Ah Via Musicom

Ah Via Musicom is the second studio album by guitarist Eric Johnson, released in 1990 through Capitol Records.^[5] The album reached No. 67 on the U.S. Billboard 200^[3] and remained on that chart for 60 weeks.^[6] All four singles charted on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart, with three of them being top 10 hits: "High Landrons" at No. 31, "Righteous" at No. 8, "Cliffs of Dover" at No. 5 and "Trademark" at No. 7. "Cliffs of Dover" went on to win the Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance at the 1992 Grammys.^[7]

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Overview

Several songs are dedicated to fellow guitarists: Johnson stated in a March 1990 interview with Guitar Player magazine that "Steve's Boogie" is dedicated to Austin-based pedal steel guitarist Steve Hennig, while "Song for George" is dedicated to an 80-year-old guitarist friend of his named George Washington. Furthermore, "East Wes" is dedicated to jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery, and takes its name from the 1966 album East-West by The Paul Butterfield Blues Band.

A DVD-Audio edition of Ah Via Musicom was released in 2002 through Capitol Records, but without Johnson's input. After he expressed disappointment in the sound quality and mixing, it was soon withdrawn by the label after 2500 copies were sold.^[8]^[9] In an August 2005 issue of Guitar Player, he confirmed that an authorized 5.1 DVD-Audio edition of the album was in the works, but as of 2022 it has not been released.^[10]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[5]

Robert Taylor at AllMusic gave Ah Via Musicom 4.5 stars out of 5, saying that it has "reached near-classic proportions within the guitar community" and highlighting the varied styles present, namely rock, pop, blues, country and jazz. Praise was given to Johnson for his "excellent chops and a clear tone" as well as his singing, which was described as "not quite as interesting as his guitar playing", but also for being "not obtrusive and ... at times quite pleasing".^[5]

"Cliffs of Dover" has endured as Johnson's best-known song and is a mainstay at his concerts.^[11]^{[original research?]} It was ranked No. 17 in a list of "100 Greatest Guitar Solos" by Guitar World magazine,^[12] No. 34 in a list of "50 greatest guitar tones of all time" by Guitarist magazine,^[13] and remains a highly regarded staple within the guitar community.^[14]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Eric Johnson, except where noted

"Part 1"
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Ah Via Musicom" (Johnson, Steve Barber)	2:05
2.	"Cliffs of Dover"	4:10
3.	"Desert Rose" (Johnson, Vince Mariani)	4:57
4.	"High Landrons"	5:46
5.	"Steve's Boogie"	1:52

"Part 2"
No.	Title	Length
6.	"Trademark"	4:44
7.	"Nothing Can Keep Me from You"	4:23
8.	"Song for George"	1:49
9.	"Righteous"	3:29
10.	"Forty Mile Town"	4:13
11.	"East Wes"	3:30
Total length:		40:58

Personnel

Eric Johnson – lead vocals (tracks 3, 4, 7, 10), guitar, piano, electric sitar, arrangement, engineering, production
Jody Lazo – vocals (tracks 7, 10)
Steven Hennig – guitar (track 5)
Steve Barber – keyboard, synthesizer, arrangement
Tommy Taylor – drums (tracks 1–7, 9–11), percussion (tracks 4, 7, 10), arrangement
Paul Bissell – percussion (track 1)
James Fenner – percussion (tracks 10, 11)
Roscoe Beck – bass (tracks 1, 3, 7, 9, 10), arrangement
Kyle Brock – bass (tracks 2–6, 11), arrangement
Reggie Witty – bass (track 7), arrangement
Wee Willie – harmonica (track 9)
Vince Mariani – arrangement
Richard Mullen – engineering, mixing (tracks 4, 7, 8, 10)
Chet Himes – engineering
Bob Lacivita – engineering
Walter New – engineering
Dave Parks – engineering
Stuart Sullivan – engineering
Michael Frondelli – mixing (except tracks 4, 8, 10)
Bernie Grundman – mastering

Chart performance

Album

Year	Chart	Position
1990	Billboard 200	67^[3]

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)^[15]	Platinum	1,000,000^{^}
^{^} Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Singles

Year	Title	Chart	Position
1990	"High Landrons"	Billboard Mainstream Rock	31^[3]
1990	"Righteous"		8^[3]
1991	"Cliffs of Dover"		5^[3]
1991	"Trademark"		7^[3]

Awards

Title	Event	Award	Result
"Cliffs of Dover"	1992 Grammys	Best Rock Instrumental Performance	Won^[7]

References

^ "Ah Via Musicom". ericjohnson.com. Retrieved August 17, 2022.
^ "Eric Johnson Says He 'Just Killed' Himself Making Breakthrough LP".
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ "Ah Via Musicom - Eric Johnson | Awards". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
^ "Cliffs of Dover - Eric Johnson". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 2014-03-27.
^ ^a ^b ^c Taylor, Robert. "Ah Via Musicom - Eric Johnson". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 2016-02-25.
^ "Eric Johnson - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 2014-03-27.
^ ^a ^b "34th Grammy Awards - 1992". Rock On The Net. Retrieved 2014-03-27.
^ Lieck, Ken (2002-03-29). "Dancing About Architecture". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
^ Lieck, Ken (2002-06-21). "Ah, DIY DVD". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
^ Leslie, Jimmy (August 2005). "Obsessive Perfectionist Eric Johnson Is Trying Go With the Flow". Guitar Player. NewBay Media. Archived from the original on 2008-01-03. Retrieved 2022-04-23.
^ "Eric Johnson Concert Setlists & Tour Dates". setlist.fm. Retrieved 2014-03-27.
^ Guitar World Staff (2008-10-21). "100 Greatest Guitar Solos: No. 17 "Cliffs of Dover" (Eric Johnson)" Archived 2012-05-23 at the Wayback Machine. Guitar World. NewBay Media. Retrieved 2013-09-16.
^ "The 50 greatest guitar tones of all time... ever!" | Eric Johnson - Cliffs Of Dover, Ah Via Musicom (1990)". Guitarist. Future plc. 2010-11-02. Retrieved 2013-09-16.
^ Stone, Doug. "Cliffs of Dover - Eric Johnson". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 2013-09-13.
^ "American album certifications – Eric Johnson – Ah Via Musicom". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 17, 2022.

External links

In Review: Eric Johnson "Ah Via Musicom" at Guitar Nine Records

v t e Eric Johnson
Eric Johnson Mike Stern Chris Maresh Anton Fig Tommy Taylor Roscoe Beck Stephen Barber Kyle Brock David Tickle Jerry Marotta
Studio albums	Tones Ah Via Musicom Venus Isle Seven Worlds Bloom Up Close Eclectic
Compilation album	Souvenir
Live albums	G3: Live in Concert Live from Austin, TX
Notable songs	"Cliffs of Dover"
Related articles	Discography G3 Christopher Cross Eric Johnson Stratocaster

This page was last edited on 3 September 2022, at 18:49

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