When David Lee Roth recorded his second solo album, 1988’s Skyscraper, he hoped to ensure the project’s success by hiring the only guitarist around who could give his former bandmate Eddie Van Halen a run for his money: Steve Vai.

But as it turns out, the solos Vai recorded for the album weren’t even his best work.

Vai says before meeting up with Roth in the studio, he recorded demos of the album’s potential guitar work to run them by the powers-that-be and Roth was blown away.

“Dave liked the guitar solos so much that I had to use the demoed solos,” he says. “I didn’t really want to. And it’s his band, you know.”

While Vai admits he would have rather recorded more polished versions of the solos, he “didn’t have a problem” with Roth’s decision. “It’s not like they sucked,” he says.

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