Eric Johnson

When Heritage Live recently pulled the plug on the planned series of Summer concerts at the Sandringham Estate, I somehow assumed that my chances of seeing a guitar legend called Eric had simply vanished with the bath water. Last night, at Epic Studios in Norwich, I was totally blown away by another Eric, Texan-born guitarist Eric Johnson, a decade younger than Clapton at a mere 71 years of age but, clearly also a legend in his own lifetime.

Johnson first formed Mariani, a psychedelic rock band in 1969. During the '70s he was a member of Electromagnets, sometimes referred to as the ‘Mahavishnu Orchestra of Texas’. In 1984 he was signed to Warner Brothers and released his first solo album. Since 2003 he has released work on his own Vortexan label, and worked extensively as a session guitarist for everyone from Cat Stevens to Carole King. The 2026 Texaphonic Tour of Europe sees Johnson play his first UK gigs in over ten years, and his appearance at Epic Studios is his first ever visit to Norwich. No wonder the queues were stretching up Magdalen Street, almost as far as the Magpie Road traffic lights, by the time I arrived just before doors at 7.00pm.

Usually on this tour Johnson, who is joined by multi Grammy-nominated Tennessee bass player Daniel Kimbro and legendary drummer Tal Bergman, has opted to play a single extended set, with five acoustic numbers book-ended by two separate electric sessions. Maybe it was because it was a very warm summer evening, and maybe because the venue felt that the largely seated audience would want an interval in order to recharge their glasses, Johnson instead changes to two forty-five minute sets, and leaving the acoustic numbers for the beginning of the second half.

What we do get, though, is a blistering first half, beginning with ‘Righteous’, a full on blues rocker taken from the 1990 album ‘Ah Via Musicom’, which is followed by ‘SRV’, a later track written and dedicated to Stevie Ray Vaughan. I am immediately impressed by both the technical and artistic brilliance of Johnson’s playing – he really is a master of touch, tone and technique, and a total contrast from the ‘other Eric’ who opts more in nudgy bends and blues-based phrasing in order to create his signature sound. Johnson reminds me more, perhaps, of Jeff Beck, really managing to make his guitar speak; and also of an album I bought way back in 1973 – ‘Birds of Fire’ by the Mahavishnu Orchestra . In fact, Electromagnets, an early fusion band founded by Johnson was sometimes referred to as the ‘Mahavishnu Orchestra of Texas’.

‘Forty Mile Town’ is one of just two vocal tracks of the evening – quiet and reflective, and readying us for a scintillating jazz fusion version of the Duke Ellington classic, ‘Caravan’, in which Daniel Kimbro unleashes the first of the night’s two stunning bass solos. ‘Friends’, the other vocal track, develops into yet an improvised excursion that simply dazzles with its brilliance. The first half concludes with ‘Zap’, a high energy burst of virtuosity taken from Johnson’s first album ‘Tones’, a track that went on to be nominated in the Best Rock Instrumental Performance category at the 1987 Grammy Awards.

The second half begins with the acoustic selection, starting with the gentle ‘Resolution’, and continuing with the beautiful ‘Abelia’-  two tracks that, together, highlight the delicate and lyrical finger-picking style of Johnson’s acoustic work. ‘Chester’ is a light and heartfelt tribute to the late great Chet Atkins, and is followed by what is possibly the greatest bass guitar solo I have ever heard in my life, played by Daniel Kimbro after having switched to a five-string instrument. Simply stunning. ‘Once Upon A Time In Texas’ and ‘Song For George’ conclude the acoustic section, and so it is back to the electric guitar on the final run for home.