A CLEAR TONE
Axeman Eric Johnson talks about his past, the guitar’s future
The guitar offers little wilderness for Eric Johnson, who has played with virtuosity through all manner of musical styles in a career that spans decades.
He most recently released a pair of albums in 2014. One, a live recording, suggested his compositions were clay rather than stone, as he eked out something new from the familiar. The other was a collaboration, with fellow guitar whiz Mike Stern, fittingly titled “Eclectic.”
That album found Johnson, 61, revisiting a piece, “Dry Ice,” from his days in the beloved Austin instrumental band Electromagnets. Similarly, he’s looking ahead and behind this year.
Johnson plays House of Blues Sunday and has five or six new tunes for electric guitar to join the core compositions from his solo recording career. He’s also likely to serve up one piece from forthcoming album “EJ,” which will be a bit of a shake-up for those accustomed to his amplified work.
Johnson recently talked to us about that departure and why there’s no more mystery in the guitar.
Q: There’s an exhibit of posters here from Austin in the ’70s, and
several were for Electromagnets shows. Do you look back fondly on those days?
A: Sure, those were the carefree days. (Laughs.) I’d wake up in the morning with nothing to do, no responsibilities at all. So I’d just play guitar all day long.
Q: I’d heard your father was quite a whistler. Is there any chance that is secretly respon-