ERIC JOHNSON – Europe Live (2014)

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It’s 28 years since ERIC JOHNSON’s head turning Tones album and his signature guitar tone remains a primary concern on the excellent “Europe Live“, Johnson’s just released CD capturing his 2013 tour where he conquered the continent with highly praised performances.
It’s an album that showcases his exciting flowing style and pushes fusion tinged bluesy melodic rock a step closer towards the mainstream.

First of all, if you avoid live albums, you’ll be committing an unforgivable mistake not listening “Europe Live”.
It’s recorded live, yes, but if you are aware Johnson’s perfectionism into the studio, you’ll know that this record sounds almost like ‘a live studio recording’, or if you prefer, Eric’s performance of his best material in an expansive way, feeling loosely to play longer solos, elastic arrangements, etc.

The setlist draw from the span of Johnson’s 35-year career and include two new compositions: the mesmeric “Intro”, which opens the set, and the rollicking rocker “Evinrude Fever” a song that alludes to Johnson’s love of water skiing and boating.
In addition, the disc features fresh performances of his Grammy-winning masterpiece “Cliffs of Dover” and Grammy-nominated track “Zap”. Other highlights include a stunning nine-and-a-half minute interpretation of John Coltrane’s “Mr. P.C.” and the 11-and-a-half-minute multimodal suite “Last House on the Block”, as well as performances of “Austin”, the beautiful “Forty Mile Town”, “Zenland” and more.

Much has been written about Eric Johnson’s incredible technique and deft use of tone, but as “Europe Live” demonstrates, he’s one of the few contemporary guitarists who manages to combine feel, tone and excitement to great effect.
This recording is packed with thrilling moments of breathtaking virtuosity and terrific band interplay. Each solo is a work of art and a narrative in its own right, as he extemporizes on a theme and takes it into different directions that weren’t probably even thought about at the outset of the song.
Spend just 5 just minutes in the company of an Eric Johnson gitar solo and you will be swept up in a celebration of the moment. The fact that each one of these magical excursions is an integral part of a song tells you all you need to know about a live album that revels in spontaneity.

On “Mr. P.C.” for example, he sets himself the tough task of transposing his delicate touch, tone and brilliant technique into meaningful emotion, over his bristling rhythm section. And he does so with a breathless exercise in visceral intensity, in which even Chris Maresh’s drum solo is a meaningful and expressive part of the arrangement.
There are some great dynamics at play, with Eric’s gentle pushes, probes and sudden note flurries, counter-weighted by more relaxed parts that always leave enough space to suggest there’s yet more to explore.
The short, fast changing, flowing instrumental opener ‘Intro’, sets the benchmark for a captivating album. Eric’s gently brushed strings allows him to achieve a violin style tone and leaves you in a limbo.
He segues into more up-tempo rocker “Zenland” with an altogether bigger tone. He hovers over the track and his attack is masterful, with a nuanced emphasis on a wide array of tones while making sure the whole thing somehow fits together.

Johnson revels in solos full of incremental surges on the uplifting and autobiographical “Austin” in perfect sync with the tension building rhythm section of drummer Wayne Salzmann and bassist Chris Maresh.
On “Manhattan” he temporarily abandons his warm tone for a far more trebly attack with a notably cleaner sound, as he paints his own audio portrait, before slipping back to a fatter sound for a brief solo.
He rocks out on a re-arranged version of “Zap”, an up tempo fusion number with a soaring melody. It’s full of stop-start rhythms and a ripping bass solo that leads to an exhilarating finale and gets a deserved roar from the crowd.
And then almost as if realising he’s hit a momentary high, he breaks things down in acoustic mode for the lyrical “Songs For Life”.
The short and sharp “Fatdaddy” illustrates his ability to launch himself into the most intense explorations at the drop of a hat, dragging his audience along with him into more expansive violin style soundscapes over a rumbling bass, on a piece that makes light of his power trio line-up.

The excellent vocals on the bluesy opening of the extended “The Last House On The Block” is no more than a precursor to his next dazzling solo. He duly takes the piece into an ethereal realm after the drop-down, letting his notes percolate and simmer and fill the room with a meditative feel.
A momentary pause and a subsequent big toned attack allows him to explore wave upon wave of meandering notes, as drummer Salzmann beautifully shapes things up. It’s a perfect example of the band’s intuitive interplay and eagerness to stretch out when they can on a definitive track.
I’ve always enjoyed Eric’s flowing style, but songs like this nail his unique tone, focussed intensity and his ability to build up a meaningful solo before imaginatively searching for a resolution.

Eric Johnson is a guitarist who is equally at home exploring ambient tones, leaning into solos with rock style intensity, or perfecting the simplest of songs, and it is this arc of exploration that gives “Europe Live” its substance.
Listen to the jammed out encore of “Evinrude Fever” for example, and you’re listening to a road sharpened, inspired band, while “Cliffs Of Dover is just perfect adding a jaunty, almost Celtic flavour to his melodic lines.

“Europe Live” is a superb album and serves as a thrilling introduction to those still unfamiliar with one of the most enthralling players of his generation. Eric Johnson’s sparkling music is a joyous celebration of the here and now.
His on stage persona might be introverted but when he flies with his trusty trio, he’s reaching for the stars. 5 Stars, I’d say.
A MUST HAVE.

01 – Intro
02 – Zenland
03 – Austin
04 – Forty Mile Town
05 – Mr. P.C.
06 – Manhattan
07 – Zap
08 – Song For Life
09 – Fatdaddy
10 – Last House On The Block
11 – Interlude
12 – Cliffs Of Dover
13 – Evinrude Fever
14 – Sun Reprise

Eric Johnson – Guitars, Vocals
Wayne Salzmann – Drums
Chris Maresh – Bass

BUY IT !
www.mascotlabelgroup.com/ericjohnson-liveineurope.html
www.amazon.com/Europe-Live-Eric-Johnson/dp/B00JQPOYAC
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