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The stereotype of a typical guitar god is one of being a bombastic, over-the-top, whirlwind force of personality.

It's not true of all of them, of course. And it's certainly not the case with Eric Johnson.

The Austin, Texas-based six-stringer whose fingers spoke volumes on 1990's incendiary instrumental "Cliffs of Dover" is quiet almost to the point of painfulness when tasked with talking about himself in a telephone interview.

You're so technically proficient with a guitar, is there anything you can't do?

"Oh yeah, there's always things you don't know. I'm always learning from other people."

Considering that between '74 and '84 you were struggling and didn't have a consistent gig, are you surprised that your career has now lasted this long?

"Yeah, I feel really fortunate that I'm just able to kind of do this for my life."

How did you settle upon the four cover songs on your most recent album? Do they have any special meaning for you?

"I cut more stuff than I needed, and I just tried to look for something that I thought was a decent performance and that kind of fit together."

OK then.

So clearly, like that old Aerosmith song, Johnson's content to let his music do the talking.

That'll certainly be the case, anyway, when he plays a sold-out acoustic guitar and piano show this Saturday at The State Room in Salt Lake City in support of his first all-acoustic album, 2016's "EJ."

"It'll just be me by myself, playing solo guitar and solo piano, with vocals," Johnson succinctly said of the show's format.

No backing band. No bells and whistles. Hmmm …

Is it silly to ask if there are any nerves being on stage all by your lonesome in spite of having performed for decades?

"Oh, no, there is! Especially on these acoustic gigs, having to go out there by myself. It's kind of a pressure kind of a thing a little bit. … Any kind of flub is a lot more noticeable when you're just by yourself and there's nothing to hide behind," he said. "And also I think there's a little bit more of a responsibility to make the tune work by yourself, because you're doing the melody, harmony and rhythm — everything. So you don't have as much room to kind of fudge through it."

Wait … what?

That didn't sound so reserved. Let's keep this rolling.

I've read that you're notorious for having a perfectionist streak, but that for "EJ," you tried to set that aside and cut a lot of the songs mostly live. What led to that decision?

"Well, I just felt like, to try to make better music, I should try to increase my performance level and try to get stuff to have more continuity from just performing it. I was encouraged by doing that — it kinda helped the vibe," Johnson said. "… You might lose a little bit there but you get some other magic that makes up for it. Instead of my old way of just getting bogged down by doing something over and over and over, I just started thinking, 'Well, I'll just take notes, and OK, I hear that, so next time I record I'll try to bear that in mind as I'm trying to perform live.' Unless it's something blatant that you're unable to live with! And a lot of times, that stuff either ends up being interesting or you don't even notice it later."

Turns out, his interviews, like his career, just needed a little time to get warmed up.

ewalden@sltrib.com

Twitter: @esotericwalden

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Eric Johnson — An Evening of Acoustic Guitar & Piano

When • Saturday night, doors at 8, show at 9

Where • The State Room, 638 S. State St., Salt Lake City

Tickets • Sold out