Hey folks , check out the first concert Steve Vai played 🎸 with Alcatrazz , you can hear some people in the audience shouting 'Where's Yngwie?' 'I want my money back!' - ruclips.net/video/HX8LzPc7aLg/видео.htmlsi=u6onXyvSdrzktYmn
That was me. I was 16 years old working at McDonald’s in Santa Ana for $3.35 an hour. I was upset about having driven to Riverside in my VW bug paying to see someone I hadn’t heard of before. There were people saying a lot worse things and throwing pennies at him.
And then later the following year when Yngwie was in his own band Rising Force, I made fake backstage passes for his show at the Hollywood Palladium. I went up into the balcony backstage and sat down at a table with Spacey T from Sound Barrier. He said hello and was very nice. Next I notice DLR walking over to sit down at the table next to us. I didn’t know yet that VH had broken up. After a few minutes I turned towards him and said “Is Eddie coming tonight?” Roth gave me one of the meanest dirty looks I had ever seen. The highlight of the night was when I talked to Tommy Aldridge & Rudy Sarzo about a new band they were forming with Kurt James called Driver. They were extremely friendly and signed autographs for me.
yeah and here's the funny part ...someone thought that Vai was less than Yngvie ????to say that one of these two is better than the other is insanity... sorry is there a chart is there a point system?
I was the front of house engineer for the Newport Music Hall in Columbus OH during the late 90s. I got to work with many great bands and artists before I even started touring as an engineer. Over the years, I have worked shows and /or mixed for a variety of "guitar heroes" in about every known genre ranging from Blackmore and DimeBag, to Keb Mo and Robert Randolf, to Buddy Guy and Jorma Kaukonen, to John Mayer and Derek Trucks, etc etc. All immensely talented artists to be sure ... but Vai is something different. Vai played the venue and was so gracious to everyone, he is literally one of the nicest and most appreciative rock stars in existence. When his bus arrived, there were 20 odd kids probably aged between 12 and 25 waiting in the alley behind the venue, hoping to get a glimpse of him as he walked to his sound check. A few had guitars, presumably hoping to get them signed. When he got off his bus and saw them, he invited them all into the venue to watch his soundcheck against the protestations of the security personnel. He and his band checked for about an hour or so, literally just playing some of the most amazing technically impossible things imaginable. Occasionally between burning the frets off his guitar, Vai would get on the mic and ask his audience of guitar loving kids "does it sound ok?" They were ecstatic to be acknowledged and would gleefully shout their approval at him holding a communal thumbs up as high as they could. Afterward, he got off stage and sat with them, answering their questions. About 30 minutes later he brought them all up on stage to check out his rig and show them things on the guitar, (he even let a few kids brave enough, play his guitar and rig) and then he made sure each of them had a ticket for that evening. I'll never forget a little kid probably 14 or so with a blue squier strat that was so star struck and shy, he could not get a word in to Vai because of the enthusiasm of the others. Vai noticed the kid, put his hand on his shoulder and kind of shepherded him onto the stage at the front of the pack. The venue's monitor engineer and I were standing at the side of the stage behind the monitors, Vai approached and asked if we had a sharpie, he then signed the kid's guitar first, and then signed the others. You have never seen a smile so big as was on that little kid's face. The monitor engineer whispered to me "that's class". And yeah - it most certainly was. Via would chat with anyone at the venue that afternoon as well. It didn't matter if you were the promoter, a stage hand, or a bar back - Steve Vai greeted you with a smile, made time for you, and treated you with kindness. I wouldn't care if Vai only played bar chords ... to me, the guy is leagues above most of the goofs in the rock and roll business.
My first impression of Steve Vai came from watching Crossroads back in the day (yeah it's a movie and it's called acting and I was kid, get over it). I was left thinking he was more like Jack Butler. Every interview I have seen with Steve since seems like he is a genuinely good guy. I hope he being treated okay by the music industry, because his music has made the world better than it could have been otherwise.
That’s amazing. Sadly, you have to pay $200 for a special VIP ticket to get that experience now!! (Although not just with Vai to be fair, everyone has that model these days).
@@mattevans060972 Sad but true, as the music industry evolved and earnings from physical products diminished, anything associated with an artist became monetized. During the late 90's and 2000s I worked for 15 odd years as FOH engineer and production adviser for younger bands (at the time) like O.A.R., Jacks Mannequin, The Fray, etc toured with DMB, Sheryl Crow, Train, John Mayer, Pharrell Williams, Maroon 5, The Roots etc. Mixed too many artists to name (or even remember) really. They were very wild times, but it was a bit disheartening watching the transition as a new breed of younger management entered the business - one born from accounting rather than field experience. Attitudes and the culture of the business changed ... but back to Vai. Though I only spoke to him briefly, watching his interactions throughout the day - that was my impression of him; that the guy loved music so passionately that he just wanted to share, and support any enthusiasm he found around him for music in general. He reminded me of a very kindly and inquisitive college professor who wanted to encourage people. He was a "genuinely good dude" - most of the other music folks I encountered during that time in my life ... not so much.
Every aspect of EVH's playing was a game changer not just his lead. His rhythm playing often gets overlooked but it's astonishing. Also, his playing was creative, quirky and unpredictable. Malmsteen's rhythm playing is fairly pedestrian and his lead, as amazing as it is, can be a little predictable. I think it's laughable the idea the EVH started playing keyboard because he was intimidated by Malmsteen.
these are all great players, but none are more influential than EVH, and none have Eddy's tone, which was consistent on the first 6 albums. Vai and Yngvie are unbelievable talents, but they didn't create a sound and a style that all tried to duplicate. Vai is great, but I preferred the tone and style of Jon Sykes from Whitesnake...Vai did not capture the emotion that Jon did. And Malmsteen is an awesome player, but the songs were not that good. The band "Van Halen"created 6 of the best albums of my lifetime. Every song, a classic (except "Jump"imo) Yngvie and Via are great, but Eddie is legend, and I still miss him and his presence on Earth...RIP EVH, still sad you are gone
Blackmore doesn't know what the hell he's talking about. EVH's first instrument was piano, and wanted to play keyboards in Van Halen for a while before 1984 but DLR discouraged him from doing so.
@@mikebuchanan7610 I don’t know how you come to that conclusion. EVH was more original, more creative, wrote better songs, was rhythmically more complex.
It would be too restrictive for Yngwie. Five second guitar solo in a commercial song for someone who is influenced by classical music and violin? Doesn't work.
I was there at the De Anza theater in Riverside. You are absolutely correct that no one had any idea that Yngwie wouldn’t be there. But the crowd was very disrespectful to Steve Vai and the band only played 4 or 5 songs. It’s a shame because Vai crushed it but the audience just wasn’t having it. Lots of people throwing ice at him out of their cups. (No liquor license, thank god) but they opened with Jet to Jet and Vai nailed it!! My buddies and I were anxious to hear him but it was a rough crowd.
...Yes indeed! Randy Rhoads!!! Was just getting into his prime before his sad death. Love the two guitar solos in Mr. Crowley. Was just the tip of the iceberg with the greatness that was yet to be played by Randy. Think I will go watch that Ozzy video again.
@@AlexZander688 I am so glad to hear 2 comments about the greatness of Randy Rhoads. One of my greatest regrets in life is not seeing Randy live before he died. I saw so many guitarists in their prime but not Randy. He could play any style on guitar . He was a true master of the instrument. In my opinion Randy could emulate or duplicate any of the other guitarists . But their is no way anyone could emulate or duplicate his ability on guitar. Damn I wish he would have lived longer.
@@mrsmokeydog7830 word was, (from I believe his sister) that Randy wanted "out" of Ozzy after Diary, he wanted out of the rock n roll world and really wanted to study and play classical guitar which if true and did happen could have been as devistating for his fans as his death
I'm not sure what you all see in Yngwie. Clearly, he is extremely masterful at guitar. However... His licks are boring, his melodies don't impress me, and his music is repetitive. I'd rather listen to a sloppy guitarist belt out catchy, memorable licks with ham-fists.
Here's what Slash and Steve Vai said about Yngwie. Slash: Yngwie literally blew my mind when he came on the LA music scene in the early 80's. the fastest & most articulate, fluid, melodic, classical based rock guitarist I'd ever heard. Still the best at what he does all these years later. Steve Vai: When Yngwie Malmsteen hit the scene in the early 80's it was as if a monolith appeared. He was playing electric rock guitar in a way that seemed completely unearthly and had to be seen to be believed. His tone was pristine and powerful, his vibrato, intonation and control was stunning, His harmonic and melodic sensibilities were unique, his emotional investment in his melodies was captivating, and his sheer speed and technical command of the instrument was utterly breathtaking to the point of frightening for some. He absolutely set a standard of virtuosity on the instrument that has yet to be matched. He was a breath of visceral fresh air that inspired the movement of a whole new subculture of music. He was always unequivocally and unquestionably dedicated to his passions and delivered without any excuses. And since then, the bastard has just been getting better!"
Oh man, I remember seeing Yngwie with Billy Sheehan Talas as well! Was an incredible show in a tiny venue. Saw Yngwie shortly after that opening for AC/DC
I hate hearing people compare these 3 Guitar Gods. They’re Not Athletes. They’re artists. All created amazing things in the industry as well as the world of music.
