Eric Johnson - ...and on guitar (1994)

Eric Johnson was born on 17 August 1954 into a musical family, studying piano with his three sisters at an early age, while his father was a whistling enthusiast. He started learning the guitar at age 11 and rapidly progressed while listening to the musicians that would heavily influence his future style, including Mike Bloomfield, Chet Atkins, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, and Django Reinhardt, among others. At the age of 15, he joined his first professional band, the psychedelic rock band Mariani, and in 1970 they recorded a demo, which saw an extremely limited release, and which became a prized collector's item some years later. I've had a copy of this since around the late 80's, but never knew Johnson appeared on it, so I must dig that out again. After graduating from high school, he briefly attended the University of Texas at Austin, and later traveled with his family to Africa, returning to Austin in 1974, and joining a local fusion group called Electromagnets. They toured and recorded regionally but didn't attract attention from major record labels, and so disbanded in 1977, but the strength of Johnson's playing had attracted a small cult following to the group's early recordings and, decades later, their two albums were given wide release on CD. Following the Electromagnets' demise, Johnson formed a touring trio, the Eric Johnson Group, with drummer Bill Maddox and bassist Kyle Brock, and between 1976 and 1978 they recorded the 'Seven Worlds' album, but due to contract disputes it was not released until 1998. Unable to secure a new management contract, Johnson began working as a session guitarist for some well-known acts, including Cat Stevens, Carole King, and Christopher Cross, and it was Cross's producer David Tickle who recommended Johnson to Warner Bros. Records, who signed him to their label. In 1986 he released his actual debut album 'Tones', with a cover story in Guitar Player helping to promote the release, but although 'Zap' was nominated for the 1987 Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance, the album did not sell well, and Warner Bros. let Johnson's contract expire. 

Signing with indie label Cinema Records, distributed by Capitol Records, he released 'Ah Via Musicom' in 1990, and not only was he winning awards for his musicianship in the guitar press, but 'Cliffs Of Dover' won the 1991 Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance. The session work took a back seat while Johnson recorded his next album, but being an admitted perfectionist, he recorded, mastered and then scrapped several completed tracks for the new album, which delayed its release for three years, on top of the three years he had spent touring, and 'Venus Isle' eventually appeared in 1996. Despite demonstrating Johnson's growth as a guitarist, songwriter, producer, musical arranger, and vocalist, it received mixed reviews and did not match the success of its predecessor, and as a result he was dropped from Capitol Records. While recording 'Venus Isle' Johnson formed a side project called Alien Love Child with vocalist Malford Milligan, and played sporadic shows around Austin, and positive fan feedback from the shows made Alien Love Child a permanent gig. Johnson eventually returned to the recording studio, releasing 'Souvenir' in January 2002 on his own Vortexan Records label, followed by 'Bloom' in 2005, on Steve Vai's Favored Nations label, and then releasing a new record every few years since then. This collection starts with one of his earliest gigs with jazz organist Jack McDuff, then takes in those late 70's guest spots with Cat Stevens and Christopher Cross, and quite a bit of work from the mid 80's to the mid 90's. I have to admit that I wasn't that familiar with Johnson's work, so this has been as much as a revelation to me as it might be to you. 

Track listing

Disc One
01 Rolling Stone (from 'The Fourth Dimension' by Jack McDuff 1974)
02 Circle Song (from 'Once Upon A Rock' by American Peddlers 1977)
03 Dancin' With Tears In My Eyes (from 'Pearls' by Carole King 1980)
04 Bad Brakes (from 'Back To Earth' by Cat Stevens 1978)
05 Minstrel Gigolo (from 'Christopher Cross' by Christopher Cross 1979)
06 Rise Up (from 'Long Time Friends' by Alessi 1982)
07 SA Stroll (from 'Tomás Ramírez' by Tomas Ramirez 1983)
08 Save A Little Time (from 'Pressure' by Pressure 1983)

Disc Two
01 Recover Gracefully (from 'Marc Anthony Thompson' by Marc Anthony Thompson 1984)
02 Distant Star (from 'Stand Up' by Steve Morse Band 1985)
03 Ballad Of Fast Eddie (from 'Street Language' by Rodney Crowell 1986)
04 Western Flyer (from 'Guitar Speak' by Various Artists 1988)
05 Ronda (from 'Inside Out' by Jay Aaron 1990)
06 Our Dreams (from 'The Urge' by Stuart Hamm 1991)
07 Keep Coming Back (from 'Rush Street' by Richard Marx 1992)
08 Lights Of Louisiana (from 'The Hunter' by Jennifer Warnes 1992)
09 Somebody Loves Me Now (from 'Read My Licks' by Chet Atkins 1994)

Thank to Don for the suggestion.

