Speaking with Guitar Player, guitar legend Steve Vai revealed what he believes are his top five career-defining tracks. Following is an excerpt from the rundown.

"Bad Horsie" - Alien Love Secrets (1995)

Vai: "It had the bones to exist in the metal community. It’s a side of me that I really enjoy. It’s sort of like Jack Butler (the character Vai plays) in the movie Crossroads. It’s connected to that song that I played in that film; that movie had a significant impact on my career. When I was doing Crossroads and reading the script, it said, 'Jack Butler kicks into a guitar riff that sounds like a freight train.' I wondered what a freight train would sound like if it were mimicked with a guitar.

The first thing I did was tune down, then grind out that rhythm on the bass notes. Soon after that, I had a dream where I was on a wild stallion, and I was riding through a field of high grass, being chased by a train. Suddenly the horse stopped, turned around and charged at the train, at which point I woke up (laughs). That was when I thought I’d write a song with the train concept from Crossroads and mix it with a horse.

It’s a song that I really love playing. It’s malleable – we can constantly change it up. It’s heavy and it’s satisfying when you feel that heaviness. It’s another song that has gravitated toward becoming a favorite of my fans. It’s definitely one of my most metal tracks."

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