You're wrong. Guitarist have to have the endurance of an athlete to perform and tour nightly in front of live audiences, just like pro athletes go on the road
@@davidbuswa9425 absolutely the truth, 1 hour and 50 mins shows are grueling night after night and state to state, But to compare talent levels such as artistic creativity, plays NO role in someone being a better than the other.
But, at the end of the day it's about record sales, future copyright royalties, value of their song catalog that they will sell for multi millions for, once they have retired from the Music Industry. The Van Halen Brothers' offspring will never have to work another day in their life while Yngwie's future children will be driving Uber or Door Dash to eek out a living cursing that their patriarch wasn't good enough to write ONE hit record.@@droppinlikefliesBand
Yngwie's music didn't get real commercial success because it was rather for guitar players than for the masses. But he did write beautiful songs and music.
People are stupid because they just think Yngwie is a noodler who never released a commercially successful album. He's done so on multiple occasions. He's also the fourth pillar of power metal. Listen to everything from marching out onward. He helped create the foundation for modern power metal. He had Jens Johanson on keyboards who's arguably the greatest metal keyboardist of all time and him and Yngwie would do solos back-and-forth during songs all the time. The opening track from the album Odyssey, called rising force, is a full-blown display of that. At the end of the day, Eddie Van Halen is the goat. Period. I mean there's everything before Eddie Van Halen and then there's everything after Eddie Van Halen. But let's not act like Yngwie is some pretentious version of Richie Blackmore. You don't have an over 40 year career in the music industry, continuously tour, and be recognized in pop culture through a video game called guitar hero who had an award called the Yngwie Malmsteen speed award if you're not actually a good songwriter. And Yngwie has the Albums to back it up. The seventh sign debuted number one in Japan in 1994 over the massive Mariah Carey album fantasy. Anybody who was there at the time fantasy was released, knows that record was huge. So it's only in the 90s in America specifically that his kind of music was Ignored. Worldwide heavy metal was doing just fine. And that's why people have that misperception of Yngwie a one trick pony.
@@Telefunk006yngwie is probably the greatest guitarist of all time for real coming from a fellow guitarist that used to say the same sht about him go and actually listen to his music… promise you will say otherwise and if not you just don’t know what a great guitarist is…
You missed on 2 that REALLY are unique and literally changed everyone’s views on the instrument. Of course, i’m talking about lil wayne and steven seagal. 😂🎉
Regardless of your opinion of YJM's attitude and personality, nobody can deny his impact on rock music. He will always be the musician that forever changed the way the electric guitar was played, inspiring legions of guitarists around the world to practice and discover the harmonic minor scale, Phrygian Dominant mode, diminished 7 arpeggios, the works of Paganini and JS Bach. The first guitarist to have a signature model from Fender. Making the cover of Time Magazine. Not bad for a wild child, seemingly doomed-to-failure truant from Sweden, eh?
EVH will always be remembered not only for his guitar playing but also his songwriting and personality and style. All three were and are great guitarists but EVH was the most influential and memorable. ❤
Three very different styles, though Vai, while playing with David Lee Roth, did play a lot of Eddie-isms from time to time. I feel like Eddie is on one side, Yngwie is on the other, and Vai is in the middle. Yngwie sounds nothing like Eddie. Eddie sounds nothing like Yngwie. And Vai kinda crosses over both of them, while adding his own Vai-isms. Yngwie is impressive. I can’t play like that. Vai started out hot and is now very ethereal. For me, Eddie is the best all around. From playing to songwriting to being creative, he had all the bases covered.
When Yngwie played our venue, i got him to sign my Steeler record. that album blew us the F up when it creeped out back then. not many east coasters knew about it for a lil while. hes a pretty cool guy when he dials back the RPMs away from the stage
@@garyrouleau4676 us too, but then it turned out the drummer i worked for, joined a NYC band that i think Rik Fox had quit to move to LA or something. like that.
Yeah the keyboards comment by Blackmoor was just sour grapes lol! It was wishful thinking because Eddie made him obsolete overnight and he wanted to see the same happen to him by a hotshot. Eddie played the keyboards to expand his writing and boy did he. Van Hagar didn't Rick as hard but the sophistication of the songwriting just went supernova compared to DLR VH.
Yngwie was and is very talented. The thing is, he's essentially the first violin, which is a difficult thing to build a band around. Edward was really a lot of different instruments when playing guitar. I'd say he was usually the saxophone player, but sometimes he's playing cello, trumpet, clarinet, keys, drums, and using the guitar to imitate horses, dogs, elephants, whale song, etc. It's a lot easier to write songs and build a band around versatility like that. Ed would have had trouble playing a lot of Yngwie's material, but Yngwie probably would not sound great playing songs like "I'm the One", "Sinner's Swing", or "Hang 'em High". Those songs work on Ed time, they won't sound good if you can't feel your way through the rhythm of them. Yngwie has a lot of classical training, and his timing is very straight.
Seems you didn't actually listen to Yngwie all that much. He seriously has endlessly better songs and compositions than Van Halen ever did, but the EVH bank was a power house. That's what made the difference.
Wonder why VH sold over 78 MILLION MORE RECORDS more than Yngwie? I am an Yngwie fan but I'm not delusional. I've seen both these guys in concert over 5 times each. It's not even close. I always said that seeing Van Halen come out to start a show was the equivalent to going to a drag race and seeing the Top Fuel cars start up.
@@poulwinther Show me in my original comment where I said one was better than the other one. EVH's songs are more easily written and more accessible to a wider audience.
They are being humble. Not literal. EVH is not jealous of Malm, nor is Steve. I love all three and have every album they have ever put out. Steve saying somebody else plays fast is humble on his part. And nobody makes EVH shift to keyboard lol.
Eddie Van Halen is a household name. That's the true mark of celebrity status. He earned it. Meanwhile, it's remarkable how many people have never heard of Yngwie Malmsteen -- including dedicated metalheads.
No he’s not. Only boomers and people onto rock know who EVH is. Furthermore, being a celebrity is a negative-you lose by having it. Nobody listens to Bach besides nerds, that doesn’t mean DJ Khaled is a superior musician (I guess it does with your lolgic)
I saw Talas open for Malmsteen at The Channel in Boston in 1984/85. At one point of Yngwie's set. Billy joined him on stage and traded instruments. I've seen Talas many times. Always great.
Yngwie doesn’t have the song writing chops like Eddie. EVH wasn’t just flash and his rhythm playing is very underrated. What an idiotic comment by Blackmore.
Not only that but Eddie played piano way before he played guitar. A lot of people don't know it but Eddie was a concert pianist when he was young. His mom use to take Eddie and Alex down to Long Beach, CA from Pasadena to study piano with Stasys Kalvaitis. My friend bought Mr. Kalvaitis's house.
@@BeachJazzMusic That's awesome. Love that area. Went to Newport Beach recently. Right, not only was EVH a concert pianist but the keys and synthesizers was heavily used in that 80's time period before 1984 came out.
@@holland736 Not from what I read and you don't need to know anything about music theory to be a classical concert anything, in fact all of the people I went to school with who played concerts didn't know anything about music theory. They just sight read really well.
Everything this guy is saying is true. Yngwie sent us guitar players back to the woodshed, perplexed, angry and frustrated trying to learn his stuff. Dude was in fact the game changer post EVH.
I thought Jason Becker was on Top also with Cacophony back in the day. Stevie Vai was on a different level with Little Green Men. Both those guys were awesome in the 80's. DAVE used Both of them on his solo stuff. If I'm wrong please inform me. Maybe I missed something. 🤔
Can you imagine the clash of egos between DLR and YJM? That combo wouldn't have lasted long. As for Eddie feeling intimidated and switching to keyboards.... LO-f_cking-L. Eddie used keys before Yngwie was a thought in anyone's mind. Yngwie is sort of a one trick pony. It's all about speed with him. Sure it was great when his first solo album debuted. It was new and nobody else was playing that fast. His second album sounded the same to me. I bought his third for the hell of it and it confirmed my belief that the first 3 albums sounded the same after awhile. I liked when he played slower, melodic stuff. But then it just kicks back into high gear and he's speeding away on the fretboard. Look how he screwed up the jam on the G3 tour he was on. Satch and Via are playing to the rhythm of a slow tempo song. Their solos fit. Then Yngwie comes in and plays super fast. It just didn't fit the song. But I bet all he was thinking was "These guys are too slow. I'll show them how it's done."
I think everyone is a game changer... what would Yngwie be without Blackmore... what would Eddie be without Clapton... and what would Hendrix be without Jeff Beck...? I think as a person and musician you are always influenced... and under influence something new can emerge... for some more and for others less... but the fact is that Eddie Jimi and Yngwie and their role models and many others ... have enormous talent and we are happy to enjoy their music and concerts...
For me the list of rock guitar innovators is Jimi -> Jimmy -> Ritchie -> Eddie -> Randy -> Yngwie -> Stevie Vai but of course there are Clapton, Jeff Beck and Gary Moore and other great players. But the three game changers who really made other players feel threatened were Jimi, Eddie and Yngwie. They turned the guitar world upside down and put the rock guitar playing on the map.
