Steve Vai

He is married to Pia Maiocco, a bassist. They have two children

This famous guitarist is a beekeeper and sells his honey for his Make a Noise Foundation.

He was born on June 6, 1960, in Carle Place, New York as one of the five children to John and Theresa Vai.

He loved music from a young age and started playing the organ when he was barely six. By the time he was ten he was playing the accordion too. He picked up the guitar when he was 13. He was determined to play the instrument like Jimmy Page and therefore started taking lessons from the noted guitarist, Joe Satriani.

As a teenager he performed with several bands and also started coaching other aspiring musicians. He attended Berklee College of Music and recorded a promotional piece for them.

He made a transcription of Frank Zappa’s ‘The Black Page’ and sent it to him along with a tape of his guitar recording. Zappa was impressed by the talented young man and hired him to transcribe his guitar solos in 1979.

Vai also did overdubs on many guitar parts on Zappa’s album, ‘You Are What You Is’. He was made a full fledged member of Zappa’s band and toured with him in 1980.

He worked with Zappa for two years during which he toured extensively. Zappa referred to him as his “little Italian virtuoso”. He was a featured artist on the recording, ‘Zappa’s Universe’.

He left Zappa in 1982 and moved to California. He released his debut solo album ‘Flex-Able’ in 1984. The album was greatly influenced by Zappa. It was a moderate success.

In 1985 he joined Billy Sheehan and David Lee Roth’s band Eat’em and Smile. It featured Roth on vocals, Sheehan on bass and Vai on guitar, and Gregg Bissonette on drums. The group’s debut album, ‘Eat’em and Smile’ was a big hit.

His Gold-certified album, ‘Passion and Warfare’, contained his best known song, ‘For the Love of God’ which he had recorded after fasting for four days. The album was based on a series of dreams that Vai had when he was younger.