Eric Johnson – Bloom
While he is best known for the ageless Ah Via Musicon (1990), there is no reason he should be one of the forgotten. In case you didn’t know it, he never left the game nor has he lost the touch. His latest creation called Bloom comes six, count them, six albums after his hit classic. The preceding productions include Venus Isle (1996), Seven Worlds (1998), Alien Love Child: Live and Beyond (2000), and Souvenir (2002). After three years pumping iron in the weight room, this production has one the strongest physic ever seen coming out of this training camp.
Not only is he fresh from the bull pen, but his pitches have an astonishing amount of heat on them. They come so blazingly fast, you’ll find yourself swinging late, trying to keep up. The music in this album is so impressive, it will take several sessions to get the timing right. He hits us with sinkers, fast balls, screwballs, and changeups without tiring for one second. You’ll need a breather before going back to the batting box. After you’ve struck out, you may want to go to the slower, less complicated batting cages in order to build your confidence back up.
Over the past 15 years, Eric has continued to make excellent music and this album is by no means an exception. To the contrary, this not only has his trademark sound, but it’s retrofitted with many innovative parts. He takes his well-known chassis and gives it twice the horsepower. He doesn’t seem to work very hard to accelerate with this newly redesigned engine. We go from zero to sixty in no time flat. It has all the looks and stylings of the most popular sports cars and it moves instead like a cheetah on crack. This is like a Dodge Viper Venon and it’s lubed up and ready to go. With a fine-tuned suspension, this vehicle couldn’t be any more fun to drive. Placed upon a platform for all to lust, the slots say you can win this status symbol with just the right combination. I suspect many credits will be gobbled up trying to earn it out of envy.
Here’s what you’ll find under the hood of Eric’s latest showpiece:
The first six tracks work as a prelude. They incrementally
add impact and build upon the tempo. Starting with Bloom, the sun begins to
rise. Going from the sweltering Summer Jam to the catchy
When we work our way into Sea Secret, it’s time for an afternoon siesta. This starts the section entitled Courante. Afterwards, we wake up to a spread of several swanky items. The shorter pieces in this section (Sea Secret, Cruise the Nile, Tribute to Jerry Reed) work as a plethora of pleasing appetizers while the slabs on the larger saucers (From My Heart, Your Sweet Eyes) supply tasty sustenance. The only medium-sized platter, Sad Legacy, comes with a voice and it’s sung is a manner similar to Seal. While it’s out of place, this unusual guest will certainly be welcomed. Following close behind comes another visitor, From My Heart, that expresses its own vocal variety. These parts are sung by Eric himself. His voice is both amicable and impressive.
Without knowing, you’d never think such a talented guitarist could also sing. He does so with sophisticated refinement. Even though his voice is a secondary instrument, nothing lacks in the parts where he is singing. It works quite well with all his melodies and rhythms. Unfortunately, just a few songs feature Eric’s voice front and center. There are other places where he provides background voices, but they’re so buried you wouldn’t know they were there unless you were actually looking for them. Other friends (Steve Barber, Jody Lazo, Lisa Tingle) bring their voices to help out in the backyard too. Not to mention, Shawn Colvin comes to town in order to sing lead on the song, Your Sweet Eyes.
After working our way through the entertaining middle, we close up shop with a short, but snappy section. These remaining four songs come together in a grouping called Aleemande. These pieces are more along the lines of contemporary jazz. The first (Hesitant) sounds like Sting’s They Dance Alone, the second (Sunnaround You) is a sweet serenade and also the last opportunity to hear Eric’s elegant singing. The second to last track (Magnetized) is funky while the final number (Ciel) is almost Celtic in nature.
Eric, in addition to various types of guitars (electric, classical, lap steel) and singing, plays the bass, piano, and synth. To fill in any remaining cracks, there are numerous guest instrumentalists as well who assist with the album (Tal Bergman, Drums; Tommy Taylor, Drums, Percussion; Bill Maddox, Drums; Chris Maresh, Bass; Tony Philips, Drums, Bass, Synth, Salvatore Banzai La Rocca, Harp; James Fenner, Percusssion; Tom Brechtlein, Drums; Barry “Frosty” Smith, Drums; Tom Burritt, Percussion; Roscoe Beck, Bass; Adrian Legg, Guest Soloist; Richard Mullen, Drum Programming; Brad Evilsizer, Perucssion).
My favorite section of them all is Prelude, but if I had to settle on one song, my favorite is probably Sad Legacy from the Courante section. I am a sucker for lyrics in my music; however, I must say that the instrumentations in the opening section are outright amazing.
This may actually be Eric Johnson’s best album to date. To stress an important point, it has all the allure of his famous landmark pieces, but it adds a touch of today’s technology along with artistic arrangements and keen songwriting style. All in all, it covers a lot of ground and it’s ultra-impressive. Even if your approach to the cards is tight and aggressive, taking a chance on this album is almost no gamble at all. If you’re lucky enough to get your hands on this disc, there is no question in my mind that you’re holding a winning hand.
9/10