Yngwie was a game changer.....but only in guitar circles. Agree with it or not.....sales and popularity dictate success. I saw Yngwie once, I think opening for AC/DC. Is was a long solo for a show. If that is your cup of tea....so be it. Most would prefer simple but very catchy and powerful hooks and riffs that grabs you and takes you by the throat. EVH did that. Page did that. Rhodes did that, who is the closest thing to Yngwie in my mind, due to both doing classical shredding. So Yngwie may win accolades from his peers and industry. But (with all due respect)....so what.
While many people think of Hendrix as one of the all time great guitar players they overlook the fact he was also a prolific song writer that captured the spirit of his era ..Without the likes of purple haze, foxy lady voodoo child etc he would have been more like..with all due respect lol a Jeff Beck figure ..a highly respected musician but without the millions of record sales 🎸
@@CareySullivan-cu3fw Yngwie did write some great songs and music. For example, 'Heaven Tonight', 'You don't remember I'll never forget', 'Making Love', 'Bedroom Eyes'. The album 'Magnum Opus' is just really beautiful. Lots of great songs and music.
It wasn’t that Vai stuck around, but that DLR and/or Billy Sheehan reached out to Yngwie first. Rising Force and Talas had toured together the previous year, so Yngwie and Billy had gotten to know one another quite well. Billy was the first one a Roth hired and the objective was to create the most outrageously talented band out there. At the time the guitar world was very much abuzz about Yngwie, who was clearly the rising star of the day. That does not diminish the talent of Vai at the time, he simply wasn’t as well known, having been a sideman for Zappa, and been the replacement for Yngwie in Alcatrazz. Plenty of musicians were aware of Vai, but not the listening public. I know some people doubt that, but most of them either aren’t old enough to have lived through that period, or are viewing the situation through the prism of the present. For those who have doubts that Yngwie was the better known entity at the time, just look up magazine covers from Guitar Player, Guitar World, and Guitar for the Practicing Musician in the mid-1980s and the discographies of Malmsteen and Vai, and it will be clear that there is about a two-year gap between when Yngwie is getting press and recording widely distributed albums versus Vai’s career taking off with Alcatrazz and his appearance in the movie, “Crossroads”. Even then, Vai didn’t really get major attention until DLR’s first video for the single, “Yankee Rose”. Yes, he had recorded with Zappa, and put out his first solo effort, “Flex-able”, but both were only circulated among select audiences (Zappa diehards, and guitar fans). On a side note, I wonder how things would have played out with Roth had Yngwie joined the band and then had his near-fatal car accident??? I always liked Roth, but have been profoundly disappointed with how he seemed to just move on and not look back when Jason Becker got ill-Even Eddie took time to go meet Jason and spend some time with him. DLR should be ashamed of himself…But, then again, shame was one quality he never seemed to possess.
I believe Steve Vai got his real recognition as a guitarist with his solo work "Passion and Warfare". That album is truly amazing!! And it was released on May 22, 1990. Of course his work with DLR and Whitesnake is brilliant as well!
@@karsguitarchannel6088 I would say P&W definitely took him to another level, especially among guitarists. The Roth gig is what put him on the map with the public at-large. I think that also helped drive buzz about his appearance in the movie, “Crossroads”, as the Devil’s guitarist, Jack Butler, which came out earlier in 1986, as it connected his movie a character with an actual musician. None of the above should suggest that Vai was unknown prior to that time, only that he wasn’t as widely known as Malmsteen, which is why there possibly is something to the story that Yngwie may have been approached first. And that’s not a comment on who is (or more appropriately, was) better. Roth simply was seeking to form a supergroup to counter some of the mud that was being slung his way by Eddie and Alex. He even made a video to introduce the band (after Vai and Greg Bissonette had joined), and shoot down the allegations and rumors coming from the VH camp. The bottom line to my support for the Yngwie being the first call story is that Roth was trying to assemble a group that was as much a visual spectacle as a musical one, therefore it would have made sense to go after the guitarist who had the most notoriety at the time as the next big time six-stringer, and that was Yngwie (by press and audience buzz) who had been ascending (from late-1983 to 1985), not Vai. Sheehan definitely knew both guitarists, probably Yngwie more immediately from their recent tour, but Vai, at least indirectly as a Zappa fan, so his recommendations would have carried some weight with David Lee. Then, there was the interview in (I am still pretty sure, though not positive) BAM around that time where Yngwie was asked about it, and he stated that he had been approached, and found the idea of working with Billy exciting, but at that point (probably late-1985) he already has two solo albums out following his work in Alcatrazz, and he felt he needed to strike while the iron was hot and continue going his own way. I also think that there was acknowledgement, by either Vai or Roth, on the matter later on. Regardless, I would say, as in most such cases, that things turned out the way they were meant to for all concerned, and we, as an audience (guitarists or not) are better off for it.
I read an article in Guitar Player for the practice musician, where EVH said that Malmsteen sounded like a typewriter and he preferred Angus Young. I'll never forget reading that.
Eddie jealous of Yngwie??? Hardly. Eddie married a Hollywood star, played in stadiums, had hit records. Yngwie was a perennial opening act that played in dive bars. What was Eddie to be jealous of???@@whataboutrob442
I read an EVH interview in which he was asked about Yngwie, and he made a very Eddie-like compliment, saying that he had heard him (YJM), and was like, "Whoa! That guy's playing some fuckin' shit!"--That's about the best review you could get from King Edward in the late-1980s! The typewriter comment that I read was from an Angus Young interview.
Started playing in 84, was a massive VH fan before that. Yngwie’s Rising Force dropped and it did change the face of guitar playing. Both are obviously special talents and both did so many original things by simply thinking outside the box. Miss Ed, the best friend I never met, but often I turn to YM to recharge my love for 80s shred. Long live the legend of EVH and I pray YM keeps shredding! Play loud ya Sweed!
Eddie revolutionized rock guitar playing like Hendrix and Berry did. Yngwie is fast as lightning, never cared for his songs. Vai is amazing he is a mix of both of them sort of and his own Vai signature sounds and style, Kudos to all three they are legends. I love Vai's work on Eat'em and Smile, and on P.I.L.'s Album. Vanhalen's first six albums are a treasure to me.
One comment stood out, EVH did not start playing keyboards to stay relevant, he had already done and the cradle will rock 1980 and Sunday afternoon in the park 1981 Other than that, super bomb.
Yes, he will always be relevant. The guy isn't even alive and he's still relevant. I doubt he ever felt like he was in competition with anyone but himself. I don't know the guy so I could be wrong
I was there, in Riverside. They boo'd Vai, and threw cups. Vai was phenomenal. Hellion opened up. Great memories! It was a small movie theatre. I also saw RATTT there just before they broke. Megadeth played there too. Those were the days 😁
As a young guitar player in LA in the 80’s, Yngwie - though technically very proficient, he had zero swagger in his playing. To me, except for the notes, everything sounded the same. Cool, but no where near as cool as what Ed did. Steve Vai has swagger and a blistering sense of execution. Same with Satriani. I like Yngwie, but took nothing from him for my playing.
The first I saw and heard Vai play was that live video of Alcatraz's Jet to Jet. We were at a store in the east Village NYC called Only Rock N Roll, mid 80's. My friends and I, high schoolers, were Malmsteen fans and thought Alcatraz was DONE when yngwie left because no one could cover his solos. Steve frickin' WALKED through the solo and all our jaws dropped. We all learned who Mr. Vai was that day....and he only continued to get more popular after that, joining David Lee Roth in 85' and playing in the movie Crossroads came out in 86'.
YM is one of those guitarists that are both overrated and underrated AND amazing at the same time. His fans thinks he walks on water, his detractors write him off at a guitar noodler, but in reality, his is a phenomenal guitarist who mainly sticks within 1 genre of music....and has an ego the size of Sweden.
Love him or hate him, Vai always bought his own unique playing & voice to every band he played with. No one like him before or since. The only other player beside Malmsteen or Vai that blew away the guitar community was, by no coincidence David Lee Roth's next guitar player of choice - Jason Becker.
Good video but I read an article once before on Eddie Van Halen who is my guitar hero that he said yngwie malenstein's guitar playing is like an orchestra playing. I remember him saying it was just repetition over and over and over.
I’m a big Yngwie fan, Steve Vai shares the credit as a game changer with Yngwie. Together, both go together in parallel. Steve doesn’t play like EVH, and he stands his own like Yngwie. Eddie is the last sole guitar hero. Malmsteen/Vai era is a parallel positive energy together.
Yngwie is great but he is just about all neo-classical. EVH had his own very individualistic guitar playing style like no other . I'm glad Yngwie didn't join DLR because it could have ruined Yngwies solo career which gave us several great albums.
I have read, and heard more than a few interviews with each of them. And in al of them, both guys have given nothing but props to each other. In fact in each of their guitar collections, each has a signature nof each others guitar, given by each other, to each other. they both love the others works. Just saying.
You could say that Eddie van Halen was the next step in the evolution of guitar playing like Clapton, Page, those kind of bluesy players where Malmsteen was the next step in the evolution in playing like Blackmore, Roth, those kid of players. Steve Vai is a category on his own.
