Steve Vai Passion & Warfare CD

Personnel: Steve Vai (various instruments), Nancy Fagen, Jamie Firlotte (vocals); David Rosenthal, Bob Harris, Pia Vai (keyboards, background vocals), Stuart Hamm (bass), Tris Imboden, Chris Frazier (drums); Pascal Fillet, David Coverdale, Laurel Fishman, Lillian Vai, Pam Vai, Joel Kaith, Corky Tanassy, Jamie Kornberg, Lauren Kornberg, Rudy Sarzo, Adrian Vandenberg, Corinne Larue, Famin', Darla Albright, Laura Gross, Rupert Henry, Bob Harris, Suzanna Harris, Julian Vai (background vocals).
Recorded at The Mothership.
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Personnel: Steve Vai (guitar, keyboards); Jamie Firlotte, Nancy Fagan (vocals); David Rosenthal, Pia Vai, Bob Harris (keyboards); Eventide (synthesizer); Tris Imboden, Chris Frazier (drums).
Audio Mixer: Pascal Fillet.
Recording information: Mothership.
Illustrator: Aaron Brown.
Photographer: Jim Hagopian.
Unknown Contributor Role: David Bett.
Arranger: Steve Vai.
The one and only Satriani-taught and Zappa-tested virtuoso, Steve Vai, returns with his self-produced 1990 release, PASSION AND WARFARE. The album was inspired by sequential dream patterns Vai experienced earlier in his life, and results in one technically electrifying ride filled with vivid mysticism and groovy instrumental imagery. The album was recorded in his home studio, the Mothership, and released on Relativity/Epic Records. Vai says it best when he characterizes this album as "Jimi Hendrix meets Jesus Christ at a party that Ben Hur threw for Mel Blanc."
Widely acclaimed as his best album, Passion and Warfare finds Steve Vai coming into his own as a composer, as well as bypassing vocals almost entirely. His style isn't quite as derivative of influences Frank Zappa and Joe Satriani as it was six years earlier on Flex-able; while some of Vai's sense of humor is still evident on tracks like the cock rock strut of "The Audience Is Listening," it is mostly replaced by a spiritual reflectiveness on ballads like "For the Love of God" and "Blue Powder" and dignified, committed rockers like "I Would Love To" and "Liberty." Vai is a more distinguished composer than most of his guitar-shredder contemporaries, and rather than simply showing off his technique, he isn't afraid to experiment or take chances in his playing. Thus, Passion and Warfare is arguably the richest and best hard rock guitar-virtuoso album of the '80s. ~ Steve Huey

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