Steve Vai Height

Henkka says on 9/Feb/12
Both Malmsteen and Vai love to wear big boots, but still
Click Here
Malmsteen is 6'1", and he's 1" taller than Vai. Also, in that pic I posted here last month of him and Gilbert, he looked 4" shorter than Paul in my opinion.
I wish I had taken a pic when I met him, but yes, rounding up he's 100% 6'.

Shaun says on 13/Jan/12
I was just going to write a 1000 word essay about the Lydian Augmented scale over a D flat 7 sharp 11 chord, an A augmented triad and arpeggio over a D 9 sharp 11 chord and an F whole tone scale resolved to E major and then give my list of 100 top guitarists which makes Rolling Stone magazine look like the piece of uneducated musical crap it really is in its listings which ignore the proper accomplished guitarists like Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Paul Gilbert, Larry Carlton Joe Pass, Paco de lucia etc and rate Jack White and Keith Richards at the top... LOL.

OK then, Vai is 5'3" and wears 12 inch lifts which make him look really tall...

Frazer says on 10/Jan/12
seriously, im a guitarist and i have to say, leave the 'best guitarist' arguements and discussions for youtube. I came here to see how tall he was, not your thoughts on his use of modes. christ...

But yeah, tall guy, my friend met him and said he was around my height (6'2)

Henkka says on 5/Jan/12
@Shaun: Sure! I don't know if it's my computer or the video itself, but the volume is pretty damn low! Anyway, I think you're right, that intro is mostly in A major, and he definitely uses many chromatic runs as a bridge between intervals. Towards the end of that part he goes a bit into B# major too. I'm not hearing any diminished scales though, I think. I could be wrong, though. My theory knowledge is a bit rusted, I have to admit it (in fact, because of college, I haven't been able to study at all in the last 2 years).

Regarding Becker, I don't know, he's not one of my favourite, but I admire him, even if only for his strength. Also, he's technically and musically very impressive coming from such an unorthodox background, in my opinion.

Eventhough, if what I want is speed (with musicality, of course), Jeff Loomis is the first man for me, always Click Here

Shaun says on 5/Jan/12
Yeah but if he's 150 pounds that's probably why he always looks much taller. But he did supposedly claim 6'2", maybe his height in boots?

Henkka I need your help.

On Room 335 Click Here can you tell me what scales he's playing from 0-0:50, especially 0:40-0:50. You see I'm developing my skills as a jazz player and I've seen a lot of players do those very fast runs off key. Is it a combination of diminished and chromatic scales? Could you let me know, I'd appreciate that. The key is in A major I think.

Henkka says on 4/Jan/12
@Shaun: Thanks! Govan and Kotzen have been my biggest inspirations to guitar playing for the last years. Appart from being plain awesome, I'm still amazed at how easily they can play anything from any genre, and still add their touch. I've seen very few guitarists who can pull it off.

Also, regarding the height issue (in this article it might even seem out of place with all these guitar conversation! LOL), since I'm meeting Govan in March I'll have more information. Just from the pics and videos I've seen (that means, all I've been able to find!), my current guess would be around 6', because of the way he looks next to Marco Minnemann (a legit 6'4", looks almost like a Gilbert clone!) and Bryan Beller (between 6'1"-6'2", he's about half an inch shorter than Vai in boots, and about 2"-2.5" shorter than Minnemann). I'll keep you informed!

And about Vai, yeah, I agree he can look taller, but in fact we're very similar, both in height and weight! But I guarantee you, both times I met him I had almost an inch on him. He could very well be 6' because it was in the morning and then I'm a bit taller than what I said, I didn't think about that until now. But he's definitely not over 6' anyway.

Shaun says on 4/Jan/12
Click Here

Here's a MAB tribute to Randy Rhoads. He's like a machine in parts. Some of his shredding runs sound like the dropping of bombs or something. He's insane. Undisputable Shred God. That doesn't make him the "best" but when it comes to pure shred and 80s metal nobody beats this guy. I'd guess he was 5'11" ish although he wears huge rocker boots.

