“His thumbprint is an indelible part of the Whitesnake record he did. The fatness of that record and the rock integrity it had was all him”: Steve Vai followed John Sykes in Whitesnake – and he quickly decided what not to do when playing his parts

Steve Vai (left) and John Sykes perform onstage with Whitesnake in different eras.

Before he pretty much permanently set down his own path, electric guitar hero Steve Vai's last stop was with the hugely successful Whitesnake.

Vai was following in the footsteps of John Sykes, who passed away earlier this week (January 20) at the age of 65.