Eric Johnson

Poppodium Boerderij, Zoetermeer [NL]
Saturday, 18 July 2026

After an absence of fourteen years, the legendary American fusion guitarist Eric Johnson can be seen on a Dutch stage. Once again the Poppodium Boerderij in Zoetermeer is the chosen venue, just as it was in 2012. The Texan musician plays live regularly but prefers to do so in his native country and rarely makes the transatlantic crossing, however when he does it is almost a guarantee of a full house. Eric Johnson’s large and loyal fan base would never miss an opportunity to see him in person as tonight’s seven hundred strong crowd testifies, a considerable portion of whom undoubtedly play the six stringed themselves.

For the uninitiated, Johnson is a master of multiple styles: rock, blues, jazz fusion, soul, folk, new age, classical, and country. He has performed with Steve Vai and Joe Satriani in the famous G3 lineup and holds an almost unmatched status within the guitar world.

The Texaphonic Tour 2026 is a demanding undertaking with 26 performances in just over a month, crisscrossing Europe from the opening night on July 1st in Maastricht to the finale on August 4th in the United Kingdom. Quite a schedule. Tonight’s show begins at exactly half past eight and to rapturous applause from the audience as the trio takes to the De Boerderij stage.

The opening number, Righteous is a heavy Texas blues track that immediately sets the tone for the evening. The fans react with great excitement. Oozing with fusion and with laid back feel created by the spacious chords and a fretless bass, Forty Mile Town is one of only four vocal numbers played on the evening. Unfortunately, during the following Duke Ellington cover, Caravan, the bass becomes far too loud, overshadowing Daniel Kimbro’s otherwise excellent solo.

Eric Johnson’s tribute to the late Stevie Ray Vaughan, S.R.V. and taken from Venus Isle is followed by the second vocal song Friends from Tones and rounds of this initial electric section.

The jacket comes off for the acoustic songs and Fender Stratocaster is traded for a Martin acoustic. Johnson and Kimbro sit on stools for Resolution, Abelia, followed by the tribute to the legendary Chet Atkins Chester, featuring a hefty dose of country picking before segueing into a fretless bass solo. Then come acoustic versions of Once Upon a Time in Texas and Song for George. “In D, not E‑flat like yesterday”, Johnson scolds his bass partner, with a mock‑stern look 😉

A sunburst Gibson Les Paul emerges from the wings for the relaxed jazzy tones of Stella by Starlight, a cover of a Victor Young song. After a drums and bass intro, it is the turn of E Flat Blues, a cool blues shuffle in the style of ZZ Top. More blues with Trueheart Blues, a laid-back variant in which Johnson smoothly switches between multiple sounds on his guitar, his trademark. The rocking No Name (Blues Jam) is followed by the country and western style of Steve’s Boogie, for which Johnson brings out his trusty Fender again.

On Green Dolphin Street, the original by Bronisław Kaper, offers space for his loyal backing musicians on drums and bass to let loose on their instruments; both get time for extended solos. The vocal Desert Rose features a virtuoso solo by the guitarist. Then the Texan launches into an astonishing display of guitar technique with his entire arsenal showcased (perhaps a little too long), before finally arriving at the iconic Cliffs of Dover, by far his most famous song and a Grammy winner.

After just under an hour and a half, the fun is over, but not before a couple of (short) encores. First, Zap played on a flaming red Fender Strat, followed by the final song of the evening, Bold as Love (from Axis), originally by Jimi Hendrix. The vocal part is a little ‘lost’, but the guitar part is extremely well executed. Then it is truly over and the trio gratefully accepts the enormous applause from the audience.

Visually, the show is well presented with kaleidoscopic graphics projected onto a large screen behind the stage, complementing the music. One image stands out, the zen astronaut with two guitars protruding from his backpack was a perfect fit. The sound, however, was not so ‘perfect’, becoming downright poor, as mentioned during Caravan with the unnecessary volume for bassist Daniel Kimbro. From that point, a kind of sonic muddle develops. The vocals are barely audible and although your ears eventually adapt, it remains puzzling as to why bands keep using their own front of house mixer when the result is often poor, and is a mystery to me.

The Texan guitarist, now 71 years old, and at first glance resembles a former physics teacher, hairstyle included 😉 Jesting aside the trio, lead by Eric Johnson, play twenty tracks with a cross section from oeuvre plus several covers. Most pieces are short and rarely exceed four minutes unless a solo is added. For Zoetermeer the hour and forty minute performance ends, likely the contractual maximum? So, with the tour bus warming up it is time for the musicians to depart for Luxembourg the next day. Buckle up.

[Photos courtesy of Arie van Hemert (Poppodium Boerderij)]

SETLIST
Righteous
Forty Mile Town
Caravan
S.R.V.
Friends
Resolution
Abelia
Chester
Once Upon a Time in Texas
Song for George
Stella by Starlight
E Flat Blues
Trueheart Blues
No Name (Blues Jam)
Steve’s Boogie
On Green Dolphin Street
Desert Rose
Solo intro Cliffs Of Dover
Cliffs of Dover
~ Encore:
Zap
Bold As Love

MUSICIANS
Eric Johnson – Acoustic & Electric Guitars
Daniel Kimbro – Bass
Tal Bergman – Drums

LINKS
Eric Johnson – Website | Facebook | YouTube | X