ERIC JOHNSON

A NEW LIVE ALBUM FEATURING STEVE VAI, ERIC JOHNSON AND JOE SATRIANI DOCUMENTS A REUNION FOR THE MEMBERS OF THE ORIGINAL G3 TOUR THAT THUNDERED INTO THE WORLD BACK IN 1996. WE CHECK IN WITH ONE THIRD OF THE TRIUMVIRATE TO FIND OUT MORE

- David Mead

In the past, G3 tours have found many esteemed masters of shred take to the stage to thrill audiences worldwide. Players such as Steve Morse, Paul Gilbert, Yngwie Malmsteen, Uli Jon Roth and many more have sent flurries of 32nd notes out into the ether in the name of fretboard finesse. But way back in the mid-90s it was Joe Satriani, Steve Vai and Eric Johnson who started the G3 ball rolling. Last year, the three reassembled for a sell-out tour that has resulted in the album G3 Reunion Live, restating their preeminent position in guitar’s hall of fame.

You could say that if members of this particular G3 incarnation were The Beatles, then Eric Johnson would most certainly go down in history as being The Quiet One. Never one to entertain unnecessary flamboyance in his performance, the way Eric channels his virtuosity is positively laid-back and deeply melodic. When we settled down for our Zoom interview and asked what it was like to return to the G3 format, Eric was – like his playing – concise and to the point: “Oh, it was pretty amazing. A nice experience, kind of like picking up where we left off, I guess…”

The success of the recent G3 tour would indicate that there is still an audience for what is, to a large extent, instrumental guitar music.

“I think that there are people that always want to learn more about the instrument, or learn how to push the envelope, whether that's going to be their complete cup of tea or if that's just going to be a piece of the ingredients of what they want to do. I think there’s a faction of people that just want to pursue what they can get out of the instrument, and there’s all different styles of music where they can find that.”

Did you, Joe and Steve put the set together so that you complemented each other stylistically?