Eric Johnson - Bloom
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Free Music Notes for Bloom
Free Music Review: Worth the wait
Hit: 4 Stars
I have been a fan of Eric Johnson's music since Ah Via Musicom came out. Tones and Venus Isle were also very good albums in my opinion. Bloom is like an evolution in that it focuses less on flash and more on feel.
Bloom - this tune reminds me a bit of "Camel's Night Out" from Venus Isle. Sounds like standard EJ, but it doesn't draw me in like "Cliffs of Dover" or "Trademark"
Summer Jam - I like the way this one moves. Eric also throws in some edgy riffs that took me by surprise.
My Back Pages - First track on the album that Eric sings on. It sounds like he is digitizing his voice more lately, which is probably a good idea given that it helps his voice stand out more than usual. Catchy tune.
Good To Me - This one is based on a single riff. It kind of reminds me of Joe Satriani's "Summer Song" for this reason.
Columbia - "Venus Isle" closed with a tune like this one. It sounds like Eric is trying to avoid sounding to much like himself by choosing his notes more carefully, and this one seems a bit restrained.
12 to 12 Vibe - My favorite up to this point. Less subdued and rockin.
Sea Secret - High quality mood music. Similar to "Desert Song" from the Tones album in that it transports the listener to a calmer place.
Sad Legacy - Reminds me of that Edie Brickell song "What I am", but slightly less commercial.
From My Heart - This is a good vocal track for Eric. A mellow tune with a good jazzy solo.
Cruise the Nile - Damn good title because you can almost picture cruising the Nile. The sitar is a nice touch.
Tribute To Jerry Reed - In the same spirit as Steve's Boogie. It's a treat to hear so many styles of music played so well by one musician.
Your Sweet Eyes - Shawn Colvin sings backup on this one. This brings the song up a notch in my opinion. Their voices go well together.
Hesitant - This is a slow jazz tune like the ones they play in the movies when the main character is driving through the city at night with neon signs reflecting off the windshield. At this point I realize that I've bought a killer album.
Sunnaround You - Another vocal track. This is my least favorite song on the album, mainly because the lyrics sound so generic and Eric's voice is a bit weak.
Magnetized - The electric piano and guitar combination reminds me of Al Dimeola. Another jazzy number. Eric could have gone to town with lightning riffs on this, but he wisely restrained himself and went for atmosphere.
Ciel - A pretty classical tune that might well have been improvised.
Conclusion: Overall a very good album. Rich in musical styles and not as predictable as EJ's earlier material. The only song that I didn't really care for was Sunnaround You. Not bad for a 16-track CD.
Free Music Review: Not as good as his others, but still good ...
Hit: 4 Stars
I've been a big fan of Eric Johnson since first hearing Tones around 1990 (Tones was released in 1986). Although this album is very good, it covers a lot of the same territory that Tones, Ah Via Musicom and Venus Isle covered. Only on a few tracks does it sound like Eric tried to accomplish something "new" and "different."
I have to agree with the other reviewers here that the first six tracks are surprisingly simple and uninteresting. Sure they sound great, and the guitar playing is superb, but the compositional structure of each of these tracks is so straightforward it's surprising. It sounds as if, in his effort to create a "flawlessly produced record," Eric pared these songs down to just their basic parts. Even the guitar "pyrotechnics" are held down to a minimum. If only he had laid down a nice long, amazing solo on each of these tracks ...
The album starts to get interesting (although quite a bit mellower) with track 8, "Sad Legacy" (great song), and hits a peak with "From My Heart," arguably the best track on the disc. These tracks mark the beginning of the second part of the "trilogy" that makes up the disc (think of it as three EPs on one disc, with the second one being the strongest). This middle grouping ends with another brilliant track, "Your Sweet Eyes."
It's surprising to me that my favorite tracks are the ones with vocals. On his previous studio releases, the instrumental tracks were just as strong as the vocal tracks. But I'm afraid that's not the case with "Bloom." If you liked the vocal tracks on "Ah Via Musicom" and "Venus Isle," you'll find enough here to make it worthwhile. But if you only like Eric's blistering instrumentals, such as "Cliffs of Dover," you might be disappointed.
Still, though, as a fan I have to say this is a good record, overall. I can't find much fault with the instrumental tracks, other than to say they are simple and somewhat "uninspired" sounding.
The only other thing I can add is that this disc is recorded the same way "Venus Isle" was recorded - that sort of "hollow ," super-compressed sound (basically "over-produced" a la the 1990s style of recording). This, too, is kind of surprising. Why was Eric afraid to bring a new sound to this disc when all of the tracks are so much more of the same thing?
I hope we don't have to wait another 10 years for his next album.
