Eric Johnson at the Grove of Anaheim

May 3rd, 2006

I had the opportunity to see Eric Johnson perform some of the numbers from Bloom at the Grove in Anaheim on May 3rd. It seems that the Grammy winner is almost always touring -- as a headliner, co-headliner, or -- as was the case on this evening -- an opening act.

Eric Johnson and
bassist Chris Maresh The Grove is an intimate dinner-theater improbably located in the Anaheim Stadium parking lot. On the outside, it looks like a large movie sound stage... with lots of parking. Inside, it is cozy with a good sized lobby and a quasi-exclusive lounge beset with lavish chairs, near-eastern throw rugs, and $15 drinks. Despite the pricey libations, this hall is not to be missed.

No seat is more than a tomato's throw away from the performer, should they leave their chops at home, with excellent sightlines and nice acoustics. The standing room only "pit" up front put fans close enough to reach out and touch the stage. Such intimacy is a definite plus for the performer, as Johnson himself testified.

"That's one of my favorite places to play," he said in a telephone interview before the performance. "You can really connect with the audience there."

As the opener for Joe Satriani, who was recording his performance for a forthcoming DVD, Johnson didn't get much leeway with regards to setup or set length. His show clipped along briskly and clocked in at right around an hour.

Johnson's dazzling technique The show opened as Johnson's CD does, with a rocking version of "Summer Jam." From the opening measures, it was apparent that Johnson need not fear any hurled fruit. The band was tight, while the guitarist's playing was blistering, his phrasing all over the neck. Having seen him play before, I'd always been impressed with the bidexteral gymnastics Johnson goes through as he plays through each number. Unlike many guitarists, whose hands seem to kind of root in one spot, Johnson is a zephyr -- up, down, left, and right.

"I still practice every day," he told me. "I have to, otherwise I wouldn't be able to do it. I have a digital setup backstage which I use for practicing, which is very convenient. I can get all the sounds out of one little box."

On stage, he plugged into his usual assortment of analog "old stuff" and ran through a spirited collection of new material, older staples, and some covers that were guaranteed crowd-pleasers, including the double-take performance of the evening, when Johnson, drummer Tommy Taylor and bassist Chris Maresh laid into a surprisingly stellar rendition of "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You," by none other than the Monkees.

Tone, style, and dig that shirt! "I have a lot of fun reinterpretting songs in a new way. Sometimes you can take a number where people might think, 'Are you crazy?' and put a different spin on it to make it interesting," Johnson admitted wryly. "We kept the basic structure. It's the same song the Monkees play, only with a lot more distortion."

Michael Nesmith, eat your heart out.

As with "My Back Pages," earlier in the set, Eric took the number and, with a liberal application of his signature tone, made it his own, adding a shot of fun to the set in the process.

Overall, the set was tightly organized and convincingly performed, if a bit short. Excellent renditions of Bob Dylan's "My Back Pages," Jimi Hendrix's "Manic Depression," grouped with sharp performances of "SRV" and "Trademark" off of his earlier releases left fans with plenty to sink their teeth into. Johnson also gave the crowd a good introduction to his eclectic new material, including the techno-influenced "Good To Me," and a rollicking "Tribute to Jerry Reed" ("You can get up and square dance if you want to," he said during the song's introduction). He finished things up with an extended "Cliffs of Dover," which put a solid cap on an energizing show, leaving fans ready for Satriani -- "in the mood to play his guitar" as he announced to the audience after listening to Johnson's set backstage.

• Discuss this article