The game changers of Rock-n-Roll are Chuck Berry, Jimmy Hendrix, & Eddie Van Halen. Not only did theses three completely change how everyone played forever afterwards, but everyone knows their large catalogs of hits to this day. Yngwie is technically phenomenal and advanced neo-classical that Blackmore & even Randy Rhodes had begun, but outside of guitar players no one knew who Yngwie was back in the day as well as now. He is absolutely phenomenal but part of a sub genre and doesn’t have hits. Maybe had he taken the David gig that would have been different.
ive been playing guitar for 45 years I cant name one song by Vai and can only name one song by Yngwie an ABBA cover because I love abba and Yngwie did a great job on it
No disrespect to Yngwie, the guy was light years ahead of everyone at shredding at the time. But Rhoads brought a feeling and passion to metal that you can hear it in every note, his 2 albums with Ozzy changed the world. If Yngwie ended up Dave's guitar player, we wouldn't have got 'Good Times', and that would be a crime... IMHO... (How many guitar players does it take to screw in a light bulb? Five. One to screw it in, and four to go 'I could do that'.)
Yngwie and EvH two unbelievably technically gifted players..... however, Steve Vai is far more interesting songwriter...... Steve made that DLR debut into one of the coolest Glam Metal albums ever
Amazing reading through the comments how many people just dont " get" YJM or his playing. Old YJM was incredible. The phrasing is so on point it gives me goose bumps when i listen to it. Not many acts can put out back to back albums that are good. Yngwie was doing it right up to the 90's..after that hit or miss but still some great songs.last 10+ years though...yeah, the formula has gotten old.
So true!!...Live Sentence (even though he re-recorded most of it in studio) is some of the greatest guitar playing ever recorded...ever! Not to mention his stage presence at that time, what a showman!
Music should come from the heart, not the mouth. Real musicians encourage one another (like a good family), regardless of where you are at and what you are into. If you are a real musician (at any level), show the world your heart, and make it a better place for all. Peace to your house.
Saw Yngwie Malmsteen open for Triumph in 1987... Malmsteen ran up and down the fretboard like a angry bee for 35 minutes... Rik Emmett decimated him with his opening chord...
I like Rik's vocals, but he's not even in the same ball park as Yngwie when it comes to guitar. Saw him on Much Music once giving examples of how other guitarists play. He wouldn't even attempt Yngwie. Most likely because he can't.
Didn't have to to because Yngwie never had a hit song that was recognizable. Rik had broken down the playing style of Yngwie in his Guitar Player Magazine column he wrote in the mid to lat 80's.@@mikebuchanan7610
Yngwie Malmsteen is a great guitar player! Steve Vai is Phenomenal guitar player! Eddie Van Halen is a legend! He brought a revolution. What Eddie Van Halen brought to the world is unbeatable! Its still Rolling!
They is a D I met him three or four times in the mid 80s and every single time this guy thought he was the best thing and sliced bread. Anyhow, he’s a wonderful guitar player, and those words were really hard for me to say because he’s such a D.
oh man Talas, now there is a band i have not heard in years, i had a live record from them back in the day that was absolutely killer, the live rendition of King of the World was so badass!
Eddie didn't have to compete with anybody. His legend was set after Eruption and then just got stronger with each release. Malm is a great player, but, if he had been in VH instead of Ed we wouldn't be still talking abt VH. They wouldn't have sold millions of albums, had #1 albums or singles, etc. Want proof? Ask a stranger who EVH is, they know. Now ask who Malmsteen is, most don't know who he is. Eddie is, and forever will be, the King. 👑🎸
Of course i agree with the coments....but...bare in mind that Randy Rhoads is still as influential as Yngwie, Eddie, Vai and we only have two albums ...Diary and Blizard...thousands of guys on youtube cover Randy's songs...and yes i am very influenced by Malmsteen... which after many years, led me to an no exit road....
@andrewharper1609Steve Vai didn’t write hit songs as well as never heard before culture moving guitar playing tho. SRV is great but basically Hendrix/ Clapton. No knock to SRV. Slash stands out cuz he had his own vibe and wrote hit songs
@@TheVirus-pr8zwu need perspective. When Hendrix played the way he did and looked the way he did it was like an alien came to earth. NOBODY was like him. U need perspective
I've seen all three live. Steve & Yngwie are great, but they were never as great as Eddie. It's not always about how fast you can play or how many notes you can cram into a song. I never tired of hearing Ed play. Ed just had a way of phrasing his music that all others lacked. The hair on my arms and neck still stand up when I hear a Van Halen song come on. RIP to the King, Edward Van Halen!
Yngwie was fast and he had style; but Eddie had style and he was fast. I don't believe Eddie played keyboards to stay relevant because of Yngvie. Kind of silly.
Hey folks , check out the first concert Steve Vai played 🎸 with Alcatrazz , you can hear some people in the audience shouting 'Where's Yngwie?' 'I want my money back!' - ruclips.net/video/HX8LzPc7aLg/видео.htmlsi=u6onXyvSdrzktYmn
That was me. I was 16 years old working at McDonald’s in Santa Ana for $3.35 an hour. I was upset about having driven to Riverside in my VW bug paying to see someone I hadn’t heard of before. There were people saying a lot worse things and throwing pennies at him.
And then later the following year when Yngwie was in his own band Rising Force, I made fake backstage passes for his show at the Hollywood Palladium. I went up into the balcony backstage and sat down at a table with Spacey T from Sound Barrier. He said hello and was very nice. Next I notice DLR walking over to sit down at the table next to us. I didn’t know yet that VH had broken up. After a few minutes I turned towards him and said “Is Eddie coming tonight?” Roth gave me one of the meanest dirty looks I had ever seen. The highlight of the night was when I talked to Tommy Aldridge & Rudy Sarzo about a new band they were forming with Kurt James called Driver. They were extremely friendly and signed autographs for me.
haha, glad u posted that, saved me the trouble. So funny when a guy yells "you suckkkk" lol
Amazing that all these years later I get to hear this audio from the show that I attended. Sometimes the internet is beautiful 😁
yeah and here's the funny part ...someone thought that Vai was less than Yngvie ????to say that one of these two is better than the other is insanity... sorry is there a chart is there a point system?
I was the front of house engineer for the Newport Music Hall in Columbus OH during the late 90s. I got to work with many great bands and artists before I even started touring as an engineer. Over the years, I have worked shows and /or mixed for a variety of "guitar heroes" in about every known genre ranging from Blackmore and DimeBag, to Keb Mo and Robert Randolf, to Buddy Guy and Jorma Kaukonen, to John Mayer and Derek Trucks, etc etc. All immensely talented artists to be sure ... but Vai is something different. Vai played the venue and was so gracious to everyone, he is literally one of the nicest and most appreciative rock stars in existence.
When his bus arrived, there were 20 odd kids probably aged between 12 and 25 waiting in the alley behind the venue, hoping to get a glimpse of him as he walked to his sound check. A few had guitars, presumably hoping to get them signed. When he got off his bus and saw them, he invited them all into the venue to watch his soundcheck against the protestations of the security personnel. He and his band checked for about an hour or so, literally just playing some of the most amazing technically impossible things imaginable. Occasionally between burning the frets off his guitar, Vai would get on the mic and ask his audience of guitar loving kids "does it sound ok?" They were ecstatic to be acknowledged and would gleefully shout their approval at him holding a communal thumbs up as high as they could.
Afterward, he got off stage and sat with them, answering their questions. About 30 minutes later he brought them all up on stage to check out his rig and show them things on the guitar, (he even let a few kids brave enough, play his guitar and rig) and then he made sure each of them had a ticket for that evening. I'll never forget a little kid probably 14 or so with a blue squier strat that was so star struck and shy, he could not get a word in to Vai because of the enthusiasm of the others. Vai noticed the kid, put his hand on his shoulder and kind of shepherded him onto the stage at the front of the pack. The venue's monitor engineer and I were standing at the side of the stage behind the monitors, Vai approached and asked if we had a sharpie, he then signed the kid's guitar first, and then signed the others. You have never seen a smile so big as was on that little kid's face. The monitor engineer whispered to me "that's class". And yeah - it most certainly was. Via would chat with anyone at the venue that afternoon as well. It didn't matter if you were the promoter, a stage hand, or a bar back - Steve Vai greeted you with a smile, made time for you, and treated you with kindness. I wouldn't care if Vai only played bar chords ... to me, the guy is leagues above most of the goofs in the rock and roll business.
My first impression of Steve Vai came from watching Crossroads back in the day (yeah it's a movie and it's called acting and I was kid, get over it). I was left thinking he was more like Jack Butler. Every interview I have seen with Steve since seems like he is a genuinely good guy. I hope he being treated okay by the music industry, because his music has made the world better than it could have been otherwise.
That’s amazing. Sadly, you have to pay $200 for a special VIP ticket to get that experience now!! (Although not just with Vai to be fair, everyone has that model these days).
@@mattevans060972 Sad but true, as the music industry evolved and earnings from physical products diminished, anything associated with an artist became monetized. During the late 90's and 2000s I worked for 15 odd years as FOH engineer and production adviser for younger bands (at the time) like O.A.R., Jacks Mannequin, The Fray, etc toured with DMB, Sheryl Crow, Train, John Mayer, Pharrell Williams, Maroon 5, The Roots etc. Mixed too many artists to name (or even remember) really. They were very wild times, but it was a bit disheartening watching the transition as a new breed of younger management entered the business - one born from accounting rather than field experience. Attitudes and the culture of the business changed ... but back to Vai. Though I only spoke to him briefly, watching his interactions throughout the day - that was my impression of him; that the guy loved music so passionately that he just wanted to share, and support any enthusiasm he found around him for music in general. He reminded me of a very kindly and inquisitive college professor who wanted to encourage people. He was a "genuinely good dude" - most of the other music folks I encountered during that time in my life ... not so much.
