Trademark

Of the plethora of muso guitarists who emerged from the 1980s, Eric Johnson genuinely stands out from the likes of Steve Vai and Joe Satriani with his brand of axe-wielding, which takes in a blend of Hendrixian rock firepower, Delta blues influence, post-bop jazz chops and straight-ahead poppiness. This has earned Johnson a bevy of critical accolades, commercial acclaim, and perhaps most importantly, proper recognition from contemporaries like Johnny Winter and Jeff Baxter. Johnson's commercial appeal was given credence by the performance of 1990's high-water mark, the astonishingly well-rounded 'Ah Via Musicom', which spawned three hits on the Billboard Top Ten, and earned him a Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental for the blazing, mercurial 'Cliffs of Dover'. Check out one of Johnson's signature tunes, the insistent but carefully paced 'Trademark', which is backed by a humorously surreal video clip.