Ah Via Musicom

Eric Johnson | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 28, 1990)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Capitol
• ASIN: B000002UTB
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (117 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,063 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #37 in Music > Jazz > Jazz Fusion
  • #67 in Music > Rock > Rock Guitarists

Track Listings

1. Ah Via Musicom

2. Cliffs Of Dover

3. Desert Rose

4. High Landrons

5. Steve's Boogie

6. Trademark

7. Nothing Can Keep Me From You

8. Song For George

9. Righteous

10. Forty Mile Town

11. East Wes

Editorial Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 31 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Rides the kife-edge between cheesy and intensely cool August 21, 2004

By Poser P

Format:Audio CD

What do I say about this record? Can I possibly express how it's shaped me through all my various stages, from rock and jazz to funk to hip-hop to psychadelic trance and breaks? I guess one has to be familiar with the mountains, and do lots of solo hikes to really dig the magnitude of "High Landrons", as that song was made for sitting on top of a mountain and contemplating the world. In the town where I grew up, you could hear the trains pass at night even though the tracks were miles away -- "Forty Mile Town". And I dare you to sit outside (or in a house with lots of glass) and look at the stars and the moon and listen to "East Wes" without feeling a thousand deep emotions at once.

If ever an album rode that mile-high razor's edge between pure cheese and deeply moving rock-and-roll, this is it. "Cliffs of Dover" is the song most folks cite as their first Eric Johnson experience, and to hear it in context with Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and all the other stuff coming out in the early 90's is to realize just how different a cat Eric really is. Here he has washy reverb all over the track, high-falutin' guitar pyrotechnics, and a myriad of swooshes and swirls and shimmering cymbals. All the makings of a Kurt Bestor or Yanni song, yet the depths here reach to the very bottom of your soul and there's only one word which adequately describes the feeling you get -- stately, regal, as if you were blessed to be king for a day and the best musicians in the land made music in your honor.

And despite all that it's an excellent record. Not only does it not dive into rock dumbness or Yanni cheese, it also manages to use every smooth jazz effect and _still_ not sound like crap. Witness "East Wes", Eric's tribute to Wes Montgomery. You could almost hear this song on a smooth jazz station (the antithesis of good music), but if you did it'd make everything else sound like the consumer plastic it is. Eric isn't trying to do straight-ahead Jazz, instead he's showing us this whole other world where none of these genre references really make sense.

It's not often that someone makes a really great record. It's even more rare when almost all the songs stand outside the accepted limits of hipness and make the rest of music look so unnecessary. Highly recommended. Read more ›

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Perfect Execution of a great Guitar Style May 14, 2000

By William M. Rand

Format:Audio CD

Eric Johnson has a perfect knack at the guitar as everyone knows, and this is one of the most technically well done albums ever. I still prefer this CD to some of his more recent work like Venus Isle, simply because this CD is filled with more of the great classical rock style that I like. Of course "Cliffs of Dover" is a great song, but I even like some of the more country type stylings of "Desert Rose" and I don't even like country sound that much. Highly reccomended for anyone who loves to hear a perfect guitar player, this is as close as it gets. My only complaint is that he's almost too good, the technical proficiency almost seems to trade off a little with the emotions of the music, maybe its just me I find myself listening so closely to the guitar that I don't let myself get carried away by the overall sound. Overall though if you like great guitar rock this is a must have.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Eclectic and Cheerful March 14, 2000

By J O'Malley

Format:Audio CD

Ah Via Musicom is a terrific little album, filled with an eclectic mix of songs by guitar virtuoso Eric Johnson. He's got a tremendous style yet doesn't hit you over the head like a ton of bricks with overkill solo playing.
I first heard of him when the instrumental Cliffs Of Dover first hit the airwaves almost 10 years ago. It's a soaring and cheery mix of Rock and Country/Blues. Shortly after finding out who was responsible for it, I picked up the CD. I was pleasently surprised upon listening to the rest of the album. It turns out he's pretty good singer as well. Song highlights include: Desert Rose, a nice rock/pop song that features a tasteful guitar solo, High Landrons, a terrific song that perfectly captures the atmospheric lyrics. Steve's Boogie.. says it all. Trademark is a cool and melodic loping instrumental, Song For George is a bluesy acoustic guitar piece, and Righteous, which sounds like a fun ZZ Top instrumental.
On the album Eric Johnson is backed by talented musicians including Tommy Taylor, Kyle Brock, Steve Barber & Roscoe Beck. Ah Via Musicom is an excellent album that's perfect listening on those summer drives with the windows open or the top down.

24 of 30 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The most stunning electric guitar playing I've ever heard. December 8, 2001

By Mark J. Fowler VINE VOICE

Format:Audio CD

Eric Johnson is the MAN. His guitar technique is second to none. Now, take THAT technique and imagine a studio perfectionist who takes the time to record, over and over again, so that he can get down the PERFECT take. That is THIS album. Cliffs of Dover is the most unbelievable electric guitar instrument ever recorded, in my humble opinion. The other cuts on this CD represent a large variety of different musical styles, including some country pickin' and lovely acoustic blues. We are not worthy.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars You've been looking for this ... October 10, 2002

By Nicolas Picard

Format:Audio CD

I discovered this guy by pure accident a decade ago (was it that long?). A friend was a fan, and when I saw him on "Austin City Limits", I recorded it, not paying much attention. It's only when I listened to it after the fact that I realized that I too was going to become a fan.
Johnson often gets flogged for being too perfect in execution, not emotive enough. But whenever I hear these charges I think back to the raw energy I was seeing him display on that tape, and I can't but dismiss them summarily. Live, he performed Hendrix's "Love or Confusion", and the now ubiquitous "Cliffs of Dover", interspersing its famous melodic line within frequent bouts of fiery improvisation. Never out of control. Never trite and clicheed. His execution is indeed flawless, but it's the kind of flawlessness that comes from utter mastery, and not unimaginative cautiousness. Johnson strives for the level of precision and musicianship one finds in top-notch classical musicians. All too often, guitarists hide their flaws in layers of effects and ambient noise, but Johnson puts his sound front and center, and does so with a level of execution not unlike some of the world's finest violinists or cellists. Arch your brow if you must, but all instruments have their virtuosos. Johnson is to the guitar what Paganini was to the violin.
"Ah Via Musicom" reflects, both thematically and musically, the best Johnson has to offer. It is varied--mixing the country hybrid-picking of "Song For George" with fusion numbers like "Trademark", my favourite--and utterly compelling. As the title of the album implies, it is through the music that you will understand.