Great story!
Vai does seem like a super nice guy and pretty darn humble considering how well respected he is as a guitar player.
Every aspect of EVH's playing was a game changer not just his lead. His rhythm playing often gets overlooked but it's astonishing. Also, his playing was creative, quirky and unpredictable. Malmsteen's rhythm playing is fairly pedestrian and his lead, as amazing as it is, can be a little predictable. I think it's laughable the idea the EVH started playing keyboard because he was intimidated by Malmsteen.
these are all great players, but none are more influential than EVH, and none have Eddy's tone, which was consistent on the first 6 albums. Vai and Yngvie are unbelievable talents, but they didn't create a sound and a style that all tried to duplicate. Vai is great, but I preferred the tone and style of Jon Sykes from Whitesnake...Vai did not capture the emotion that Jon did. And Malmsteen is an awesome player, but the songs were not that good. The band "Van Halen"created 6 of the best albums of my lifetime. Every song, a classic (except "Jump"imo) Yngvie and Via are great, but Eddie is legend, and I still miss him and his presence on Earth...RIP EVH, still sad you are gone
Blackmore doesn't know what the hell he's talking about. EVH's first instrument was piano, and wanted to play keyboards in Van Halen for a while before 1984 but DLR discouraged him from doing so.
Whatever the case may be, Yngwie is the better guitarist.
@@mikebuchanan7610 how so?
@@mikebuchanan7610 I don’t know how you come to that conclusion. EVH was more original, more creative, wrote better songs, was rhythmically more complex.
Everyone wants to try to group these guys together, but they're each doing their own thing. All are relevant and awesome
Zzzzzzzzzz
@@thedadyouneverhadchannel3544 take a nap🤣🤣🤣🤣
@@georgelanders4271
They’re all legends in their own way. All different.
Yup. Can't compare really.
The egos of DLR and YJM would be like 2 supernovae colliding.
Yeah it would be like having Ulrich, Hetfield and Mustain in one band, lol!
It would be too restrictive for Yngwie. Five second guitar solo in a commercial song for someone who is influenced by classical music and violin? Doesn't work.
Or two Chevy Novae.
My thoughts exactly!
Yeah right. Imagine Roth singing “I Am A Viking.”
I remember when the Steeler album came out and picked it up. Saw Yngwie Malmsteen W/Talas at the Palladium-GOOD TIMES!
I was there at the De Anza theater in Riverside. You are absolutely correct that no one had any idea that Yngwie wouldn’t be there. But the crowd was very disrespectful to Steve Vai and the band only played 4 or 5 songs. It’s a shame because Vai crushed it but the audience just wasn’t having it. Lots of people throwing ice at him out of their cups. (No liquor license, thank god) but they opened with Jet to Jet and Vai nailed it!! My buddies and I were anxious to hear him but it was a rough crowd.
Yngwie is the Maestro. I have been a fan since day one. One of my top five favorite guitarist. Randy will always be my favorite.
...Yes indeed! Randy Rhoads!!! Was just getting into his prime before his sad death. Love the two guitar solos in Mr. Crowley. Was just the tip of the iceberg with the greatness that was yet to be played by Randy. Think I will go watch that Ozzy video again.
@@AlexZander688 I am so glad to hear 2 comments about the greatness of Randy Rhoads. One of my greatest regrets in life is not seeing Randy live before he died. I saw so many guitarists in their prime but not Randy. He could play any style on guitar . He was a true master of the instrument. In my opinion Randy could emulate or duplicate any of the other guitarists . But their is no way anyone could emulate or duplicate his ability on guitar. Damn I wish he would have lived longer.
@@mrsmokeydog7830 word was, (from I believe his sister) that Randy wanted "out" of Ozzy after Diary, he wanted out of the rock n roll world and really wanted to study and play classical guitar which if true and did happen could have been as devistating for his fans as his death
I'm not sure what you all see in Yngwie. Clearly, he is extremely masterful at guitar. However...
His licks are boring, his melodies don't impress me, and his music is repetitive. I'd rather listen to a sloppy guitarist belt out catchy, memorable licks with ham-fists.
@@potato9832..... and there are guys who think all Playboy centerfolds aren't pretty, to each his own
Here's what Slash and Steve Vai said about Yngwie.
Slash: Yngwie literally blew my mind when he came on the LA music scene in the early 80's. the fastest & most articulate, fluid, melodic, classical based rock guitarist I'd ever heard. Still the best at what he does all these years later.
Steve Vai: When Yngwie Malmsteen hit the scene in the early 80's it was as if a monolith appeared. He was playing electric rock guitar in a way that seemed completely unearthly and had to be seen to be believed. His tone was pristine and powerful, his vibrato, intonation and control was stunning, His harmonic and melodic sensibilities were unique, his emotional investment in his melodies was captivating, and his sheer speed and technical command of the instrument was utterly breathtaking to the point of frightening for some.
He absolutely set a standard of virtuosity on the instrument that has yet to be matched. He was a breath of visceral fresh air that inspired the movement of a whole new subculture of music. He was always unequivocally and unquestionably dedicated to his passions and delivered without any excuses. And since then, the bastard has just been getting better!"
Kinda sweet that Vai has the most profound description of Yngwie of anyone.
It was cool to have lived through the career’s of all these guys
Indeed. Experiencing the dawn of shredd and great songwriting. We stand on their shoulders.
Oh man, I remember seeing Yngwie with Billy Sheehan Talas as well! Was an incredible show in a tiny venue. Saw Yngwie shortly after that opening for AC/DC
Sour grapes because Eddie made him sound like a dinosaur
I hate hearing people compare these 3 Guitar Gods. They’re Not Athletes. They’re artists. All created amazing things in the industry as well as the world of music.
True. You can like one or all three...Great is as great does.
You're right of course, but people will always do this kind of thing.
You're wrong. Guitarist have to have the endurance of an athlete to perform and tour nightly in front of live audiences, just like pro athletes go on the road
@@davidbuswa9425 absolutely the truth, 1 hour and 50 mins shows are grueling night after night and state to state, But to compare talent levels such as artistic creativity, plays NO role in someone being a better than the other.
But, at the end of the day it's about record sales, future copyright royalties, value of their song catalog that they will sell for multi millions for, once they have retired from the Music Industry. The Van Halen Brothers' offspring will never have to work another day in their life while Yngwie's future children will be driving Uber or Door Dash to eek out a living cursing that their patriarch wasn't good enough to write ONE hit record.@@droppinlikefliesBand
Love all 3, but IMO Eddie's rythm swing and groove towers over everyone.
by miles!
💯☝️, Eddie's tone as well. Plus he sang.
thats your opinion
And mine
No question.
Very true. Hendrix,EVH , and Yngwie Malmsteen were the foremost game changers and most influencial in Rock guitar .
You forgot Randy Rhodes. He changed the game completely.
Randy Rhoads too!
Link Wray’s instrumental track ‘Rumble’, "The record is the only instrumental single ever banned from radio in the United States.’’ Nuff sed.
Tony Iommi.
@@jamesmccormick875no😂
Totally agree on Jimi, Eddie and Yngwie being the gamechangers. Thanks! 🙏🎼🎸
Without a doubt! True!!!
@2216sammyBut if you know better and were thr you will understand Yngwie was a game.changer just never became mainstream.
Very true. Old enough to remember impact of both eddie and yngwie.
@2216sammy Rock Guitarists know. Magazine writers don't.
Yngwie's music didn't get real commercial success because it was rather for guitar players than for the masses. But he did write beautiful songs and music.
Noodling around scales. it is not interresting. thats why nowadays he is only on guitar mags for poeple that do not progress
lol @@Telefunk006
Yngvie = guitar diarrhea
People are stupid because they just think Yngwie is a noodler who never released a commercially successful album. He's done so on multiple occasions. He's also the fourth pillar of power metal. Listen to everything from marching out onward. He helped create the foundation for modern power metal. He had Jens Johanson on keyboards who's arguably the greatest metal keyboardist of all time and him and Yngwie would do solos back-and-forth during songs all the time. The opening track from the album Odyssey, called rising force, is a full-blown display of that. At the end of the day, Eddie Van Halen is the goat. Period. I mean there's everything before Eddie Van Halen and then there's everything after Eddie Van Halen. But let's not act like Yngwie is some pretentious version of Richie Blackmore. You don't have an over 40 year career in the music industry, continuously tour, and be recognized in pop culture through a video game called guitar hero who had an award called the Yngwie Malmsteen speed award if you're not actually a good songwriter. And Yngwie has the Albums to back it up. The seventh sign debuted number one in Japan in 1994 over the massive Mariah Carey album fantasy. Anybody who was there at the time fantasy was released, knows that record was huge. So it's only in the 90s in America specifically that his kind of music was Ignored. Worldwide heavy metal was doing just fine. And that's why people have that misperception of Yngwie a one trick pony.