Free Music Review: Great album from Mr. Johnson!
Hit: 4 Stars
I'll review the songs one by one. You won't find Eric's usual blazing fast licks on this album. There are some fast licks but he keeps them to a minimum, but that's ok because the music is beautiful!
1)Bloom- Nice way to kick off the album. I like this song.
2)Summer Jam- Another great fast paced song.
3)My Back Pages- One of the best songs on the album. Really catchy!
4)Good to Me- Great song with a catchy opening riff
5)Columbia- Wonderful song! It took me a couple listens to get into it, but it's really a great song.
6)12 to 12 Vibe- The first time I heard this it was on the G3 DVD where it was titled "Intro Song" It's a fast paced rocker with some outstanding licks!
7)Sea Secret- A mellow tune where Eric plays classical guitar. It reminds me of "Song for Lynette." I see it as an intro to the rest of the songs in the "Courante" section of the album.
8)Sad Legacy- One of my favorite tracks on the album with great lyrics. Love the chorus.
9)From My Heart- Meh...I don't really like this song. It's too long and drags on and on. Pretty boring.
10)Cruise the Nile- Middle eastern influences are heard here. Eric plays sitar. I don't really care for this one either :-(
11)Tribute to Jerry Reed- Makes ya wanna dance! A rockabilly tune. One of the album's highlights.
12)Your Sweet Eyes- The BEST song on the album! Great vocals from Eric. I hope he plays this one live.
13)Hesitant- A jazzy tune. Smooooth guitar playing. This one will put you to sleep if you listen to it through headphones, but not because it's boring but becuase it's a very smooth slow jazzy tune. Great song.
14)Sunnaround You- A sweet song. It's a nice tune. Might take a few listens to enjoy it though.
15)Magnetized- A fusion song. Another one of the many styles of music on this album. Love it!
16) Ciel- This is an OK song. Most of it sounds like just random notes played, but it's an OK song.
So there you have it. Another masterpiece from Eric. A great musical experience! You won't be dissapointed if you're a fan of Eric and enjoy good music. See you this Thursday (6/23)at the House of Blues Eric!!
Free Music Review: Thanks for another gem Eric
Hit: 4 Stars
I guess I'm going to have to resign myself to the fact that Venus Isle was a once-in-a-lifetime disc and get over it. Eric is brilliant, and most of the time he is so far ahead of the curve that nobody gets it. (See Electromagnets, 1976, if you have any doubts). This is why he's not front-page popular. Wait, you can only get front-page popular if you appeal to the teeny bopper set and have questionable amounts of actual musical talent or knowledge. (See Jessica Simpson, Avril, Alanis, etc..) I'm just as content knowing that Eric is out there doing what it is that he wants and not what some record executive is telling him to do. His ability spans many genres, which is admirable, and he showcases most of them here, which is, well, not coherent. Not that I'm anti-diversity by any means, but it seems that he could take any of the songs on here and make an entire theme album out of them (like Venus Isle) that would make us all jump out of our heads. That being said, the production is flawless, and the overall tone is squeaky clean, as you might expect from Baron Von Tone. Makes you want to go out and spend more money on stereo equipment... I guess we all got spoiled with the lush arrangements that came with Venus Isle (and all the work that went with them), and Eric is moving into a phase which is more stripped down. I do give him credit - his voice is sounding better than on previous releases, and there aren't any tracks on here that I find myself reaching for the track button. It's an engaging collection of tunes, and so a necessary part of any Eric Johnson collection. You won't be sorry adding it to yours.Free Music Review: a different direction?
Hit: 4 Stars
It sounds like EJ is intentionally not trying to repeat that power jam sound he had in Musicom and Venus Isle when you look at the three releases since then. Now it's seems it's about a softer jazzy/acoustic mellow EJ. That's all good and the playing on this release is still great, but for someone that was hoping for that style that made me a big EJ fan in his earlier stuff, is only at best sprinkled throught this release.
The production quality is roughly the same as the Seven Worlds release. It sounds dated. So I find myself listening to it knowing it should sound better anyway. The sound quality does not sound nearly as juicy/wet as the Musicom and Venus release. Souviner actually sounds like a newer release with fresher songs than this one and has more similar tones from the Musicom/Venus era.
The singing is only surprisingly ok, and is not as good as vocal tracks on previous cds.
I'm just surprised he signed off on the production sound as talented as he is. But I was looking for a handfull of songs on this release to justify driving 4hrs to Chicago to seem him on the current tour and I've decided to pass.
Maybe he's just not motivated anymore by that jammy rock sound that made him so many fans in the first place. But he's done such great work before, he's entitled to go in any direction he wants and I still hope he sells alot of this cd.
cheers!