Uploaded December 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
Four years before the release of his debut solo album "Tones," Eric Johnson did this wide-ranging interview. At the time it was unusual for me to interview a guitarist who didn’t have national recognition or even an album to promote, but all it took was a pair of ears to hear that Eric Johnson already was an extraordinary musician.
As a staff editor for Guitar Player magazine, I was continually hearing about superb guitarists who, for various reasons, were largely unknown. What set Eric apart was who was talking about him -- first Johnny Winter, then Billy Gibbons and Steve Morse. The most eye-opening quote came from Jeff Baxter: “Eric Johnson is just amazing!” Jeff said. “When I heard a tape of him, I went ape. This might sound silly, but if Jimi Hendrix had gone on to study with Howard Roberts for about eight years, you’d have what this kid strikes me as.”
This very early Eric Johnson interview took place on September 27, 1982. I assembled portions of his answers into an as-told-to feature article in the December 1982 issue of Guitar Player. Here, with Eric’s kind permission, is the world debut of the audio.
Thanks to engineer/producer Nik Hunt for filming the intro and outro and enhancing the sound of the 43-year-old master tape.
For more than 270 other blues-, rock-, and guitar-intensive podcasts, interview transcripts, and articles, visit the magazine version of "Talking Guitar" at jasobrecht.substack.com/. #ericjohnson #jasobrecht #talkingguitar #nikhunt
This podcast © 2026 Jas Obrecht. All right reserved.
Four years before the release of his debut solo album "Tones," Eric Johnson did this wide-ranging interview. At the time it was unusual for me to interview a guitarist who didn’t have national recognition or even an album to promote, but all it took was a pair of ears to hear that Eric Johnson already was an extraordinary musician.
As a staff editor for Guitar Player magazine, I was continually hearing about superb guitarists who, for various reasons, were largely unknown. What set Eric apart was who was talking about him -- first Johnny Winter, then Billy Gibbons and Steve Morse. The most eye-opening quote came from Jeff Baxter: “Eric Johnson is just amazing!” Jeff said. “When I heard a tape of him, I went ape. This might sound silly, but if Jimi Hendrix had gone on to study with Howard Roberts for about eight years, you’d have what this kid strikes me as.”
This very early Eric Johnson interview took place on September 27, 1982. I assembled portions of his answers into an as-told-to feature article in the December 1982 issue of Guitar Player. Here, with Eric’s kind permission, is the world debut of the audio.
Thanks to engineer/producer Nik Hunt for filming the intro and outro and enhancing the sound of the 43-year-old master tape.
For more than 270 other blues-, rock-, and guitar-intensive podcasts, interview transcripts, and articles, visit the magazine version of "Talking Guitar" at jasobrecht.substack.com/. #ericjohnson #jasobrecht #talkingguitar #nikhunt
This podcast © 2026 Jas Obrecht. All right reserved.
