Lets discuss, phrasing.

c4r7

I think I started out playing phrases and then as I got better running scales between phrases then ended up pushing out phrases and just running scales.

Scales are cool to connect phrases. Check out this vid from a guitar players, guitar player:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7940608910225951743&q=vai

:idea: I'm on vacation for a couple of weeks, how about we post some samples of well thought out \"Phrases\" that doesn't already include something from your vocabulary. (unless it's really cool )

WOGS858

vai is just freakin amazing :shock:

0Dannyboy

Steve is so cool I like the fact that shreding scales is not good enough for him. Saying somthing with melody is what its all about !
Just to shred a scale gets old and is tireing to my ears very fast but slow down a it between your shredding to actually comunicate a melody...now thats music...He uses Pro Tools too...I can dig that!

great post he is such a guitar godlike frreeek!

ednrg

Cool vid. Steve is a great guitarist. The \"problem\" is that he's not really a great song writer.

Gene Simmons (who I'm not really a fan of) told Bruce Kulick \"you're a great guitarist, but you have to learn how to play with balls.\"

There are many technically incredible guitarists that cannot write good songs.

There are also many that can (Gilbert, MacAlpine, etc.) It seems that the ones who can, play with \"balls\" a bit more than the mechanical guitarist.

0Dannyboy

\ednrg\ wrote:

Cool vid. Steve is a great guitarist. The \"problem\" is that he's not really a great song writer..

Yea but put him with Roth and you get \"Ladys Night in Buffalo\" one of my alltime favorite tunes...oh yea \"good times\" was pretty cool too! :P
he just needs a songwriting clown with some style to show to off all those crazy licks of his.

LuredMaul

I guess that's what happens to ya when you work for some of the best Songwriters (Zappa,Roth,David Coverdale) in the Bussiness; you don't give the song a second thought..it's fine without you,but, what to do to give it that \"Oh yeah *nod* \" quality is Vai`s best asset

Manitou

Over the last year, we've listed quite a few video's.
My favorite is this nice one of Satch discussing this threads topic.

Joe's Soloing Lesson

gplawhorn

\c4r7\ wrote:

Check out this vid from a guitar players, guitar player:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7940608910225951743&q=vai

I have to admit, I've always placed Vai in the Steve Stevens category: hi flash, little substance.

[Gimme Clapton, Trower, Garcia, Carlos anyday]

BUT . . . I really appreciated how much thought he's placing into his music. His statement that speed isn't that big a deal, that it's getting it to be a phrase that works takes a lot of time is dead on. I'm not only inspired to think about my own phrasing, but to check out some of Vai's stuff on iTunes and listen for the mind behind the mayhem.

ednrg

\Manitou\ wrote:

Over the last year, we've listed quite a few video's.
My favorite is this nice one of Satch discussing this threads topic.

Joe's Soloing Lesson

Excellent video. I loved his discussion on musically correct vs. feeling.

dcunning30

As a songwriter, my opinion is Vai is hit and miss. He lays a few eggs from a songwriting perspective, but he has some really great songs as well. For The Love Of God is an awesome song, for example.

And regarding Vai's phrasing, I've picked up some of that and been incorporating it into my playing. If you're interested in how he does stuff, pick up his Live at Astoria DVD and watch it over and over. His G3 in Denver DVD is good too, but there's far too little Vai and far too much Satch for my tastes. I'm going to pick up the G3 DVD with Petrucci on it, another of my favorite players. I've also seen him live. I stood about 10 feet away from him most of the night. That whole, tongue on string sqealing thing is part gimmick. If you watch closely, he flips a switch on his guitar just before he does it and flips it again when he's finished.