Shaun says on 4/Jan/12
Wow, Alex Hutchings. Larry Carlton level isn't he. I've never understood what the hype is about Jason Becker, anybody who is anybody in the guitar world seems to rave about him but I really haven't seen much from him except a tapped Bach piece and a big shred.

Shaun says on 3/Jan/12
Wow you've got great taste Henkka. Govan is awesome, looks like Justin Hawkins LOL. Richie Kotzen is a fantastic singer and player and he's got the exact look as well. Damn it, however hard you practice there's always someone who just has everything, the whole package.

Henkka says on 3/Jan/12
@Shaun: Yeah, I haven't listened to Steely Dan for some time now, but he's really cool. I like that Metheny and Hancock video a lot, thanks!
Check out this one. It's just a demo, but you get the idea. He's terribly underrated in my opinion, one of the best modern jazz guitarists Click Here

I've never paid much attention to Carlton's height, but now that I'm looking at it I've found several pics of him next to Tak Matsumoto (love him too), who's 5'5", and I think Carlton looks around 5'10". He probably 5'11" on his prime.

@RisingForce: Damn, I forgot MacAlpine! He's awesome too, and of course Gilbert is a must. I also enjoy Michael Romeo quite a bit, eventhough I only listen to Symphony X from time to time.
From that neoclassical school, my personal favourites are Jeff Loomis (ex-Nevermore) and Stéphan Forté (Adagio). And of course, let's not forget Jason Becker!

Shaun says on 3/Jan/12
MAB reminds me of one of those mushrooms in the Mario computer games LOL. Well JTM my estimates for everyone one of the 14 challenges so far have been pretty good and I've narrowly missed out on points on quite a lot of them because of some very close ones. And my estimates of many celebs are usually very similar to those highest on the scoreboard so your "wrong as usual" is not exactly true. Have you measured Vai barefoot then to prove what you think? I haven't really looked at many photos to judge, I'll agree in the Gilbert photo provided he's not standing on a step he looks near 6'. But the impression I've always got when watching him is this is a noticeably long and thin guy who appears to be easily over six foot. Maybe its his super skinny frame and boots which have been creating the illusion. At times I think he can even look very tall range. But if I stand against a door and see where 5'11" comes on it I would be astounded how much film imagery could distort somebody's height His body length looks much more than 5'11".

Shaun says on 3/Jan/12
@Rising. Oh I'd much rather listen to Satriani out of all of the shredders. but I believe MAB is the most technically proficient electric guitarist and fastest, that doesn't mean I think he is musically the best. There was a string skipping tapping arpeggios on one of his DVDs once and I still can't nail it as quickly as him.

RisingForce says on 3/Jan/12
jtm, how tall do you think he is? I said at least 6'1" or 6'2", but didn't notice footwear. If he was wearing boots with a significant heel, then I'd agree with Brad's 6'1" estimate.

As far as the guitar playing conversation, I agree with you Henkka about Michael Angelo Batio. I'm in awe of his technique, but don't really listen to him. As far as shredders, Yngwie, MacAlpine and Gilbert are my favorites. Really like Michael Romeo too.

Shaun says on 3/Jan/12
You like Steely Dan Henkka? Click Here Pat Metheny and Herbie Hancock. That's a cool number its in like F blues and then D flat lydian dominant to D 7 sharp 9 or something and then back to F again. Metheny stoops a lot but I don't think he's very tall. Sort of a mini Bryan May LOL.

Shaun says on 3/Jan/12
Check out this Click Here . Its in A - F# F -G -A and then the killer B flat blues solo from 1:53 up half a step from the A. That;s what I love about jazz innovation is that its so much more interesting than straight rock or blues which can get a little plain and boring. Any estimates for Carlton Henkka? He looks like my sister's friend's dad who said he was '6 but I'd guess him at about 5'11" I think.

