Venus Isle

Venus Isle is the fourth studio album by guitarist Eric Johnson, released on September 3, 1996 through Capitol Records. The album reached No. 51 on the U.S. Billboard 200[4] and remained on that chart for six weeks.[5] "Pavilion" was released as a single and reached No. 33 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart,[4] while its B-side "S.R.V." is a tribute to guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan and features his elder brother Jimmie Vaughan as a guest soloist. "Camel's Night Out" is featured as downloadable content for the video game Guitar Hero World Tour (2008) and can also be exported to Guitar Hero 5 (2009).

Venus Isle
Studio album by
Eric Johnson
ReleasedSeptember 3, 1996 (1996-09-03)[1]
Recorded1996
StudioSaucer One Studio and Arlyn Studios in Austin, Texas; A&M Studios in Hollywood; Digital Services Recording; Rocket Ranch Studios in Houston; Reelsound Recording Company in Buda, Texas
GenreInstrumental rock, pop rock
Length58:23[2]
LabelCapitol
ProducerEric Johnson, Richard Mullen
Eric Johnson chronology
Ah Via Musicom
(1990)		 Venus Isle
(1996)		 G3: Live in Concert
(1996)
Singles from Ah Via Musicom
  1. "Pavilion" / "S.R.V."
    Released: 1996[3]

The album's original title was to be Travel One Hope, but this was changed at the last minute by Capitol for "being too oblique."[6] Advance promotional CDs of Travel One Hope have since become a collector's item.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]

Stephen Thomas Erlewine at AllMusic gave Venus Isle three stars out of five, describing Johnson as a "consummate guitarist" and "a joy to hear him play". However, he criticized the album for not breaking any new ground following the six-year gap from its 1990 predecessor Ah Via Musicom, remarking that it "reveals no new insights about the guitarist, it only offers a new spin on the territory Ah! Via Musicom covered."[1]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Eric Johnson, except where noted.

No.TitleLength
1."Venus Isle"5:29
2."Battle We Have Won"5:59
3."All About You"8:20
4."S.R.V."3:02
5."Lonely in the Night" (Vince Mariani)6:05
6."Manhattan"4:52
7."Camel's Night Out" (Kyle Brock, Mark Younger-Smith)5:16
8."Song for Lynette"4:54
9."When the Sun Meets the Sky" (Johnson, Steve Barber)7:54
10."Pavilion"5:02
11."Venus Reprise"1:30
Total length:58:23

Personnel
  • Eric Johnson – lead vocals (tracks 1–3, 5, 9), guitar (all tracks), guitar synthesizer, synthesizer (track 2), piano, electric sitar, arrangement, engineering, production
  • Amit Chatterjee – vocals (tracks 1, 3)
  • Christopher Cross – vocals (tracks 3, 5)
  • Jimmie Vaughan – additional guitar solos (track 4)
  • Steve Barber – synthesizer (tracks 1–5, 8–10), Hammond B3, arrangement
  • Tommy Taylor – drums (tracks 1–7, 9–11), percussion (tracks 3, 11), arrangement
  • Bill Maddox – drums (track 8), engineering
  • James Fenner – percussion (tracks 2, 5, 6)
  • Chris Searles – percussion (tracks 3, 5)
  • Kyle Brock – bass (tracks 1, 2, 4, 5–7, 10), arrangement
  • Roscoe Beck – bass (tracks 3, 9, 10, 11), engineering
  • Chris Maresh – bass (track 8)
  • Richard Kilmer – strings (track 5)
  • Bruce Williams – strings (track 5)
  • Jennifer Bourianoff – strings (track 5)
  • Anthony Stogner – strings (track 5)
  • Scott McIntosh – trumpet
  • Vince Mariani – arrangement
  • Richard Mullen – engineering, mixing, production
  • John Fannin – engineering
  • Ethridge Hill – engineering
  • Malcolm Harper – engineering
  • John Aguto – engineering
  • Jeff Poe – engineering
  • Stuart Sullivan – engineering
  • Mark Hallman – engineering
  • John Moran – engineering
  • James Hoover – engineering
  • Jeff DeMorris – mixing assistance
  • Jim Champagne – mixing assistance
  • Brad Haehnel – mixing assistance
  • Allen Sides – mixing assistance
  • Bernie Grundman – mastering
  • Jimmy McKeever – mastering assistance

Chart performance

Album
YearChartPosition
1996 Billboard 200 51[4]

Singles
YearTitleChartPosition
1996 "Pavilion" Billboard Mainstream Rock 33[4]

References
  1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Venus Isle - Eric Johnson". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2014-11-14.
  2. Venus Isle (CD release "Capitol Compact Disc 0777 7 983312 2 2").
  3. "Eric Johnson (2) – Pavilion / S.R.V.". Discogs. Retrieved 2014-03-29.
  4. "Venus Isle - Eric Johnson | Awards". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2014-11-14.
  5. "Eric Johnson - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 2014-03-29.
  6. Hernandez, Raoul (1996-09-27). "Eric's World: The Many Fanastic Colors of". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved 2015-12-25.
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