John Mayer & Eric Krasno Chat For ‘The Relix Audio Hour’

Guitarists John Mayer and Eric Krasno both performed at last weekend’s Lockn’ Festival in Arrington, Virginia. The two old friends took time while they were at Lockn’ to record a conversation for the latest episode of The Relix Audio Hour podcast.

Mayer’s chat with Krasno is the first installment in of a new segment entitled “Conversations With Kraz” hosted by the Soulive guitarist. The pair started their talk with a discussion of how they find new music. John and Eric went on explain how they select the songs they put on their respective albums. “If the fans got to hear everything I did in the studio and pick the record, two things: they would LOVE the record and I would never be able to recognize what it was,” Mayer said. He then revealed his rules for songwriting which served as a launching point for a discussion on the topic.

With Mayer a member of Dead & Company and Krasno participating in a number of Dead-related projects of late, it’s no surprise the conversation eventually came around to the music of the Grateful Dead. John asked Eric if he could steal any Dead song from the band’s history and make it an Eric Krasno song which one would it be. While Krasno mentioned it changes by the week, “Brown-Eyed Woman” was his selection. Eric said the song brings him to a certain place as John pondered how it wasn’t a hit. The duo also discussed Jerry’s approach to guitar and Mayer’s experience learning Garcia’s music for Dead & Company.

John and Eric had a great rapport as they tackled a number of topics. Some of the more interesting moments were discussions of how they first picked up guitar, the influence of Stevie Ray Vaughan, going back to old recordings to critique their playing and working in the moment.

Stream the third episode of The Relix Audio Hour: