Alien Love Child, Eric Johnson - Live & Beyond

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Free Music Notes for Live & Beyond

Free Music Review: Enjoy it with repeated listening!
Hit: 5 Stars

Most players know that "Ah Via Musicom" is just an awesome record, filled with a scary variety of styles played by a virtuoso - from heavy rock to jazz, country, and acoustic playing. But that is a very carefully crafted studio recording, and even Eric seemed to stall a bit trying to recreate the same magic for "Venus Isle", the recording that followed.

The thing which has always impressed me about Eric is how seamlessly he's incorporated his influences, from Jimi to Jeff Beck, Clapton, Larry Carlton, and Wes Montgomery. I know that he's been quoted as saying that he wanted to apply the virtuoso skills of a classical violinist to the electric guitar, and I believe that has been his mission, and he's approached it with the focus it takes to reach that level of success.
For me, perhaps Eric's own trademark is his fluidity, even on fluttering fast notes where he never loses articulation, and combines solo passages that include different scales in very beautifully complimentary but unexpected ways. Add to that his impeccable taste and peerless tone, and he is a guitarist whose music you can enjoy over and over. The challenge for many artists who emphasize a good deal of instrumental playing is to make the music interesting, and that has not been a problem with Eric - in fact his albums are a kind of listening journey.

"Alien Love Child" includes many of the sounds familiar from his other albums - from the quiet chorused Hendrix legato passages to heavily distorted chord riffage, and Eric's own trademark soaring solo passages. The next song you hear might include jazz playing ala Carlton and Wes Montgomery, or Texas shuffle in full ZZ boogie mode, or slow burning blues with guest vocalist Milford Mulligan. Always entertaining! Eric also engages in some long solo passages clearly inspired by "Crossroads" era Cream, copping Clapton's tone perfectly, with terrific ensemble playing.

I used to shy away from live recordings, because many of them were just poor recordings. Thankfully, our technology is better now, and that is not a problem, as long as the engineers are up to the task. This CD sounds terrific! A good live CD is able to capture not only the room ambience and natural reverb, but also manages to capture a bit of the electricity of a live audience as well. This CD delivers in that area, but audience noise has gracefully been editted, so as not to grate upon repeated listening.

When this CD was announced, I was glad to read that it was a live CD. I felt that Eric had lost some momentum with the difficulties in releasing "Venus Isle", and that some fans had grown impatient. Not only that, but he had set the bar very high with "Ah Via Musicom". This CD proves that when Eric just plays, we'll listen, and love every minute.

A warning for my guitar playing friends: do not make the mistake of listening to this CD with guitar in hand - it may be a very humbling experience! (But you'll still enjoy it.)

Peace.

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