Up Close

Not EJ's best album, but it's really good. I could have lived without hearing Steve Miller sing, that's for sure. It just seems a little less cohesive than Eric's prior work. But he also didn't spent 7 years making it either. It's not a masterpiece like Venus Isle, but I think EJ was trying to not chase his tail in the studio, so I can understand that. He was going for a more spontaneity with this one, whereas Venus Isle was laboriously and meticulously crafted. Nothing wrong with either approach, just different.

Like many of my favorite albums, this one grew on me the more I listened to it. Eric has some guest singers on a few tracks, which was cool. His lead tone has evolved over the years. There's definitely less delay on this album than in the past; giving it a more natural sound. I like it.Instrumental Tunes: 'Fatdaddy' and 'Vortexan' to me seem like generic bluesy-rock space-fillers without much meat. I felt the same way about 'Camel's Night Out' and some of Eric's other previous tracks. Conversely, the instrumental tune 'Gem' is catchy. Think 'Pavilion'. I think the chicken pickin' tune 'On the Way' is unremarkable.Vocal Tunes: Honestly, I've always found Eric's lyrics a bit trite and obtuse. I felt the same about 'A Change Has Come to Me', 'Brilliant Room', 'Your Book', and 'Arithmetic' at first as well. The fantastic phrasing between lines, Hendrixy tone, and catchy melody on '...Change' finally won me over. 'Brilliant Room' has some great leads. 'Arithmetic' has a good message and probably has some deep meaning for Eric, and I appreciate it from that level. The brief intro to 'Arithmetic' is wonderful and reminds me of a more complex version of the intro to 'Take My Hand' by Toto (credits from the movie Dune).All said, I like this album better than 'Bloom' and think it's on par with 'Venus Isle'. I'd give it a 4.5 if I could, but will round up to 5 since I've been an EJ fan for many years.

Two disclosures: I'm not a musician and I've been a fan since 2004ish.This is a good album with some flaws. Mr. Johnson has said in interviews that this album was an opportunity to let go of some of his perfectionism (not all) and get closer to his audience, something he started in the previous album, Bloom. You can hear it, in a good way, in this album. Overall, it has a sense of fun and openness that isn't as clear on his previous albums. Though I only liked half the songs when I first heard them, I like all but one now."Fat Daddy," is a fun ride. "Brilliant Room" has amazing lyrics and a great performance by Malford Milligan. "Gem" is easily my favorite with the koto-like opening and clear delivery. "Vortexan" made me want to drive around Dallas at night while listening to it; seems the perfect backdrop with just enough city to balance out the country, dancing along a blues edge. "On The Way" is a pure, upbeat country song that got my foot tapping. It's easily the most fun song on the album. "Arithmetic" does a beautiful job of reminding me of the important people in my life. It has a reference at the end of the song to God's judgment of our lives, though Mr. Johnson puts it in the context of who we've loved. Very nice. "A Change Has Come to Me" didn't start out as a song I liked due to the lyrics (they struck me as messy and a little too New Agey). However, I find I enjoy the simple beginning that gradually becomes more complex as the song unfolds. "Your Book", a song Mr. Johnson wrote for his father, is a wonderful statement regarding how any book written or movie made about our lives can never really capture the fascinating complexity and depths of who we are.That said, there are weak points. First, the interludes. He's said in an interview that they were originally done as one take and broken up for the album. Unfortunately, to my ears, they sound it.Second, and this just might be a personal preference, I didn't like the guest vocals, especially the first time listening to them. The vocalists themselves are fantastic. However, on first listen, they sound like EJ imitators. It took a while to realize that they were probably trying to fit in with EJ's style. I think I would have appreciated either a more distinctive take on the songs or Eric Johnson himself singing on them. Though I wasn't overly impressed with his voice the first time I heard it on Ah Via Musicom, I've really come to enjoy it and look forward to his vocals. That's why I say this may just be a personal preference. To stress the point, everyone he has on his album does a fantastic job.Finally, I didn't like the CD case. It's made entirely of cardboard/paper. When I opened it up, it took a bit to wrap my head around the fact that the CD was placed in the left hand slot, in a dust jacket just like an LP. It's quaint and confusing at first. The lyrics/credit sheet are in the right hand slot. Because of this, the CD case is a little "chunkier" than some other cases. It has a tendency to widen out at the open end, which makes it difficult to easily slide the case into a slot. For those who have kids, the case design makes it more difficult to correctly hold the CD when you take it out (whether it's one of the kids or you holding one of the kids). Some may call mentioning this superficial, but I use the case to take the CD with me. No matter how cute it looks, it's a hassle and I hope this isn't the trend for the future. If so, I'll download my next EJ album.In all, this is a very good album and definitely worth the money.

Up Close (for Eric) is a different kind of CD. The production and musicianship is incredible, and Eric plays at the highest level. The songs on Up Close (are by design) going for a different vibe than his previous CD's. So if you A/B Up Close with Bloom or Venus Isle it sounds different. Not that is sounds worse (or better) its just different. But its still an amazing CD, the first track just slays me. As a musician I am going to steal, borrow and be inspired by it. Which is the highest complement I could give it. The track with Steve Miller doing a guest vocal on is really cool, but it is also a complete departure for Eric's work and he really amps up his Stevie Ray Vaughn-ish guitar styling. It hard to go wrong with an Eric Johnson CD, get it, you won't regret it.

Eric Johnson, for me, is one of those very special musicians that, generally, can do no wrong and whilst I understand much of what has been said by previous reviewers about the cohesiveness of this album - I have to disagree on many points!This album has been in my collection since it first came out and although it has never over-occupied my player, I do like to come back to it from time to time just to listen to that tone that only, seemingly, Eric can get whether playing his Gibson or his Strat - it's an amazing feat to pull off!As for the material here, yes it runs (as always) between instrumentals and proper songs and is as eclectic as anything that, for instance, Steve Hackett would put out - but therein lies the secret - Mr E Johnson is very difficult to categorise! Is he Rock? Is he Jazz? Is he Blues? - well it's yes to all of those (and more) but what he turns out is very much identifiable as his own and whilst I agree that some of the songs would benefit more from his own reed-thin vocal chords, it's not all bad news as Jonny Lang is hardly short in the capability stakes!High-lights (for me) are "Texas", "Gem", "Austin", "Arithmetic", "Vortexan" and " Change Has Come To Me"Certainly, if you want cohesive/flowing albums full of beautiful music, then you have to start listening to Eric with AH VIA MUSICOM, TONES or the especially wonderful VENUS ISLE albums - but UP CLOSE is still a darned fine album and a great addition to anyone's collection who likes to listen to an electric guitar played by a very gifted player!

A lot of comments here like 'mixed bag' and 'patchy'.I think that had Eric done all the vocals this album would have been much more cohesive.Eric doesn't have the greatest voice but it has the same qualities that make his guitar work appealing - sweet toned, melodic and articulate.The guest vocalists here all have a darker and rougher blues/rock sound and just don't work soar above Eric's guitar work the way his own vocals do. I say this as a huge fan of Jonny Lang, who is the most successful of the guest vocalists.I am sure this album would be received more positively if it were re-released with just Eric on vocals.

So, this a review from the year of 2012 and the comments for the product are:"The product came very quickly to my house today. I have no problems with it. Thank you Amazon.co.uk for your kind service!''.Any more things to say? The answer is ''No.''. Thank you Amazon.co.uk for your service.Five stars all round!!! From Richard Hill

Great modern rock album, well worth a listen. Highly recommended.Takes a bit of time to be delivered by US sellers, worth the wait, for the money saved.

I like it