He's a perfection-driven, genre-bending ax slinger from Texas with one of the most distinctive electric guitar tones in music. But whatGuitar World readers want to know is...

What is the greatest misconception about you and your music? —Ray Wilson

That’s hard to say. The music business constructs an image of an artist based on what it wants, and that image tends to stick around. Sometimes, no one bothers to look between the cracks to see if the image resembles the truth. That can be frustrating, but it’s also the responsibility of the artist to obliterate that image by making something powerful enough to dispel it. There is certainly a stigma to being a “guitar hero.” But I know what music turns me on and how I want to fit into the world of guitar players. I try to keep on that journey with everything I do, without worrying too much about how others perceive me.

Would you consider doing the G3 tour again? —Chad Osborne

Absolutely. The tour was fun. Steve [Vai] and Joe [Satriani] are great players, and I would welcome the opportunity to perform with them again. That said, I have to add that it was a very tough period for me. For two years prior to the tour, my ears were damaged; I could hardly listen to the radio or TV at more than a whisper volume. I was in the middle of this horror during the tour, so while I may have looked fine walking around and smiling, it was tough. It was a difficult time for me, but I got lucky and rebounded.

What would you suggest for someone on a limited budget who wants that trademark Texas-sized Eric Johnson tone? —Voltage

Good tone, whether it’s based around mine or not, begins with a versatile amplifier. I recommend a silverface Fender Twin or Pro Reverb, especially if you can get one with a nice old Jensen speaker. You want an amp with pure tone, something with which you can create a clean and simple sound. From there, you can add an overdrive pedal or any other effect you want, but you have to begin with a good clean sound. To make another point, I think people overemphasize the importance of gear in their search for tone. Your sound comes from how you pick and dampen the strings, and from your attack, as much as anything.

Will we be seeing a concert DVD from you any time soon? —Charles Johnson

I hope so, though I don’t have any plans for one at this time. I just finished an instructional DVD on which I explain the 10 essential points to creating great music. I tried to keep it simple and straightforward, without getting into too much flamboyant technique or gear.

Who are some of your favorite classical composers? —Joe Sweep

Aaron Copland, Maurice Ravel, Béla Bartók, Claude Debussy, Igor Stravinsky and Mozart. Franz Liszt and Chopin are way up there. Georg Telemann is a very interesting guy, and I also love George Gershwin.

Was Chet Atkins an influence on your hybrid-picking technique? —Sandy Halliday

He was, but Chet is so special to me that I’ve always tried to just enjoy his music and not dissect it. I like the overall effect of his playing, in a reverent way, and I don’t want to make listening to his music an effort. However, a lot of Chet’s picking technique came from Merle Travis, who I have studied pretty intensely, so I’m sure I have a lot of Chet in my technique, whether I realize it or not.

Why did you segment your new album, Bloom, into three sections? —George Stolz

On the album, I was trying to explore different types of music that I like, and I came up with a wide range of sounds. I tried so many ways of sequencing the songs, but nothing seemed to work; the songs were too dissimilar. I ended up following a friend’s suggestion to segregate the music into three separate stanzas, rather than try to segue from one song to another.

I really enjoy the acoustic tracks on Bloom. Do you think you’ll ever make an all-acoustic record? —Evan Adkins

Actually, I’m working on one right now. I’ve already cut about 13 songs for it, and I hope to have it out early next year.

I’ve heard about your “koto” technique. What is it? —Stratoblaster

It’s really pretty simple. You just fret the note with the index finger of your right hand, then pick directly behind it with your right hand. Because you’re picking so close to the fret, the picked string sounds thin and twangy, like a koto [a traditional Japanese stringed instrument]. I’ll also place my left hand on the string to stretch it. This also allows me to pull off my right-hand finger; since my left-hand finger is still in place, doing this can create a nice pull-off sound.