@@Telefunk006yngwie is probably the greatest guitarist of all time for real coming from a fellow guitarist that used to say the same sht about him go and actually listen to his music… promise you will say otherwise and if not you just don’t know what a great guitarist is…
I agree with you and been saying it for decades, the three game changers of rock guitar are Hendrix, Van Halen and Malmseen :)
I'm with you.
Probably could throw Randy Rhodes in the mix too.
I agree too but in terms of genre Iommi changed the game more than either or even all put together.
You missed on 2 that REALLY are unique and literally changed everyone’s views on the instrument. Of course, i’m talking about lil wayne and steven seagal. 😂🎉
I saw a video on Facebook Steve Vai said he only see 2 guitars games changer is Hendrix and Eddie I was think how about Yngwie?
Regardless of your opinion of YJM's attitude and personality, nobody can deny his impact on rock music. He will always be the musician that forever changed the way the electric guitar was played, inspiring legions of guitarists around the world to practice and discover the harmonic minor scale, Phrygian Dominant mode, diminished 7 arpeggios, the works of Paganini and JS Bach. The first guitarist to have a signature model from Fender. Making the cover of Time Magazine. Not bad for a wild child, seemingly doomed-to-failure truant from Sweden, eh?
@2216sammy Well, he did for about 3 yrs after that he faded fast and never had the.songs or band for.the.long hall!
EVH will always be remembered not only for his guitar playing but also his songwriting and personality and style. All three were and are great guitarists but EVH was the most influential and memorable. ❤
Three very different styles, though Vai, while playing with David Lee Roth, did play a lot of Eddie-isms from time to time. I feel like Eddie is on one side, Yngwie is on the other, and Vai is in the middle. Yngwie sounds nothing like Eddie. Eddie sounds nothing like Yngwie. And Vai kinda crosses over both of them, while adding his own Vai-isms.
Yngwie is impressive. I can’t play like that. Vai started out hot and is now very ethereal.
For me, Eddie is the best all around. From playing to songwriting to being creative, he had all the bases covered.
When Yngwie played our venue, i got him to sign my Steeler record. that album blew us the F up when it creeped out back then. not many east coasters knew about it for a lil while. hes a pretty cool guy when he dials back the RPMs away from the stage
I’m one of the few east coasters that bought it when it first came out at a record store that dealt mostly with imported records.😊
@@garyrouleau4676 us too, but then it turned out the drummer i worked for, joined a NYC band that i think Rik Fox had quit to move to LA or something. like that.
It was a great time for music at that time a bunch of metal genres came out!
Met Yngwie in 1992 he was a really nice guy. Wished I had the chance meet Eddie 😢 🎸🎶🎶
Eddie threw a pick at me and it hit me in the forehead at a show in 1979, that was as close to meeting him as i could get lol.
Yeah the keyboards comment by Blackmoor was just sour grapes lol! It was wishful thinking because Eddie made him obsolete overnight and he wanted to see the same happen to him by a hotshot. Eddie played the keyboards to expand his writing and boy did he. Van Hagar didn't Rick as hard but the sophistication of the songwriting just went supernova compared to DLR VH.
Yngwie was and is very talented. The thing is, he's essentially the first violin, which is a difficult thing to build a band around.
Edward was really a lot of different instruments when playing guitar. I'd say he was usually the saxophone player, but sometimes he's playing cello, trumpet, clarinet, keys, drums, and using the guitar to imitate horses, dogs, elephants, whale song, etc. It's a lot easier to write songs and build a band around versatility like that.
Ed would have had trouble playing a lot of Yngwie's material, but Yngwie probably would not sound great playing songs like "I'm the One", "Sinner's Swing", or "Hang 'em High". Those songs work on Ed time, they won't sound good if you can't feel your way through the rhythm of them. Yngwie has a lot of classical training, and his timing is very straight.
Yeah, YM seemed more concerned about highlighting his guitar playing than writing great songs.
Well said. Ed had that swing that differentiated him from other rock guitarists. Orchestration is so important even in rock music.
Seems you didn't actually listen to Yngwie all that much. He seriously has endlessly better songs and compositions than Van Halen ever did, but the EVH bank was a power house. That's what made the difference.
Wonder why VH sold over 78 MILLION MORE RECORDS more than Yngwie? I am an Yngwie fan but I'm not delusional. I've seen both these guys in concert over 5 times each. It's not even close. I always said that seeing Van Halen come out to start a show was the equivalent to going to a drag race and seeing the Top Fuel cars start up.
@@poulwinther Show me in my original comment where I said one was better than the other one. EVH's songs are more easily written and more accessible to a wider audience.
He would not fit the style for David Lee Roth, but he's one of the greatest. If not guitar players of our time
They are being humble. Not literal. EVH is not jealous of Malm, nor is Steve. I love all three and have every album they have ever put out. Steve saying somebody else plays fast is humble on his part. And nobody makes EVH shift to keyboard lol.
Eddie Van Halen is a household name. That's the true mark of celebrity status. He earned it.
Meanwhile, it's remarkable how many people have never heard of Yngwie Malmsteen -- including dedicated metalheads.
No he’s not. Only boomers and people onto rock know who EVH is. Furthermore, being a celebrity is a negative-you lose by having it. Nobody listens to Bach besides nerds, that doesn’t mean DJ Khaled is a superior musician (I guess it does with your lolgic)
I saw Talas open for Malmsteen at The Channel in Boston in 1984/85. At one point of Yngwie's set. Billy joined him on stage and traded instruments. I've seen Talas many times. Always great.
Yngwie doesn’t have the song writing chops like Eddie. EVH wasn’t just flash and his rhythm playing is very underrated. What an idiotic comment by Blackmore.
Not only that but Eddie played piano way before he played guitar. A lot of people don't know it but Eddie was a concert pianist when he was young. His mom use to take Eddie and Alex down to Long Beach, CA from Pasadena to study piano with Stasys Kalvaitis. My friend bought Mr. Kalvaitis's house.
@@BeachJazzMusic That's awesome. Love that area. Went to Newport Beach recently. Right, not only was EVH a concert pianist but the keys and synthesizers was heavily used in that 80's time period before 1984 came out.
@@BeachJazzMusic a lot of people dont apparently understand then what a concert pianist is , EVH was not and had very little knowledge of music theory
@@holland736 Not from what I read and you don't need to know anything about music theory to be a classical concert anything, in fact all of the people I went to school with who played concerts didn't know anything about music theory. They just sight read really well.
You’re wrong. Yngwie is an excellent composer and innovator
It doesn't matter who's "better" as a guitarist. What matters is whether what they play fits the song or not, and supports the song.
Finally somebody giving Yngwie his due, he is a true original.
Everything this guy is saying is true. Yngwie sent us guitar players back to the woodshed, perplexed, angry and frustrated trying to learn his stuff. Dude was in fact the game changer post EVH.
Great content my friend keep em comin🎸👍
Many thanks, great pleasure!!!
I thought Jason Becker was on Top also with Cacophony back in the day. Stevie Vai was on a different level with Little Green Men.
Both those guys were awesome in the 80's. DAVE used Both of them on his solo stuff. If I'm wrong please inform me. Maybe I missed something.
🤔
Once you can get past just hearing the speed, ypu can appreciate the amazing touch and feel these great Guitarist have
EVH's rhythm was second to none!!! His timing was even more locked in than Mike's...
Nice work. Love these guys.
You have some great stories...inside stuff that is very informative.
Many thanks, great pleasure!!
Can you imagine the clash of egos between DLR and YJM? That combo wouldn't have lasted long.
As for Eddie feeling intimidated and switching to keyboards.... LO-f_cking-L. Eddie used keys before Yngwie was a thought in anyone's mind.
Yngwie is sort of a one trick pony. It's all about speed with him. Sure it was great when his first solo album debuted. It was new and nobody else was playing that fast. His second album sounded the same to me. I bought his third for the hell of it and it confirmed my belief that the first 3 albums sounded the same after awhile. I liked when he played slower, melodic stuff. But then it just kicks back into high gear and he's speeding away on the fretboard. Look how he screwed up the jam on the G3 tour he was on. Satch and Via are playing to the rhythm of a slow tempo song. Their solos fit. Then Yngwie comes in and plays super fast. It just didn't fit the song. But I bet all he was thinking was "These guys are too slow. I'll show them how it's done."
Yngwie's playing is not just fast but it is so accurate and disciplined as well, his picking is economy.
All great guitarists, all different.
Long live Rock and Roll!😎🤘
I think everyone is a game changer... what would Yngwie be without Blackmore... what would Eddie be without Clapton... and what would Hendrix be without Jeff Beck...?
I think as a person and musician you are always influenced... and under influence something new can emerge... for some more and for others less... but the fact is that Eddie Jimi and Yngwie and their role models and many others ... have enormous talent and we are happy to enjoy their music and concerts...
For me the list of rock guitar innovators is Jimi -> Jimmy -> Ritchie -> Eddie -> Randy -> Yngwie -> Stevie Vai but of course there are Clapton, Jeff Beck and Gary Moore and other great players. But the three game changers who really made other players feel threatened were Jimi, Eddie and Yngwie. They turned the guitar world upside down and put the rock guitar playing on the map.
