A Trinket Worth The Price
Written: Jun 06 '03 (Updated Jun 06 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Nice collection of rarities
Cons: A few of the tunes are slices of cheese
The Bottom Line: Eric Johnson gives back to his fans in a neat way on this Internet only release.
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| e_burrell's Full Review: Souvenir - Eric Johnson Movies |
Every time I see Eric Johnson's face I feel spite, resentment and anger. You see, in my younger days when I was just learning to play guitar, someone very near and dear to me gave me the "Eric Johnson Total Electric Guitar" instructional video. many fruitless hours of watching, rewinding and re-watching later I finally gave up and the video has sat on my shelf for years.
Of course I've gone on to be a good guitarist, not nearly as technically proficient as Johnson (not even in the same universe) but decidedly with no thanks to Eric Johnson. With that said, and all animosity now aside - I'm here to spread the word on Johnson's new Internet-Purchase only disc "Souvenir".
It seems that Johnson has quite a back catalog of rarities, covers and off-the-wall tunes that have sat in closets and on the shelves in his studio and home. Believing that someone might be interested in this stuff led him to commit these songs to tape. Some he reworked, remixed and re-recorded, some are live and most are worth a listen.
Johnson always seemed to have a little more soul than contemporaries like Joe Satriani and Steve Vai - a fact that has always drawn me more to his music than most other 'technical guitarists'. I like my music to have more soul than math - call me crazy. On tunes like "Forever Yours" (which has some wonderful acoustic work) and "Climbing From Inside" Johnson explores the mushy stuff - from ballad to jazz - love is in the air.
While some listeners may find "Souvenir" to be over-produced, they'll find it hard to deny the power of the songs or the expert musicianship and artistry behind the tunes themselves. The charm of the album is the obvious fact that a majority of the tunes were recorded in home and private studios, not major label production facilities - giving the album a real homemade feel.
Even the obligatory instrumentals are worth repeat listens. "Space Of Clouds" reminds one of Pink Floyd. "Fanfare One" was something Johnson recorded in 1973 on a four-track recorder. It's a lot of fun to hear a young Johnson messing around.
A definite detractor is the wretched cover of The Beatles' "Paperback Writer" - yuck. Sure, it's all in fun - but better left off than listened to in my opinion.
Eric Johnson plans to release more albums via the internet, and I think it's kind of a cool idea. I wish more artists would do something along these lines for the fans. Production costs can't be too high - and I applaud the guy for giving back to his fans.
"Souvenir" may not be the ROCK album that we've all been waiting for this summer, but it's a cool drink swirling with guitar solos and cool ideas. Definitely worth a listen.
You can buy this album at www.ericjohnson.com only I believe.
OVERALL GRADE: B
Recommended:
Yes
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e_burrell
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Member: Eli Burrell
Location: Little Rock, AR
Reviews written: 253
Trusted by: 225 members
About Me:
Just trying to walk forward on this big old ball of dirt and water.
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