From Guitar World · · 1m 20s
How to nail a blues-rock solo in Eric Johnson style
Learn Eric Johnson's blues-rock solo techniques with pentatonics and Texas blues.
In brief
Learn Eric Johnson's blues-rock solo techniques with pentatonics and Texas blues. Eric Johnson's blues-rock solo style uses pentatonics, arpeggios, and Texas blues to create a distinctive sound. Originally reported by Guitar World.
Eric Johnson's unique style
Eric Johnson blends blues, jazz, and rock into a distinctive guitar sound with clean chords and distorted solos.
His guitar setup
Eric uses a vintage or signature model strat guitar with a minimal pedalboard and multi-amp system.
No shortcuts in tone
Eric avoids new gear trends and focuses on his established sound rather than chasing the latest fads.
Recent gear experiments
Eric has recently experimented with digital units but shipped his whole backline to europe to maintain his sound.
Example 1: Texas blues shuffle
Texas blues shuffle riff with pentatonic fills over sparse bass and drums.
Example 2: Ascending run
Ascending run with wide intervallic skips over d-Em-D7-G-Am chord shapes.
Example 3: C major run
C major and d major chords with arpeggios and slides to land at a d major arpeggio.
Example 4: Low e and pentatonic run
Low e string run with e pentatonic/mixolydian pattern and a pinched harmonic.
In short
Eric Johnson's blues-rock solo style uses pentatonics, arpeggios, and Texas blues to create a distinctive sound.
