Article Contributed by Gratefulweb
Published on 2026-07-14
New Orleans guitarist, singer, and songwriter Eric Johanson releases a new tribute to Robin Trower with his take on the classic “Bridge of Sighs,” a song that found its way into Johanson’s world after years of fans drawing a connection between the two guitarists.
The single, out July 17, marks the first release from his joint venture between his new label, Levee Ward Records, and Amplified Distribution.
See the video for “Bridge of Sighs” here
“It’s like he digested all the music of the sixties just like those musicians listened to the progenitors and kept the flame a-burnin’… This guy has a place in the firmament.” - Bob Lefsetz, Lefsetz Letter
“For a long time, people would come up after shows and ask if Robin Trower was an influence,” Johanson says. “I knew the name, of course, but I hadn’t really gone deep into his music. After hearing that comparison enough times, I finally dove in a few years ago — and it made sense immediately.”
For Johanson, the connection goes beyond guitar tone or style. Trower’s early ’70s work points back to a moment when blues, rock, and psychedelic music were still naturally weaving together, before those sounds had been as divided by genre as they often are today.
“That era really resonates with me,” Johanson says. “It wasn’t about recreating the past. It was all these ideas and elements coming together in a really natural way. People were taking those roots and pushing them somewhere else.”
Johanson and his band eventually brought “Bridge of Sighs” into their live set on occasion, where the song’s dark, hypnotic feel and wide-open guitar space became a natural fit. Rather than approach it as a strict recreation, they treated it like a living piece of music — something to play, stretch, and feel in the moment.
That live energy carried directly into the recording. Cut at Split Window Studios in Texas, and mixed by Bill Skibbe, whose credits include Jack White and Raconteurs, the track was recorded in one take, with the band capturing the song the way they had been playing it onstage: raw, heavy, and unforced.
Eric Johanson stands at the forefront of modern blues music with his groundbreaking album, The Deep and the Dirty. Released on Ruf Records, his album skyrocketed to #1 on the Billboard Blues charts, cementing Johanson's status as a trailblazing force in contemporary blues and rock music. His electrifying power trio performed in over 100 cities and 10 countries in 2025 alone, and has toured extensively as a headliner and support for acts like The Record Company, Samantha Fish, Tab Benoit, North Mississippi Allstars, and more. He also has been featured onstage with musicians Cyril Neville, Anders Osborne and the Neville Brothers, and played with Terrance Simien and Corey Henry's Treme Funktet.
Tour Dates:
7/16/26 St Louis, MO - Blue Strawberry
7/17/26 Appleton, WI - Appleton Music Factory
7/18/26 Delano, MN - Rieder Homestead
7/22/26 Madison, WI - The Bur Oak
7/24/26 Springfield, MO - Southbound Bar & Grill w/ Sister Lucille
7/25/26 Bossier, LA - Hurricane Alley Live
8/14/26 Duluth, MN - Bayfront Blues Festival
8/15/26 Milwaukee, WI - Shank Hall
8/16/26 Evanston, IL - SPACE
8/18/26 Chattanooga, TN - Songbirds
8/19/26 Decatur, GA - Eddie's Attic
8/20/26 Tampa, FL - Skipper’s Smokehouse
8/22/26 St. Augustine Beach, FL - Cafe Eleven
8/26/26 The Woodlands, TX - Dosey Doe
8/27/26 San Antonio, TX - Sam's Burger Joint
8/28/26 Fort Worth, TX - The Post
8/29/26 Little Rock, AR - Stickyz
9/6/26 Oak Harbor, WA - Oak Harbor Music Festival
9/12/26 Maggie Valley, NC - Thunder In the Smokies Rally
9/17/26 Decatur, AL - Princess Theatre
9/19/26 Fort Wayne, IN - Baker Street Centre
9/20/26 Newport, KY - Southgate House
11/15/26 Casten, The Netherlands - Bikkel Blues
11/18/26 Chamburg, Germany - Nica Jazz Club
11/23/26 Salzburg, Austria - Rockhouse Salzburg
11/24/26 Crimsting, Germany - Blues Club Chiemgau
11/28/26 Bucharest, Romania - Transilvania Blues
12/22/26 Wildwood, FL - The Villages Blues Series
Get tickets here: https://www.ericjohanson.com/#tour-section
