The term “supergroup” gets thrown around on a regular basis these days, however, a new tour featuring some of the greatest guitarists of all time is about to truly give the term a whole new meaning. Introducing “Generation Axe”, featuring Steve Vai, Zakk Wylde, Yngwie Malmsteen, Nuno Bettencourt and Tosin Abasi. “The ‘Generation Axe’ show is a unique performance of five fiercely talented guitar players coming together to create a six-string extravaganza that is sure to amaze and delight,” commented Steve Vai. The “Generation Axe” fan experience will go way beyond simply gathering five guitar greats on one stage to jam. Each tour stop will include a variety of collaborations by the five players, including everyone performing together as one cohesive band with a rhythm section including Pete Griffin (Dweezil Zappa, Stanley Clarke, Edgar Winter) on bass and Nick Marinovich (Yngwie Malmsteen) on keys. Vai, Wylde, Malmsteen, Bettencourt and Abasi will perform songs from their various catalogs and join forces on some well-known songs (as well as probably a few unexpected, unearthed gems).
Legacy Recordings, the catalog division of Sony Music Entertainment, will release Steve Vai’s Modern Primitive / Passion and Warfare 25th Anniversary Edition, a celebratory 2CD collection of classic tracks and previously unreleased music, on Friday, June 24. It is available now for pre-orders: Amazon
Steve Vai and Legacy Recordings are commemorating the 25th anniversary of Passion and Warfare with a special 2CD edition of the album which includes the first-ever release of Vai’s Modern Primitive songs and recordings. Based on song sketches and works-in-progress penned and recorded by Vai following the release of Flex-Able, his debut album, in January 1984, the music on Modern Primitive has been completed by Vai for release as a full album disc and the 2nd CD is the bonus remastering of the Passion and Warfare 25th Anniversary Edition.
“The music on Flex-Able is so vastly different from Passion and Warfare, one could wonder if the same guy actually made both records,” Steve writes in his liner notes for the collection. “Modern Primitive is the missing link between these two records. It’s sort of Cro-Magnon Vai.”
Newly remastered from the original analog tapes, the Passion and Warfare 25th Anniversary Edition disc includes, as bonus tracks, four previously unreleased recordings from the Passion and Warfare sessions.
Modern Primitive / Passion and Warfare 25th Anniversary Edition is being released as a 2CD physical collection while each disc will be available as a sepárate title on all digital platforms.
The 2CD Modern Primitive / Passion and Warfare 25th Anniversary Edition will be housed in a 4-panel soft-pack with a 20-page Modern Primitive booklet and a 24-panel Passion and Warfare poster fold.
In addition to the first-time release of his “lost” Modern Primitive music, composer/producer and electric guitar virtuoso Steve Vai will celebrate the 25th anniversary of his landmark album, Passion and Warfare, with a world tour starting on May 28th featuring–for the first time ever in concert–full performances of his groundbreaking instrumental rock masterpiece in its entirety. “Performing this record from top to bottom (with some very special surprises in the works) is something I’ve always dreamed of doing,” Vai said. “There are songs here I’ve never performed before, and I’m delighted that 25 years after its release, I feel as though my guitar chops are as much up to the task as ever before.”
Often cited as one of the greatest and most influential instrumental rock guitar albums ever recorded, Vai’s Passion and Warfare was originally released through Relativity/Epic Records in September 1990 and has been certified Gold by the RIAA. Inspired by a series of dreams Vai had experienced as a young man, Passion and Warfare has been described by the artist as “Jimi Hendrix meets Jesus Christ at a party that Ben Hur threw for Mel Blanc.” Recorded at The Mothership, Vai’s home studio in the Hollywood Hills, Passion and Warfare includes the classic track, “For the Love of God,” cited as one of the best solos of all time in a Guitar World magazine reader’s poll.
Steve Vai
Modern Primitive / Passion and Warfare 25th Anniversary Edition
track listing
Modern Primitive
1. Bop!
2. Dark Matter
3. Mighty Messengers
4. The Lost Chord
5. Upanishads
6. Fast Note People
7. And We Are One
8. Never Forever
9. Lights Are On
10. No Pockets
11. Pink and Blows Over: Part 1
12. Pink and Blows Over: Part 2 (Mars Attack)
13. Pink and Blows Over: Part 3 (Jazzbo Paddle-foot)
Passion and Warfare 25th Anniversary Edition
1. Liberty
2. Erotic Nightmares
3. The Animal
4. Answers
5. The Riddle
6. Ballerina 12/24
7. For Love Of God
8. The Audience ls Listening
9. I Would Love To
10. Blue Powder
11. Greasy Kid’s Stuff
12. Alien Water Kiss
13. Sisters
14. Love Secrets
15. Lovely Elixir (Bonus)
16. And We Are One (Solo #2) (Bonus)
17. As Above (Bonus)
18. So Below (Bonus)
About Steve Vai
Steve Vai, age 12, picked up the guitar in 1973 and started taking lessons from Joe Satriani (another future guitar hero) shortly after. He soaked up influences ranging from Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page to Jimi Hendrix and Brian May and by the end of the 1970s, was transcribing guitar parts for Frank Zappa. He became a full member of Zappa’s band in 1980.
Rapidly becoming one of the most in-demand, versatile, eloquent and soulful sidemen in the business, Vai recorded with Alcatrazz, Whitesnake, David Lee Roth and Public Image Ltd.
He launched his solo career with the release of Flex-Able, a homemade indie album, in 1984. Since 1990, he has recorded and released eight studio albums, eight live albums, two EPs, 12 soundtracks, 20 compilation albums, seven videos and more. Vai has won three Grammy Awards and earned 15 Grammy Award nominations. He has appeared as a guest artist on more than 40 albums, playing with artists like Alice Cooper, Ozzy Osbourne, Gregg Bissonnett and Joe Jackson, among others.
Sony Music Entertainment and Legacy Recordings signed Steve Vai to an historic multi-album agreement in February 2015.