may be considered one of the world’s greatest virtuosos today, but the guitarist — who is currently playing King Crimson’s ‘80s material alongside Adrian Belew in the group Beat — was humble about his talents when he was a teenager. Speaking with Positive Grid to promote his new — part of the of — Vai says he honed his craft in secret. “I didn't tell anybody when I started playing the guitar, because I was kind of shy that way,” he explains.
"The guitar was such a cool instrument. If you played it, you thought you were really cool. And I didn't think I was really cool.
So I never told anybody.” Eventually, his talents came to light in a fashion that was surprisingly showy for someone supposedly lacking self-confidence. “I did enter a talent contest,” he continues.
“It was the first time I'd played in front of my classmates. It was a big auditorium, and I played 'The Star-Spangled Banner' with my teeth..
. and I won. It was the first time I won anything like that.
” The $50 prize money he took home that day was well spent and helped him develop a taste for what was to come. “That was so much money,” Vai says. “Me and all my friends took that money and we bought cases of quality beer.
” All the latest guitar news, interviews, lessons, reviews, deals and more, direct to your inbox! Vai's latest guitar challenge has been to master Robert Fripp's relentless guitar parts ahead of the Beat tour. Since his in 2021, he's found keeping up with Fripp's f.