of time on (so much so that it's now starting to annoy me) is Tender Surrender, basically because it is just the greatest tune I've ever heard.

I can sorta' do a passable job, but have to substitute some of the whammy work with other things as I find it way too difficult to nail i.e. bar 51 - 3min 6secs...(the pinched A and open G (beautiful bar work!)) I just cannot get it at all.

The legato virtually immediately following it I totally love and it's not too difficult if you put the practice in.
Bars 58 - 61 - 3min 32secs also invariably end with me tying my fingers up in knots, but I've ditched a few notes to ease it up a bit and it aint "too" noticeable"

So actually, come to think of it, I pretty much do a hatchet job...but it keeps me happy :biggrin:

It's quite strange how some people can find a certain piece difficult and others easy/vice versa.
I get so far in Juice, but then my head sort of say's "No Steve...don't even think about it you foolish man!"

I would never try "Kill the guy" to be honest.
I can hear how difficult it would be for me, but I also hate the damn thing, personally I'd have to say it's his worst tune to date, but that's a different topic

Steve

(Edited by ripl3y at 5:54 pm on Aug. 3, 2001)