I

Ilam llalenb *'ERUPTI8il"By Eddie Van HalenTranscribed by Steve Vai

fN ADDITION TO BEING an ace tran-

f scriptionist, Steve Vai is a member of theL Frank Zappa band. He wasfeatured inthe February l98j issue ofGuitar Player,and recently recorded the LP Flexable onUrantiafBox 44024, Sylmar, CA 9 I 3421.Steve will soon pdn his own Guitar Playercolumn, featuring note-for-note solo tran-scriptiow. Suggestions for Steve's columncan be addressed to Guitar Player, 2M85Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino, CA 95014.Stav tuned.

By steve vai

'r '* *

ETEATURING SCREAMING scale pas-I' sages and rapid-fire two-handed arpeg-gios, "Eruption"from the LP Van Halen[Warner Bros., BSK 3075] is one of the mostvirtuosically performed rock instrumentalson record. Whether you decide to learn theentire solo orjust skim it for new ideas andlicks, be sure to listen carefully to the piece inorder to get the feel and other technicalaspects that defy notation.

Transcribing is an art in itself, and it's askil l you should cultivate if you want tocontinually add to your musical vocabulary.Most players of improvisational styles-especially jazz, blues, and rock-learned themajority of what they know by taking musicoff of records. When I transcribe, I transferthe tune from disc to a reel-to-reel recorder.which enables me to slow down a solo anddouble-check each phrase. And I often use acassette, because it's easier to operate andfacilitates reviewing a lick over and over.

If you were to compare this transcriptionto another of the same tune, you wouldundoubtedly see differences. Even ifyouwere to transcribe the same piece two differ-enttimes, you would likely do it differently.While some transcriptions are far more accu-rate than others, in general, the art is a rela-tlve one. (For instance, the pitch ofa particu-larbend might fall between two notes, andconsequently be written in more than oneway.) In other words, when putting a player's

Freelyi no time signature. Accidentals apply only to notes they accompany.) = 9 2 -

avai bx*: -\-

62 GUITAR PLAYER/JULY 1984