Anthology

ERIC JOHNSON incorporates Jazz, fusion, New Age, gospel and country into his guitar compositions. Johnson’s stylistic diversity has garnered him critical acclaim and a 1991 Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.

Born into a musical family, Johnson and his three sisters studied piano. He started learning guitar at the tender age of 11 and began listening to Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Cream and other rock legends. At 15, he joined his first professional band, Mariani, a psychedelic rock outfit. After traveling around, Johnson joined a local fusion group called Electromagnets, but the band disbanded 3 years later in 1977.

Johnson started working as a studio musician for Cat Stevens, Carole King and Christopher Cross. In 1984 he signed to Warner Bros. Records and, in 1986, Johnson’s “Tones” was unveiled. Although the album didn’t sell well, it marked the beginning of Johnson being recognized by the press and winning awards for his musicianship.

An admitted perfectionist, Johnson spent years on subsequent albums scrapping and re-working songs endlessly. In 1994, he formed a side project called Alien Love Child, which received positive fan feedback and therefore became a permanent gig. In 2002, Johnson finally returned to the studio and released Souvenir on his own Vortexan Records. He followed this album up with Bloom, which was divided into three genre sections showcasing his versatility.

His “Cliffs of Dover” appears in Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock and Johnson is participating in “Operation Immortality,” a digital time capsule of DNA and humanity’s achievements.