@@karsguitarchannel6088 Nope, Uli Jon Roth was first, not Yigwie.
It was not Blackmore, the main influence was Uli Jon Roth from the Scorpions.
Yngwie was a game changer.....but only in guitar circles. Agree with it or not.....sales and popularity dictate success. I saw Yngwie once, I think opening for AC/DC. Is was a long solo for a show. If that is your cup of tea....so be it. Most would prefer simple but very catchy and powerful hooks and riffs that grabs you and takes you by the throat. EVH did that. Page did that. Rhodes did that, who is the closest thing to Yngwie in my mind, due to both doing classical shredding.
So Yngwie may win accolades from his peers and industry. But (with all due respect)....so what.
While many people think of Hendrix as one of the all time great guitar players they overlook the fact he was also a prolific song writer that captured the spirit of his era ..Without the likes of purple haze, foxy lady voodoo child etc he would have been more like..with all due respect lol a Jeff Beck figure ..a highly respected musician but without the millions of record sales 🎸
Hendrix and Van Halen had songs while Yngwie didn't but he was a guitar game changer but never reached the heights Hendrix and Van Halen did musicaly
@@CareySullivan-cu3fw Yngwie did write some great songs and music. For example, 'Heaven Tonight', 'You don't remember I'll never forget', 'Making Love', 'Bedroom Eyes'. The album 'Magnum Opus' is just really beautiful. Lots of great songs and music.
@@CareySullivan-cu3fw Yngwie's music didn't get real commercial success because bands like Metallica hit the scene and became huge.
I dont feel nothing Just bunch of shredding from Mr Malsteem😂
It wasn’t that Vai stuck around, but that DLR and/or Billy Sheehan reached out to Yngwie first.
Rising Force and Talas had toured together the previous year, so Yngwie and Billy had gotten to know one another quite well. Billy was the first one a Roth hired and the objective was to create the most outrageously talented band out there.
At the time the guitar world was very much abuzz about Yngwie, who was clearly the rising star of the day. That does not diminish the talent of Vai at the time, he simply wasn’t as well known, having been a sideman for Zappa, and been the replacement for Yngwie in Alcatrazz. Plenty of musicians were aware of Vai, but not the listening public.
I know some people doubt that, but most of them either aren’t old enough to have lived through that period, or are viewing the situation through the prism of the present.
For those who have doubts that Yngwie was the better known entity at the time, just look up magazine covers from Guitar Player, Guitar World, and Guitar for the Practicing Musician in the mid-1980s and the discographies of Malmsteen and Vai, and it will be clear that there is about a two-year gap between when Yngwie is getting press and recording widely distributed albums versus Vai’s career taking off with Alcatrazz and his appearance in the movie, “Crossroads”. Even then, Vai didn’t really get major attention until DLR’s first video for the single, “Yankee Rose”. Yes, he had recorded with Zappa, and put out his first solo effort, “Flex-able”, but both were only circulated among select audiences (Zappa diehards, and guitar fans).
On a side note, I wonder how things would have played out with Roth had Yngwie joined the band and then had his near-fatal car accident??? I always liked Roth, but have been profoundly disappointed with how he seemed to just move on and not look back when Jason Becker got ill-Even Eddie took time to go meet Jason and spend some time with him. DLR should be ashamed of himself…But, then again, shame was one quality he never seemed to possess.
I believe Steve Vai got his real recognition as a guitarist with his solo work "Passion and Warfare". That album is truly amazing!! And it was released on May 22, 1990. Of course his work with DLR and Whitesnake is brilliant as well!
@@karsguitarchannel6088 I would say P&W definitely took him to another level, especially among guitarists.
The Roth gig is what put him on the map with the public at-large. I think that also helped drive buzz about his appearance in the movie, “Crossroads”, as the Devil’s guitarist, Jack Butler, which came out earlier in 1986, as it connected his movie a character with an actual musician.
None of the above should suggest that Vai was unknown prior to that time, only that he wasn’t as widely known as Malmsteen, which is why there possibly is something to the story that Yngwie may have been approached first.
And that’s not a comment on who is (or more appropriately, was) better. Roth simply was seeking to form a supergroup to counter some of the mud that was being slung his way by Eddie and Alex. He even made a video to introduce the band (after Vai and Greg Bissonette had joined), and shoot down the allegations and rumors coming from the VH camp.
The bottom line to my support for the Yngwie being the first call story is that Roth was trying to assemble a group that was as much a visual spectacle as a musical one, therefore it would have made sense to go after the guitarist who had the most notoriety at the time as the next big time six-stringer, and that was Yngwie (by press and audience buzz) who had been ascending (from late-1983 to 1985), not Vai. Sheehan definitely knew both guitarists, probably Yngwie more immediately from their recent tour, but Vai, at least indirectly as a Zappa fan, so his recommendations would have carried some weight with David Lee. Then, there was the interview in (I am still pretty sure, though not positive) BAM around that time where Yngwie was asked about it, and he stated that he had been approached, and found the idea of working with Billy exciting, but at that point (probably late-1985) he already has two solo albums out following his work in Alcatrazz, and he felt he needed to strike while the iron was hot and continue going his own way.
I also think that there was acknowledgement, by either Vai or Roth, on the matter later on.
Regardless, I would say, as in most such cases, that things turned out the way they were meant to for all concerned, and we, as an audience (guitarists or not) are better off for it.
I read an article in Guitar Player for the practice musician, where EVH said that Malmsteen sounded like a typewriter and he preferred Angus Young. I'll never forget reading that.
Eddie also said that Yngwie couldn't write songs. Eddie was right. Yngwie's songs never cracked the Top 100
@davidbuswa9425
Eddie was jealous of Yngwie or he would have never said anything.
Eddie jealous of Yngwie??? Hardly. Eddie married a Hollywood star, played in stadiums, had hit records. Yngwie was a perennial opening act that played in dive bars. What was Eddie to be jealous of???@@whataboutrob442
I read an EVH interview in which he was asked about Yngwie, and he made a very Eddie-like compliment, saying that he had heard him (YJM), and was like, "Whoa! That guy's playing some fuckin' shit!"--That's about the best review you could get from King Edward in the late-1980s!
The typewriter comment that I read was from an Angus Young interview.
@vincentgarzoli3197
No, this was an EVH interview from 1986.
Started playing in 84, was a massive VH fan before that. Yngwie’s Rising Force dropped and it did change the face of guitar playing.
Both are obviously special talents and both did so many original things by simply thinking outside the box.
Miss Ed, the best friend I never met, but often I turn to YM to recharge my love for 80s shred. Long live the legend of EVH and I pray YM keeps shredding! Play loud ya Sweed!
Eddie revolutionized rock guitar playing like Hendrix and Berry did. Yngwie is fast as lightning, never cared for his songs. Vai is amazing he is a mix of both of them sort of and his own Vai signature sounds and style, Kudos to all three they are legends. I love Vai's work on Eat'em and Smile, and on P.I.L.'s Album. Vanhalen's first six albums are a treasure to me.
Love Eddie but never cared for his songs. Yngwie is so much more than fast, and almost more composer than player.
Great episode Kar & Shawn !! Cheers
Hi Keni, great to see you!! Have an awesome day!
Great piece. Really enjoyed the video a lot!!
Many thanks!
One comment stood out, EVH did not start playing keyboards to stay relevant, he had already done and the cradle will rock 1980 and Sunday afternoon in the park 1981
Other than that, super bomb.
Yes, he will always be relevant. The guy isn't even alive and he's still relevant. I doubt he ever felt like he was in competition with anyone but himself. I don't know the guy so I could be wrong
Yngwie use songs as a reason to solo...EVH wrote songs ppl wanted to hear. Again, Yngwie never wrote anything that would have him headline MSG.
Always love your channel and experience
Many thanks!!!
I cannot fathom DLR with Yngwie would have the same brashness and flare as he had with EVH and SV.
Criticism is fair of course,
for everyone.
But Yngwie turned the guitar world upside down as a very young guitarist.
I was there, in Riverside.
They boo'd Vai, and threw cups.
Vai was phenomenal.
Hellion opened up.
Great memories!
It was a small movie theatre.
I also saw RATTT there just before they broke. Megadeth played there too.
Those were the days 😁
Awesome!
They threw cups and boo'd vai smdh.
@@buckster2575 Typical non musician dumbassery
I’m watching your videos all day dude . I’d no idea about the stuff you mentioned .
What a great pleasure to hear this! Big thanks for checking out, I really appreciate it!! Have an awesome day
Interesting Rock History..
Thx Kar/Shawn. Rock On✌️
Big thanks Scott, have an awesome day!!!
sometimes, all the times, simple is better - great saying man, that should be carved into the f stone
As a young guitar player in LA in the 80’s, Yngwie - though technically very proficient, he had zero swagger in his playing. To me, except for the notes, everything sounded the same. Cool, but no where near as cool as what Ed did. Steve Vai has swagger and a blistering sense of execution. Same with Satriani. I like Yngwie, but took nothing from him for my playing.
