Passion and Warfare
| Passion and Warfare | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Steve Vai | ||||
| Released | September 1990[1] | |||
| Recorded | The Mothership | |||
| Genre | Instrumental rock | |||
| Length | 53:15 | |||
| Label | Relativity/Epic | |||
| Producer | Steve Vai | |||
| Steve Vai chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
Passion and Warfare is the second studio album by guitarist Steve Vai, released in September 1990 through Relativity and Epic Records. It has been certified Gold by the RIAA. It was written based on a series of dream sequences that Vai had when he was younger, and in the guitar music book of the album, Vai sums it up as "Jimi Hendrix meets Jesus Christ at a party that Ben Hur threw for Mel Blanc". It was all recorded in The Mothership studio at his home in the Hollywood Hills, a 1,600-square-foot (150 m2) building in which his guitar parts for Whitesnake's 1989 album Slip of the Tongue were also recorded. As such, Whitesnake frontman David Coverdale has small spoken parts on Passion and Warfare.
Vai states that planning the album started as early as 1982, but was shelved after joining the David Lee Roth band and not picked up again until parting ways with Roth in 1989.[2] Vai utilized many unusual recording techniques on the album. For what would come to be one of his most popular songs to date, "For the Love of God", he fasted for ten days and recorded the song on the fourth day of the fast.[3] "Blue Powder" was originally recorded in 1986 as a showcase track for Carvin, using their X-100B amplifier, and given away with Guitar Player magazine in flexi disc format. Vai was introduced to Carvin by his mentor Frank Zappa, who had also used the X-100B. The drums were subsequently re-recorded for the album.[4]
The equipment used to record Passion and Warfare was: Ibanez JEM and Universe guitars; Charvel Green Meanie guitar; Marshall JCM900 and Carvin X-100B amplifiers; ADA MP-1 preamplier; Boss DS-1 distortion pedal; Eventide H3000 harmonizer; Lexicon 480L.
The song "For the Love of God" is available for download for the 2007 video game Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, and was voted the 29th best solo of all time by a readers' poll in Guitar World magazine.[5]
Track listing
All songs written and composed by Steve Vai.
| No. | Title | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Liberty" | 2:03 | |
| 2. | "Erotic Nightmares" | 4:15 | |
| 3. | "The Animal" | 4:01 | |
| 4. | "Answers" | 2:56 | |
| 5. | "The Riddle" | 6:24 | |
| 6. | "Ballerina 12/24" | 1:43 | |
| 7. | "For the Love of God" | 6:03 | |
| 8. | "The Audience Is Listening" | 5:30 | |
| 9. | "I Would Love To" | 3:41 | |
| 10. | "Blue Powder" | 4:44 | |
| 11. | "Greasy Kid's Stuff" | 2:58 | |
| 12. | "Alien Water Kiss" | 1:10 | |
| 13. | "Sisters" | 4:07 | |
| 14. | "Love Secrets" | 3:40 | |
Total length: |
53:15 | ||
Personnel
- Steve Vai – guitar, Eventide H3000, keyboard (tracks 1, 3, 5, 7, 11), bass (tracks 8, 9, 11), arrangement, engineering, production
- David Rosenthal – keyboard (tracks 2, 9, 13), background vocals
- Pia Maiocco (credited as Pia Vai) – keyboard on one chord (track 4)
- Bob Harris – keyboard (track 10), background vocals
- Chris Frazier – drums (tracks 1–5, 8, 10, 11, 13)
- Tris Imboden – drums (tracks 7, 9)
- Stuart Hamm – bass (tracks 2–5, 7, 10, 13)
- Nancy Fagen – vocals & hysteria (track 8)
- Jamie Firlotte – boy vocals (track 8)
- David Coverdale – background vocals
- Rudy Sarzo – background vocals
- Adrian Vandenberg – background vocals
- Pascal Fillet – background vocals
- Laurel Fishman – background vocals
- Lillian Vai – background vocals
- Pam Vai – background vocals
- Joel Kaith – background vocals
- Corky Tanassy – background vocals
- Jamie Kornberg – background vocals
- Lauren Kornberg – background vocals
- Corinne Larue – background vocals
- Famin' – background vocals
- Darla Albright – background vocals
- Laura Gross – background vocals
- Rupert Henry – background vocals
- Suzanna Harris – background vocals
- Julian Angel Vai – background vocals
- Pascal Fillet – mixing
- Bernie Grundman – mastering
Chart performance
| Year | Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | ||
| Australian Albums Chart[6] | 25 | |
| Billboard 200[7] | 18 | |
| Canadian RPM Top Albums[8] | 27 | |
| Dutch Albums Chart[6] | 32 | |
| New Zealand Albums Chart[6] | 12 | |
| Swedish Albums Chart[6] | 27 | |
| Swiss Albums Chart[6] | 35 | |
| U.K. Albums Chart[9] | 8 |
Certifications
| Country | Provider | Certification |
|---|---|---|
| Canada[10] | CRIA | Gold |
| U.K.[11] | BPI | Silver |
| USA[12] | RIAA | Gold |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Huey, Steve. "Passion and Warfare - Steve Vai". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2013-12-17.
- ↑ Vai, Steve. "NOTES: "Passion and Warfare"". http://www.vai.com/AllAboutSteve/disconotes_passion.html''.
- ↑ "Interview:Musician's Friend Exclusive Interview with Steve Vai, Part II". Musician's Friend. Retrieved 2013-12-17.
- ↑ Tolinski, Brad (July 1990). "Steve Vai's Field of Dreams". Guitar School. Archived from the original on 2004-06-12. Retrieved 2013-12-17.
- ↑ Guitar World Staff (2008-10-28). "100 Greatest Guitar Solos: No. 29 "For the Love of God" (Steve Vai). Guitar World. NewBay Media. Retrieved 2013-12-17.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Steffen Hung. "Steve Vai - Passion And Warfare". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 2012-08-01.
- ↑ http://umdmusic.com/default.asp?Lang=Czech&Chart=E&ChDay=&ChMonth=&ChYear=&ChBand=Steve+VAI&ChSong=
- ↑ "100 Albums". RPM Magazine 59 (11). July 28, 1990.
- ↑ http://everyhit.com/
- ↑ http://www.musiccanada.com/GPSearchResult.aspx?st=&ica=False&sa=Steve%20Vai&sl=&smt=0&sat=-1&ssb=Artist
- ↑ http://www.bpi.co.uk/certified-awards.aspx
- ↑ "Gold & Platinum Searchable Database - June 15, 2014". RIAA. Retrieved 2014-06-15.
External links
- In Review: Steve Vai "Passion And Warfare" at Guitar Nine Records