Live & Beyond [Live]

Eric Johnson (Rock) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 24, 2000)
• Original Release Date: October 24, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Live
• Label: Favored Nations
• ASIN: B00004Z43D
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (62 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #135,420 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great live recording of a guitar master, October 29, 2000

By 

James "theaxman" (Mission Viejo, California United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Live & Beyond (Audio CD)

This is clearly Eric Johnson's most accessible album. Although guitar fanatics such as myself will find plenty of inspiration, this record should have broader appeal than his prior studio recordings.

This CD comes on the heels of Eric's Venus Isle album (released in '96, I think) which was justifiably criticized for being too polished and somewhat sterile as a result of his reported obsession with achieving perfection in the studio. (I think that he DID achieve perfection with "Ah Via Musicom" however.) Recording a live record was the perfect way to avoid excessive tinkering and re-recording of the songs in the studio.

Although every song but one was recorded live in Austin, TX last January, it is all new material and it is excellent. This CD captures Eric's live sound very well and gives him the opportunity to show off what a great blues feel he has. In a couple of spots, he plays some extended solos that seem to be largely improvised. The singer from Storyville performs on two of the songs which added some vocal depth to the album.

Eric is absolutely one of the best guitar players out there -- he has incredible chops, the best guitar tone I have ever heard (on record and live), and a truly original style. All of these strengths are well represented in Alien Love Child: Live and Beyond. If you like guitar-oriented music, you can't go wrong with this album.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars could be the best of his career, February 24, 2001

By 

Steve Marshall "Steve" (St. Louis, MO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Live & Beyond (Audio CD)

The first time I saw Eric Johnson perform live was back in 1991 on the Ah Via Musicom tour. Johnson and his band put on one of the loudest shows I'd ever attended. People always compare him to the other guitar `gods,' Joe Satriani, Steve Morse, etc. To these ears, Johnson always had more passion in his playing. Sure, he could slip into `look what I can do' mode from time to time, but overall, his guitarwork was nothing short of breathtaking. It didn't matter if he was playing a Wes Montgomery-inspired jazz tune, dabbling in acoustic country/bluegrass, or just shredding in hard rock/metal mode. With EJ, it's all about the tone. It's amazing to hear just how many sounds he pulls out of a single guitar.

In October of 2000, Johnson released a live album with his latest band, Alien Love Child. Recorded live at Antone's in Austin, TX (a.k.a. the house that Stevie Ray Vaughan built), Eric is joined by Chris Maresh on bass and Bill Maddox on the drum kit. Live and Beyond features 10 new tracks--9 performed live and one in the studio. This album's a bit different though. Johnson's playing is noticeably more refined than before, and the overall style is more in a blues vein.

Starting with the instrumental "Zenland," Johnson and his band are in fine form. Maresh lays down a cool groove and turns in some great bass licks on the song. Up next is one of the best songs EJ has ever recorded--the smoldering 11-minute blues workout, "Last House on the Block." This is one of those songs that sticks in your head the first time you hear it, and Johnson's playing on the track is outstanding. His solo starts out quietly, then builds to a fiery crescendo before going back into the song's main theme. Up next are two instrumentals, "Rain" and "Enzo Shuffle." "Rain" is an introspective tune written by Maresh, while "Enzo Shuffle" finds the band in Johnson's classic rocking style.

Storyville vocalist, Malford Milligan joins the band for the slow burning blues number, "Once A Part Of Me," another of the many highlights on the disc. He sticks around for a cover of Jimmie Vaughan's shuffling "Don't Cha Know." You can almost hear everyone grinning onstage while they're playing this tune. Johnson cuts loose on his tribute to John Lee Hooker, "The Boogie King." The live tracks end with EJ's solo interlude, "Elevator Sky Movie" and another rocker "Shape I'm In." "World of Trouble" is the new studio track, a tasteful slow blues tune and another highlight.

Longtime Eric Johnson followers will undoubtedly love this album. The material is of a high enough caliber that it will most likely win him some new fans as well. Johnson's guitar playing is currently at an all-time high. He can still burn up the fretboard when he wants to, but at this point it's as though he knows he doesn't have to. The result is quite possibly the best album of his career.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As good as it gets!, October 30, 2000

By 

"mijstrat" (Westborough, MA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Live & Beyond (Audio CD)

I've been anticipating this album for some time (check out ericjohnson.com for the story) and it was worth the wait. EJ is one of the rare musicians/guitarists around today who have done their homework, synthesized their own style, and polished it to a diamond luster. There is a great range of style and vibe here, but it all hangs together.

It goes without saying that the musicianship is superb (not just EJ but the whole band) and the tone is amazing, as always. On "Boogie King" and "Last House" the tone is AMAZING. There are a couple quirks, like where it sounds like someone hit a button at the wrong time during the recording, but this is fine with me, makes it a real live album.

A couple of the cuts are very reminiscent of live Cream, but a lot tighter in terms of musical direction! But there are also tracks that are in a very cool Wes Montgomery style, rock solid Austin, Texas R&B (Shape I'm In), and one that I would call definitive "Eric Johnson guitar trippin'" (Elevator Sky Movie). As a live "guitar master" album I hold this one up in the same class with Clapton's "EC Was Here", Hendrix' "In the West" and "Band of Gypsies", and Ronnie Earl's "Live in Europe" as must haves.