Customer Reviews

Ah Via Musicom

5 star:		(64)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

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.

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.

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.

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.

I have been an Eric Johnson fan since 1990 when I first bought this great album, and I've had the great fortune to see him play in Houston at the Mucky Duck and in Austin at the Ocean Club, both great performances (the first acoustic and the second electric). I'm frankly mystified at the predominant complaint in these reviews regarding Eric's voice. Am I missing something? I think he has an astonishingly beautiful voice -- in fact, it's one of the things I tell people when I recommend him (along of course with his amazing guitar virtuosity). Perhaps it is because it's not necessarily an overly masculine type of voice (it's more angelic than anything else), but I think that is actually a strong point for Eric, and it certainly matches the beauty and sensitivity of his music. My personal favorites on this album are Nothing Can Keep Me From You, Forty Mile Town, Desert Rose, High Landrons, Cliffs of Dover, and Trademark. If you've never heard Eric before, this is a great album to start with, although his other three are all nearly as good, and each worth their weight in gold. Thank you Eric for your gift to the world!

The Tao of electric guitar. Protege of Steve Morse, Eric Johnson is a prodigy few people have seen or heard. His songs are rarely, if ever, played - even on the the most "progressive" FM radio stations. And yet, he is, technically, a consumate artist. This album is a testament to his virtuosity.

This is a seminal electric-guitar driven album. For more Eric check out his "Live at Austin City Limits" DVD and marvel at his wizardry.

About six years ago, I was sitting in my basement playing video games with the radio on a random rock station. I left a cassette in my boombox's tape deck with the intention of recording a handful of interesting songs from whatever the DJ threw my way. What I was about to hear that day I could never have been prepared for. The DJ announced an artist and song title that were both then unfamiliar to me. The intro solo that followed flew right over my head as I had never heard such sounds come out of the radio before. It was such a surprise to me that I didn't even think to hit the record button until the song was about halfway over. When the song was over, I rewound the tape and listened to the portion that I had captured over and over again. It was breathtaking. With my terrible memory I could only recall the artist's name, Eric Johnson, when after a few weeks of incessantly playing that amazing song I decided I had to have that CD. So, I went online and diligently searched for the 'unknown song.' Thankfully, I took a chance on purchasing an album of Eric's called "Ah Via Musicom" hoping that my mystery song was on there. Several days later my CD arrived, and I hurriedly popped it into my portable CD player. The angelic-like textures of the title track were filled with 2:04 of pure anticipation that segued into a guitar solo intro that is to this day the most beautiful piece of guitar work I've ever heard. From the first note of that solo I knew I had finally found my mystery song and it was called "Cliffs of Dover." Finally hearing the song again in its entirety in crystal clear digital audio not only left me breathless, but it also brought me to tears. That's how powerful Eric Johnson's music is to me. It touches a part of my being in a way that few other musical works can even barely compare to. "Ah Via Musicom" opened my eyes to a world of music that I could only before have dreamed existed. I hope it does the same for you.

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.

Eric Johnson has a very unique style of guitar playing, mixing fingerpicking techniques with soft upwards plectrum strokes for a softer and mellow sound. I have seen countless live peformances of this guy and it still amazes me how flawless it is. Although sometimes pefection is a flaw in itself, the raw energy and emotion of someone like hendrix or Johnson's texas counterpart stevie ray vaughn will really get inside you. Johnson's playing is alot more pretty than any other guitarist ive ever heard, i really enjoy the use of delay and warm mellow distortion in his playing. I also like the fact that in a time when speed metal stacatto picking was popular he did something different.

I accidentally stumbled across Eric Johnson one day while listening to the various Music Choice channels. His song "Cliffs of Dover" was being played on the Power Rock channel, and I almost went into shock because the guitar work was so amazing. I had to know how the rest of the songs on the album sounded, so I got the cd.

There isn't really a good reason to not buy this cd. The only one I can think of would be that you don't like guitar. Even if you have only heard "Cliffs of Dover", you should still get this cd. The album begins with the "song" called "Ah Via Musicom," which acts as somewhat of an introduction to "Cliffs of Dover". I put "song" in quotations because the entire song consists of peaceful, somewhat spacial sounds that is similar to a band warming up. Then there is "Cliffs of Dover". If I have to explain just how good this song is to you, then you should probably have another listen to it. "Desert Rose" is one of the few songs that feature lyrics, which are sung by Johnson himself. The others include "High Landrons," "Nothing Can Keep Me From You," and "Forty Mile Town." Even though he isn't well-known for being a vocalist, I feel that he is very underrated as one. The songs "Steve's Boogie" and "Song for George" are short, yet sweet, and will have your foot tapping. "Trademark" begins with a sad feeling but shortly picks up and ends after a calm solo. "Righteous" is a song that has energy and features guitar work that is similar to that of "Cliffs of Dover". "East Wes" is the song that ends the cd, and because of it's sorrowful and moody tone and slow beat, it will most likely leave you feeling kind of blue.

So, if you couldn't tell from the text above, I absolutely love this cd and, as a guitar player myself, I recommend it to anyone who is even dreaming of playing guitar. The only downside is that you will have to practice for years in order to reach Eric Johnson's level. There's always air guitar, though.