Just silly, yngwie was the front man, evh was not, roth had much more presence. The same with vai who jumped from band to band
The first I saw and heard Vai play was that live video of Alcatraz's Jet to Jet. We were at a store in the east Village NYC called Only Rock N Roll, mid 80's. My friends and I, high schoolers, were Malmsteen fans and thought Alcatraz was DONE when yngwie left because no one could cover his solos. Steve frickin' WALKED through the solo and all our jaws dropped. We all learned who Mr. Vai was that day....and he only continued to get more popular after that, joining David Lee Roth in 85' and playing in the movie Crossroads came out in 86'.
Awesome! And I saw Steve Vai for the first time in the video clip "Fool For Your Loving" by Whitesnake. Good times
@@karsguitarchannel6088 Woah...that's kinda late my friend. You didn't see him in the video for Yankee Rose when he joined David Lee Roth?
Brilliant video. Jimi, Eddie and Yngwie...the three greatest and most influential without a shadow of a doubt
Many thanks!
The 3 ... Jimi, Eddie, Yngwie ... Well stated!
Saw Yngwie in 86 trilogy tour with Rough Cutt Opening
EVH rhythm is the most important part of the discussion. Wake up people!
YM is one of those guitarists that are both overrated and underrated AND amazing at the same time. His fans thinks he walks on water, his detractors write him off at a guitar noodler, but in reality, his is a phenomenal guitarist who mainly sticks within 1 genre of music....and has an ego the size of Sweden.
😅👍
But Yngwie's also an amazing blues player
@@karsguitarchannel6088 The fact is, Ingwie has her own style. Very few people can say that. In the end it's all a matter of taste anyway.
That's why I said mainly sticks to one genre@@karsguitarchannel6088
Love him or hate him, Vai always bought his own unique playing & voice to every band he played with. No one like him before or since. The only other player beside Malmsteen or Vai that blew away the guitar community was, by no coincidence David Lee Roth's next guitar player of choice - Jason Becker.
Good video but I read an article once before on Eddie Van Halen who is my guitar hero that he said yngwie malenstein's guitar playing is like an orchestra playing.
I remember him saying it was just repetition over and over and over.
Jimmy Page and SRV were game changers as well they had many many clones as well
Randy was and is my favorite guitarist. If only he lived 😢
I’m a big Yngwie fan, Steve Vai shares the credit as a game changer with Yngwie. Together, both go together in parallel. Steve doesn’t play like EVH, and he stands his own like Yngwie.
Eddie is the last sole guitar hero. Malmsteen/Vai era is a parallel positive energy together.
I have followed EVH, Via, and Yngwie since the early eighties.
I cannot name one song written by Yngwie.
Yngwie is great but he is just about all neo-classical.
EVH had his own very individualistic guitar playing style like no other .
I'm glad Yngwie didn't join DLR because it could have ruined Yngwies solo career which gave us several great albums.
I can't imagine Yngwie and DLR being in the same band together and it lasting more than five minutes.
Eddie wrote hit songs, none of the others mentioned did.
I have read, and heard more than a few interviews with each of them. And in al of them, both guys have given nothing but props to each other. In fact in each of their guitar collections, each has a signature nof each others guitar, given by each other, to each other. they both love the others works. Just saying.
I hope I don't feel the fuckin fury with this comment but EVH will always be the king.
Eddies & Yngwie put guitar playing on the map
Uh no…Lol. They are great but guitarist was well established on any map before that silly. Lol.
You could say that Eddie van Halen was the next step in the evolution of guitar playing like Clapton, Page, those kind of bluesy players where Malmsteen was the next step in the evolution in playing like Blackmore, Roth, those kid of players. Steve Vai is a category on his own.
The game changers of Rock-n-Roll are Chuck Berry, Jimmy Hendrix, & Eddie Van Halen. Not only did theses three completely change how everyone played forever afterwards, but everyone knows their large catalogs of hits to this day. Yngwie is technically phenomenal and advanced neo-classical that Blackmore & even Randy Rhodes had begun, but outside of guitar players no one knew who Yngwie was back in the day as well as now. He is absolutely phenomenal but part of a sub genre and doesn’t have hits. Maybe had he taken the David gig that would have been different.
ive been playing guitar for 45 years I cant name one song by Vai and can only name one song by Yngwie an ABBA cover because I love abba and Yngwie did a great job on it
No disrespect to Yngwie, the guy was light years ahead of everyone at shredding at the time. But Rhoads brought a feeling and passion to metal that you can hear it in every note, his 2 albums with Ozzy changed the world. If Yngwie ended up Dave's guitar player, we wouldn't have got 'Good Times', and that would be a crime... IMHO... (How many guitar players does it take to screw in a light bulb? Five. One to screw it in, and four to go 'I could do that'.)
Nothing has come close to surpaßsing eruption most creative solo ever but Jimi and Randy are my favorites
Yngwie and EvH two unbelievably technically gifted players..... however, Steve Vai is far more interesting songwriter...... Steve made that DLR debut into one of the coolest Glam Metal albums ever
Amazing reading through the comments how many people just dont " get" YJM or his playing. Old YJM was incredible. The phrasing is so on point it gives me goose bumps when i listen to it. Not many acts can put out back to back albums that are good. Yngwie was doing it right up to the 90's..after that hit or miss but still some great songs.last 10+ years though...yeah, the formula has gotten old.
So true!!...Live Sentence (even though he re-recorded most of it in studio) is some of the greatest guitar playing ever recorded...ever! Not to mention his stage presence at that time, what a showman!
@@tubesoupio tbh, I saw him last year, he's still a fantastic showman. But definitely back in the day he was the whole package.
Music should come from the heart, not the mouth. Real musicians encourage one another (like a good family), regardless of where you are at and what you are into.
If you are a real musician (at any level), show the world your heart, and make it a better place for all.
Peace to your house.
Saw Yngwie Malmsteen open for Triumph in 1987... Malmsteen ran up and down the fretboard like a angry bee for 35 minutes... Rik Emmett decimated him with his opening chord...
I can't stand Yngwie. 🤮
Rik Emmitt truly had something special. I still think he is overlooked, and under appreciated.
I like Rik's vocals, but he's not even in the same ball park as Yngwie when it comes to guitar. Saw him on Much Music once giving examples of how other guitarists play. He wouldn't even attempt Yngwie. Most likely because he can't.
Didn't have to to because Yngwie never had a hit song that was recognizable. Rik had broken down the playing style of Yngwie in his Guitar Player Magazine column he wrote in the mid to lat 80's.@@mikebuchanan7610
I saw show also. Fairfax VA. It was Halloween night, and Yngwie came out on stage wearing a pointed black witches hat lol
JASON BECKER TOO UNDERRATED
Yngwie is a pure genius
Yes nobody played like Yngwie before Yngwie. He's fantastic!
Yngwie Malmsteen is a great guitar player! Steve Vai is Phenomenal guitar player!
Eddie Van Halen is a legend! He brought a revolution. What Eddie Van Halen brought to the world is unbeatable!
Its still Rolling!
They is a D I met him three or four times in the mid 80s and every single time this guy thought he was the best thing and sliced bread. Anyhow, he’s a wonderful guitar player, and those words were really hard for me to say because he’s such a D.
When Roth came out with Sheehan,and Vai,they just destroyed VH,and I,m sure that was Davids goal,no going half way with these aces
Lol😂
oh man Talas, now there is a band i have not heard in years, i had a live record from them back in the day that was absolutely killer, the live rendition of King of the World was so badass!
Pretty killer overview and study...
Many thanks!! Happy holidays!
Eddie didn't have to compete with anybody. His legend was set after Eruption and then just got stronger with each release. Malm is a great player, but, if he had been in VH instead of Ed we wouldn't be still talking abt VH. They wouldn't have sold millions of albums, had #1 albums or singles, etc. Want proof? Ask a stranger who EVH is, they know. Now ask who Malmsteen is, most don't know who he is. Eddie is, and forever will be, the King. 👑🎸
And amazing sonwriter
Of course i agree with the coments....but...bare in mind that Randy Rhoads is still as influential as Yngwie, Eddie, Vai and we only have two albums ...Diary and Blizard...thousands of guys on youtube cover Randy's songs...and yes i am very influenced by Malmsteen... which after many years, led me to an no exit road....
Malmsteen and Vai are freakin great
Hendrix=really good, Eddioe Badassery across the board, Yngvie= Fast
Hendrix and Van Halen are the only two game changers. Yngwie is great but it’s about iconic unique playing and iconic unique SONGWRITING.
Hendrix is way over rated.
@andrewharper1609Steve Vai didn’t write hit songs as well as never heard before culture moving guitar playing tho. SRV is great but basically Hendrix/ Clapton. No knock to SRV. Slash stands out cuz he had his own vibe and wrote hit songs
@@TheVirus-pr8zwu need perspective. When Hendrix played the way he did and looked the way he did it was like an alien came to earth. NOBODY was like him. U need perspective
@@rushindragin361 He was a black guy in a white dominated music scene. He was a good player, but doesn't deserve the hype he gets.
I've seen all three live. Steve & Yngwie are great, but they were never as great as Eddie. It's not always about how fast you can play or how many notes you can cram into a song. I never tired of hearing Ed play. Ed just had a way of phrasing his music that all others lacked. The hair on my arms and neck still stand up when I hear a Van Halen song come on. RIP to the King, Edward Van Halen!
Yngwie was fast and he had style; but Eddie had style and he was fast. I don't believe Eddie played keyboards to stay relevant because of Yngvie. Kind of silly.