Henkka says on 2/Jan/12
@Shaun: Hahaha I wish more people nowadays knew of Carlton! Paco de Lucia is also great, of course. If you like more classical oriented guitarists check out David Russell, he's my personal favourite from the kind.
Yeah, technically MAB is a beast, but as you say, there's a lot more to guitar playing than playing as fast as you can (Rusty Cooley is another example of this). For that reason he's never appealed much to me. And for that reason Guthrie Govan is my absolute favourite, the man has it all and can play all genres flawlessly! Though jazz impro is obviously his strongest point.
I also get what you say about Holdsworth, it's a bit hard to get into him. He's one of my favourites though.
Also, if there's a tone king, for me it's (appart from Govan, and Kotzen's lead tone) Andy Timmons.

Shaun says on 2/Jan/12
@Henkka

Yeah but in terms of speed and technique I think MAB is the shred master, but there's more to guitar playing than shred of course. As an impressionable teenager it was always the "faster the better" but now its all about the music. I'm much more impressed by jazz innovation like a descending A flat melodic minor or G altered/superlocrian scale over a G 7 raised 5th and such now!

Shaun says on 2/Jan/12
@Henkka

I have all of Larry Carlton's, Al di Meola's and Paco de lucia's albums. The fact you've mentioned Larry Carlton indicates you are genuine and an accomplished guitarist like myself with good taste. I actually rate him as one of the greatest electric players, Mr. 335. His tone is amazing. I've learned a lot from him, there is a D flat major 7th , B flat flat 9th, E flat minor 7, A flat aug 5th progression of his on youtube as a "lesson" and he's improvising like accenting the major third F of the D flat etc and it sounds beautiful. I'm currently studying Joe Pass and Barney Kessel. I got about 4 or 5 tab books of them for Christmas and their lines and chord progressions are insane. I don't like Allan Holdsworth musically but I learned a few things from him like spotting chord inversions and stuff. Very innovative. Larry Carlton looks 5'11"-6' BTW! Guitarists can be quite hard to estimate though and its not the thing you are really watching them for LOL!

Shaun says on 2/Jan/12
@Henkka

I have all of Larry Carlton's, Al di Meola's and Paco de lucia's albums. The fact you've mentioned Larry Carlton indicates you are genuine and an accomplished guitarist like myself with good taste. I actually rate him as one of the greatest electric players, Mr. 335. His tone is amazing. I've learned a lot from him, there is a D flat , B flat flat 9th, E minor 7, A flat aug 5th progression of his on youtube as a "lesson" and he's improvising like accenting the major third F of the D flat etc and it sounds beautiful. I'm currently studying Joe Pass and Barney Kessel. I got about 4 or 5 tab books of them for Christmas and their lines and chord progressions are insane. I don't like Allan Holdsworth musically but I learned a few things from him like spotting chord inversions and stuff. Very innovative. Larry Carlton looks 5'11"-6' BTW!

Mark D. says on 1/Jan/12
Yeah, I think you'll agree Rob that 6'2" with boots is more like it, when you see the picture below next to 6'4" Paul Gilbert. Draw a line from the top of Vai's head to Gilbert, it's just below his eyes, which is 4" below the top of Gilbert's head. I'd say 6'0" without boots is more accurate, and explains why the 6'2" Billy Sheehan looks 2" taller in the same footgear next to Steve Vai.

Shaun says on 1/Jan/12
Rob how tall does Vai look to you? Maybe its his rake thin build and boots but to me he looks close to this. I can buy 6'1" maybe but 6' or less seems very low for a man who can often look real lanky.

[Editor Rob: I've still to look at him, I only added at what the found claim is.]