Cat Stevens - Where Are You? (1975)

Steven Georgiou was born on 21 July 1948 in the Marylebone area of London, the youngest child of a Greek Cypriot father and a Swedish mother. At 15, inspired by the popularity of the Beatles, he became interested in the guitar, and persuaded his father to pay £8 for his first instrument, and began playing it and writing songs. In 1965 he began performing under the name Steve Adams, and his goal was to become a songwriter, being influenced by bands such as The Beatles, The Kinks, Bob Dylan, Nina Simone, Paul Simon, and blues artists Lead Belly and Muddy Waters. In 1966, at age 18, he was heard by manager/producer Mike Hurst, who arranged for him to record a demo and helped him get a record deal, changing his name along the way to Cat Stevens (after a girlfriend told him he had eyes like a cat). Stevens's first singles were hits, with 'I Love My Dog' reaching number 28 on the UK Singles Chart, and 'Matthew and Son', the title song from his debut album, peaking at number 2, quickly followed by his second top ten release with 'I'm Gonna Get Me a Gun'.
In 1969 Stevens contracted tuberculosis, and was close to death at the time of his admittance to the King Edward VII Hospital in Midhurst. He spent months recuperating in the hospital, followed by a year of convalescence, and during this time he began to question aspects of his life and spirituality. As  part of his spiritual awakening and questioning he wrote as many as 40 songs, many of which would appear on his albums in years to come. He managed to get out of his contract with Deram, who he felt was not listening to what he wanted to do with his music, and was offered a deal with Island Records by Chris Blackwell. His first album in his new folk-rock style was 'Mona Bone Jakon', and he had another top ten hit single with 'Lady D'Arbanville' which was taken from it. This album was the beginning of Stevens' most successful period, with albums and singles topping the charts throughout the early 70's. Because he had so many songs in his stockpile he was able to add new ones to the b-sides of his singles, and other unheard recordings have since turned up on box sets and expanded editions of his albums. 
In 1971, Stevens provided nine songs for the soundtrack of the black comedy 'Harold and Maude', bringing his music to a wider audience, and among the songs were two, 'Don't Be Shy' and 'If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out', which were not released on any album at the time. This collection covers Stevens' entire career, from the orchestral pop of 'I'm Gonna Get Me A Gun' and 'A Bad Night', plus their flips, through to the 1969 'View From The Top' single and it's beautiful b-side, and also includes a track from the 'Harold And Maude' soundtrack, a couple of non-album singles, and a lovely out-take in 'Love Lives In The Sky'. As you listen to these seldom heard songs you can hear the newly mature songwriter emerge after the 1969 single, and point the way to what was to be his most successful period as a singer/songwriter. 

Track listing

01 I'm Gonna Get Me A Gun (single 1967)
02 School Is Out (b-side of 'I'm Gonna Get Me A Gun')
03 A Bad Night (single 1967)
04 Lovely City (When Do You Laugh) (single 1968)
05 Image Of Hell (b-side of 'Lovely City (When Do You Laugh)')
06 Here Comes My Wife (single 1968)
07 It's A Supa (Dupa) Life (b-side of 'Here Comes My Wife')
08 The View From The Top (single 1969)
09 Where Are You? (b-side of 'The View From The Top')
10 I Want To Live In A Wigwam (b-side of 'Morning Has Broken' 1971)
11 If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out (from the film 'Harold And Maude' 1971)
12 Another Saturday Night (single 1974)
13 Love Lives In The Sky (previously unreleased)
14 Two Fine People (single 1975)
15 Crab Dance (b-side of 'Sitting' 1973)