Ladies Nite in Buffalo
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Vai and Diamond Dave... what a flamboyant, extravagant combination and what a great track with stellar guitar work by wizard Vai.
Don't be intimidated though.
If "Vai = difficult" to play to you, relax a bit.
This riff is on the possible side for the aspiring, not so experienced guitar player. And before heading over to try your hands on some of the more advanced solo licks, it'd be a sensible idea to learn this main riff first.
It sounds good and is fun to play.
So let's get started...
Want a 25% discount?
Here's good news...
The riff is only 2 measures long. The first 2 beats in each measure are the same - so that's a 25% savings immediately. ;-)
It wouldn't be Vai though if there weren't some challenges built into it.
To nail the rest of measure 1 it is important to have 2 things in mind:
 | rhythm
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| articulation |
You might wanna practice the rhythm independently first by clapping and counting out loud - then slowly building it up to speed, integrating the articulation like hammer-ons and palm muting.
A big stretch...
Getting the fingers in place for the big stretch in measure 2 is the main challenge.
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click to enlarge |
Again, we'd like to warn you that it's not a good idea at all for some sort of macho "I don't care if it hurts - no pain, no gain" attitude when it comes to stretches. A careful stretching routine making your fingers flexible over time will do you more good. In the meantime look at our 2 alternatives instead!
2 alternative ways...
If the stretch currently is beyond your reach, do this instead:
Either play octave Gs only or octave Gs with the C straddled in the middle.
Both these alternatives retain the top G as melody note, which is important for the melodic sense and both are a lot easier than the original.
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easier octave shapes click to enlarge |
