Assuring the crowd that he was joking about playing the Reddy tune, Johnson began playing the familiar intro to Desert Rose. It looked like an unrehearsed decision, seemingly awkward at the start. It was heartbreaking to watch Johnson attempt to sing the choruses. The song features some difficult vocals for Johnson in good health; his throat troubles made them virtually impossible. Perhaps in reaction to this, Johnson pulled out all of the stops on the end solo to the song, stretching it out and improvising to great effect. An audience member not familiar with Eric Johnson music turned to me and asked which album Desert Rose was on because he really liked it.