Henkka says on 1/Jan/12
@Shaun: You've got good taste, I also went through that phase,eventhough I enjoy more Malmsteen than MAB, I have to admit. Now I'm more into fusion jazz (in fact, I'm working in a jazz rock fusion quartet at the moment). If you haven't, check out Alex Hutchings, Guthrie Govan, Greg Howe, Al Di Meola, or the timeless Larry Carlton. Also, even if just for the sake of his versatility, Richie Kotzen should be mentioned in all guitar threads.

5\'8.78133457345 says on 31/Dec/11
Rob, I think he's 6' on the dot, with boots he looks very tall next to Satch, but never like a giant. Vai's bassist Billy Sheehan is a legit 6'2 and he ALWAYS looks at least a full inch taller than Vai in boots. Now Paul Gilbert is 6'3.5 and he definitely looks consistently taller than Sheehan for a hair over an inch. If Vai were 6'2 Billy should be at least 6'4 and Paul should be 6'5.5, which is ludicrous. Vai looks real lanky, but nowhere near 6'2.

Shaun says on 31/Dec/11
I've learned a few things from Vai I must admit, not personally though obviously. Like E lydian and sus 2 arpeggios and major 7 arpeggios. A few years back I was heavily into Vai, Malmsteen and Satriani but nowadays I'm more into jazz and classical. Malmsteen is terrribly overated he just recycles the same harmonic minor, phyrigian dominant and diminished arpeggios back and forth at a ridiculous speed. The shred master in my opinion is Michael Angelo Batio.

Henkka says on 31/Dec/11
Look, here's Steve next to Gilbert

Click Here

Paul's got 4" on him. Definitely he's not 5'11" at all, like I said, he's in the 5'11.5"-6' range, but he can look taller because of his built and the boots he usually wears on stage. He also has very big hands and long legs, everything helps. The first time I met him I also expected him to be taller, but I was surprised. He's a really nice guy, that was expected though. If a bit eccentric.

Henkka says on 31/Dec/11
@Shaun: Yeah, I've been lucky enough to meet him the last couple of times he's come to Barcelona! He's a great teacher!
I've also met Richie Kotzen, Joe Satriani, Paul Gilbert and Alex Hutchings. And I'm meeting Guthrie Govan in March (I'm really stoked for it, he's my favourite guitarist). What can I say, I love learning everything I can from the best when I have the chance! :P
Like I said, I do think he's 6'2" in the boots he usually wears on stage, but on normal footwear he was shorter than me, so definitely not over 6'.

If you want to know too, I can also confirm most heights of the guitarists I mention are correct. Satriani is 5'7.5", Kotzen is a legit 5'11", Gilbert is definitely in the 6'3.5"-6'4" range and Hutchings is around 5'10".

Shaun says on 30/Dec/11
5'11" for Vai in all honesty is ridiculous, same height as David Beckham? No way. If I met Vai I simply can't imagine him being shorter than me regardless if he's 50 pounds lighter. He just looks too lanky. I'll agree he can look as low as 6'1" at times next to Satch, Petrucci and Gilbert but probably its posture. But granted some skinny 5'11" rock stars like Justin Hawkins can look 6'2" range at times. But Vai surely has to be near what he claims, he stands out as being a tall long thin guy and at times in big boots can look very tall.

Shaun says on 30/Dec/11
Awesome, thanks Rob. Hey Rising Force I miss you on here. He can look 189-190cm at times I think but his 150 pound frame and boots he often wears make him seem taller. Barefoot he must surely be close to 6'2". @Henkka Master classes with Vai? Are you kidding me?

Henkka says on 29/Dec/11
Definitely not 6'2" at all, maybe with boots. I've had a couple of masterclasses with him, and he's not over 6'(eventhough he can look it). I'd say 5'11.5"-5'11.75", because both times he looked about an inch shorter than me, and I'm 6'0.5". Also, like I said on the Frank Zappa's article, he wasn't that much taller than Richie Kotzen, who is certainly in the 5'11"-5'11.25" range.