Call me crazy but

  • Thread starter Thread starter Gainzilla
  • Start date Start date
I'm with you Kage. When he was at the top of his game he was untouchable, IMO. He's changed gears a bit since. But that's OK. He kind of exploded with Cliffs and blew everybody away - the list of people who have done that is a pretty short one. You can only really do that once - after that everybody wants you to keep creating that magic and it's really impossible. Like Daffy Duck LOL

 
He's without a doubt one of my favorite players ever. He's absolutely up there with any of the greats IMO. I think he has it all but at the same time I agree his vocals aren't my favorite BUT they do suit his music well. Same as far as rawness goes, he definitely isn't "edgy" but I listen to other guys for that. I think Venus Isle is my favorite by him and I've watched the ACL dvd tons of times :lol: :LOL:
 
Always love me some EJ! He's a "player's player", along with the likes of Holdsworth, etc.

But I think that those guys are just one notch below the icons like Hendrix and EVH. NOT in terms of technical ability, knowledge of the instrument, musical artistry, tonefullness, or any of those traits. Just because guys like Hendrix and EVH truly CHANGED the course of guitarcraft in a momumental way. True game-changers! I would add my personal "guitar god" Yngwie to that list, because it truly ushered in the era of the shredder.

Anyways... EJ is awesome, and the rest are awesome. I just wanted to add that thought. :rock:
 
Red_Label":opvkju9i said:
Always love me some EJ! He's a "player's player", along with the likes of Holdsworth, etc.

But I think that those guys are just one notch below the icons like Hendrix and EVH. NOT in terms of technical ability, knowledge of the instrument, musical artistry, tonefullness, or any of those traits. Just because guys like Hendrix and EVH truly CHANGED the course of guitarcraft in a momumental way. True game-changers! I would add my personal "guitar god" Yngwie to that list, because it truly ushered in the era of the shredder.

Anyways... EJ is awesome, and the rest are awesome. I just wanted to add that thought. :rock:
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I think that EJ is a game changer as well; His style is completely unique and out of left field. Ive seen tons of guys do great Jimi,EVH and Yngwie impressions but the only guys that Ive ever seen do great EJ impressions are MONSTERS Like Pat mentioned; Bonamassa,Gales and Lane. What the guy does is simply beyond the grasp of the majority of 99.9 of mere mortals out there...
 
Gainzilla":2zkrx1fv said:
Red_Label":2zkrx1fv said:
Always love me some EJ! He's a "player's player", along with the likes of Holdsworth, etc.

But I think that those guys are just one notch below the icons like Hendrix and EVH. NOT in terms of technical ability, knowledge of the instrument, musical artistry, tonefullness, or any of those traits. Just because guys like Hendrix and EVH truly CHANGED the course of guitarcraft in a momumental way. True game-changers! I would add my personal "guitar god" Yngwie to that list, because it truly ushered in the era of the shredder.

Anyways... EJ is awesome, and the rest are awesome. I just wanted to add that thought. :rock:
Click to expand...

I think that EJ is a game changer as well; His style is completely unique and out of left field. Ive seen tons of guys do great Jimi,EVH and Yngwie impressions but the only guys that Ive ever seen do great EJ impressions are MONSTERS Like Pat mentioned; Bonamassa,Gales and Lane. What the guy does is simply beyond the grasp of the majority of 99.9 of mere mortals out there...
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I hear what you're saying. I guess that for me a "game changer" is a guy who makes such a big splash that the entire discipline of guitar playing has its course forever altered. I remember hearing about EJ way back in the early 80s while reading interviews with guys like SRV, Steve Morse, etc. So he's been on my radar since way back then. And while I think that he's influences a lot of players (especially in terms of TONE), I just don't see the non-subtle and lasting impact on the overall craft of guitar from him that I've seen with the biggest icons. Doesn't take ANYTHING away from Johnson as a player. Cause I'd rather listen to him ANY day than Hendrix, and maybe even Eddie.

At any rate, I think that we're nitpicking here cause we both agree that EJ is an AWESOME player. :D
 
It's difficult to categorize artists because Jimi and Eddie were products of much different times than EJ. He didn't really get notoriety until when? 1990 with "Ah Via Musicom"? He was even dropped from his record label after "Venus Isle".

