How I Wrote…
“Cliffs of Dover”
“It just came to me.” Eric Johnson receives his 1990 signature guitar instrumental.
BY JOE BOSSO
Performing at the Beacon Theatre, New York City, October 25, 1996
“SOME SONGS TAKE forever to write. You labor over them for so long, and you start to wonder if there’s a point to continuing,” Eric Johnson explains. “Then there are those other songs that just come to you like magic. When that happens, it’s like you’ve just been sent a sort of gift from the universe.”
The Texas virtuoso puts “Cliffs of Dover” in the latter category. As guitar instrumentals go, it’s hard to beat — four minutes of cascading melodies that flood the senses and impart a sensation of total joy. It became Johnson’s signature song after propelling his second solo album, 1990’s Ah Via Musicom, to multi-Platinum status and a Grammy win for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.