The Audience Is Listening
Vai Steve Lyrics
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Chris - Drums
Nancy Fagan - Vocals & Hysteria
Jamie Firlotte - Boy Vocals [The suff in the { }, except the
"Thank you's" at the end - Ace]
"Now Stevie, now don't be nervous, honey, O.K.? I'm gonna go in & I'm
gonna introduce you & then you're gonna come in with your guitar & you're
doing that, I'll be sitting in the back of the. We'll have such a good time,
so don't you be nervous, honey. It will relaw everybody, & we'll be so happy.
I'm gonna go n now. I'll introduce you, O.K.? HEADS UP! Now you kids you,
all of you, calm down. That's good, O.K. everyone in your own seat, that's
good. O.K., now, little Stevie Vai is going to play a composition on the
guitar. He wrote it all by himself. O.K., Stevie, bring your three friends
up, they can play with you. That Seve Vai, what a nice little boy. {I wrote
this song for all my friends. When I grow up, I'm gonna be a famous Rock
'n Roll guitar player.} Love it. EH, HE, HE, go ahead. {And this is my
whammy bar. And it's gonna be loud.} Don't you think that's a bit loud?
Boys!!! It's getting too loud! You're getting out of control, boys. Stevie,
now calm down class, calm down. Mr. Vai, you've got to turn it down...
{What did you say, you want me to turn it down? You mean down like this...}
(Boys, What happened to that nice music?) That sounds like noise Mr. Vai.
And I want it stopped! You've all got detention. {Uh, oh, here comes
trouble.} Ayy. Vai, are you outta your mind? You, guys, ya don't back off.
Ya must be crazy! I'm gonna flip-out. I'm tellin' you. If this is my
final flip-out, you guys are gonna go with me. {Ah, shut up.} Will you
two stop dancing like that. Frankie, leave that girl alone! We're not
gonna have another incident like Mildred. Come here to me me, Vai, don't
you hear me? Come here you little snit. Wait 'till I get my hands...
don't you run away. Ay, Ay, Ay, Ay, Ay, Ay, Ay, Ay Vai. Knock it off! Get
off my desk! {Hey Andrea, check this out.} Oh, Stevie, you promised me
you;d play nice music; People out of control, dancin' on the desks. Playin'
with the girls. That awful noise just make people go wild. You gotta turn
that music down, Stevie, please. {I'm fearless in my heart. They will
always see that in my eyes. I am the Passion; I am the Warfare. I will never
stop...Always constant, accurate, and intense.} Mark my words, you'll never
amount to anything, Steve Vai. You'll see, you'll be a bum, in the streets.
A bum, that's it, a bum. I thought you were such a nice little boy. Ya
know what? Ya mean, ya got a mean, nasty, vicious streak. Why don't you
just quit school? Move to California with all those other bums. Go, that's
where you belong, with all those crazies out in California. Maybe you'll be
famous; {Thank you very much.} Ha! That's the funniest thing I've ever
heard. {Thank you very much.} You-famous? With that noise? Ha! I'll
see ya in jail; {Thank you very much.} Give me a break Stevie, stop it.
You'll see, mark my words.
The lyrics for The Audience Is Listening can be interpreted in two ways. On one level, it is a commentary on the tension between rock music and the institution of education. The song seems to depict the experience of a young Steve Vai, who is introducing his music to his class, only to have it be rejected as "noise" by his teacher. In this interpretation, the song serves as a teenage rebellion against the strictures of formal education, with rock music becoming a symbol of freedom and self-expression.
On another level, the song can be read as a cautionary tale about the dangers of fame and the music industry. The lyrics of the song describe a young Steve Vai who dreams of becoming a "famous Rock n Roll guitar player." However, as the song progresses, his dreams are shattered by the dismissive comments of his teacher. By the end of the song, it is clear that Vai's dreams of fame and success will come at a great cost, and that his desire to "never stop, always constant, accurate, and intense" will lead him down a path of self-destruction.
The song is both a critique of the educational establishment and a lament for the price of fame, and it has resonated with fans of rock music for decades.
Line by Line Meaning
Now Stevie, now don't be nervous, honey, O.K.?
Stevie is being encouraged to not worry and get nervous.
I'll be sitting in the back
The singer will observe Steve's performance from the back.
little Stevie Vai is going to play
Steve Vai is going to play his original composition together with three of his friends.
What a nice little boy
Steve is complimented.
And this is my whammy bar. And it's gonna be loud.
Steve shows his whammy bar, indicating that his performance will be loud.
That sounds like noise Mr. Vai. And I want it stopped!
Steve's music has gotten too loud and people want it to stop.
Ayy. Vai, are you outta your mind?
Steve is being scolded and questioned if he has lost his mind.
If this is my final flip-out, you guys are gonna go with me.
The person is threatening everyone that they will go crazy and others will follow their lead.
Hey Andrea, check this out.
Steve is trying to show something to Andrea.
That awful noise just make people go wild.
The noise from Steve's performance is making people go wild.
You gotta turn that music down, Stevie, please.
Someone requests Steve to turn down the volume of his music.
Mark my words, you'll never amount to anything, Steve Vai.
Someone is discouraging Steve and predicting he will be a failure.
Why don't you just quit school? Move to California with all those other bums.
Someone suggests Steve to drop out of school and join the rest of the failures in California.
Thank you very much.
Steve sarcastically thanks the person who is trying to bring him down.
You'll see, mark my words.
The person wants Steve to remember what they said.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: STEVE VAI
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@gokhanersan8561
I can’t believe they made a video for a crazy instrumental like this, and an album full of rock instrumentals went platinum. Music was king.
@staringcontest9733
Also, back in the day, the video was on mtv all the time. 🤘
@lacompaniaproduccion
This child is a guitar prodigy. Two years later, at the age of 13, he was in the band Bad4Good, a band formed by Steve Vai, an excellent band that could not see the light of day due to the birth of grunge.
@tr4nsg0th1ca
"I am the Passion.
I am the Warfare."
I always get chills at that part.
@stephenkorosi9561
My favorite thing about Texas. My sweet. Yolanda.
@Spoohkybooh666
🎉woohoo
@SuperGaleford
You must get chills when you read the title on the CD
@MrDishdonkey
When you've listened to passion and warfare since its release and never knew there was a video and you have an image of how everyone looked according to the voices. This is nothing like it.
@christophermarchand320
That's the beauty of, the image in your mind was yourself with your wild friends being as epic as one could imagine to be. It wrote a story that all could share but exist inside of different novels of one's life and yet exist in the same space without fucking the time space continuum. Wild Stallions!!!
@ighfee
Oh I don't know, this is pretty close to what I imagined it to be. An awesome young guitar player tearing up the school. Teachers hate him, the kids love him.
This video is what we all dreamt of being in the 80s 🤘