In the 60s, 70s, and 80s, guitar-driven tracks were the music that everyone listened too. Everyone knows who Jimi Hendrix and Eddie Van Halen are. In the 90s, it was Dave Matthews and Kurt Cobain. Today, it's Bieber... The age of the shredder ended around "Ah Via Musicom" and music from the 60s, 70s, and 80s have become such a niche area it isn't even funny. Today's guitarists have odds stacked against them unlike anything their influences have seen. The mainstream doesn't care about anything guitar anymore unless it's Nickleback, and to guys like us, that shit doesn't count. Eric Johnson pioneered a style just like Jimi and Eddie did. I would even throw Beck in there with his whammy and finger-style antics. Yeah, Casswell can do it too, but who did it first?

Maybe the reason EJ's impact isn't as prominent is because the average decent player has difficulty copping his licks?
 
Jimmy R":1snhlss5 said:
Maybe the reason EJ's impact isn't as prominent is because the average decent player has difficulty copping his licks?
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Werd! I'm sure that's part of it.

Now granted, back in the mid-80s when Yngwie exploded, the "average" player couldn't even come close to copping that stuff either. You had to be OBSESSED (as I was) with his playing to want to sit there and painstakingly learn it note-for-note. Holdsworth is/was the same way. In fact, though I caught-on to Yngwie's schtick, I never did with Alan's.

And then there was VH's "You Really Got Me" and "Ain't Talkin Bout Love" (which helps prove your point). :lol: :LOL:
 
Jimmy R":1qwbevxx said:
Maybe the reason EJ's impact isn't as prominent is because the average decent player has difficulty copping his licks?
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Yeah, thats exactly the point that I was trying to make and think that it may be a large part of it.
 
Gainzilla":2uty50op said:
As AWESOME as that was , FOR THE LOVE OF GOD JOE, PLEASE GO BACK TO PLAYING STRATS!!!!!!
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Kage. You the man.

I get the Les Paul in Black Country (though I strain to listen to the congested midrangy tone of his Les Pauls sometimes) but his solo stuff benefitted from the Strats and Tele's.

He's still great. I wish him the best. I buy everything he puts out because he has his musical integrity hat on at all times. :thumbsup:
 
LOVE EJ! We recently sold and EMB Audio wah to his tech and Eric was blown away by it, so hopefully it ends up in his rig soon :) Apparently he was having some issues with several pieces of his gear mid show, but as always pulled it off like a total pro and was amazing. I'm gonna be meeting up with them for a few of the west coast shows next month and I'm super stoked! Always a good show =)
 
Love me some EJ, but Beck is the one that blows me away. Total control and amazing feel...
 
Gainzilla said:
The guy has it all; Chops, Voice, incredible songwriting and compositional skill. Everything about him is so unique and original IMHO I truly believe ( and hope) that when people look back in 20+ years , he is remembered as one of the all time greats, up there with the likes of Jimi and Eddie./quote]


He has just never had the non-guitarist love as others have. Which will make it virtually impossible to ever have that same reverence among the average person. Maybe among guitarist, but not the average listener. :(
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Gainzilla":2irms8zy said:
Jimmy R":2irms8zy said:
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As AWESOME as that was , FOR THE LOVE OF GOD JOE, PLEASE GO BACK TO PLAYING STRATS!!!!!!
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I'm not a big JB fan but I actually like his Les Paul tone better ;)
 
Badronald":1ueab9wo said:
Gainzilla":1ueab9wo said:
As AWESOME as that was , FOR THE LOVE OF GOD JOE, PLEASE GO BACK TO PLAYING STRATS!!!!!!
Click to expand...

Kage. You the man.

I get the Les Paul in Black Country (though I strain to listen to the congested midrangy tone of his Les Pauls sometimes) but his solo stuff benefitted from the Strats and Tele's.

He's still great. I wish him the best. I buy everything he puts out because he has his musical integrity hat on at all times. :thumbsup:
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Ditto

Also, pics of EJ's pedalboard can be found here - http://ericjohnson.com/index.php?option ... 0&Itemid=8
 
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