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December 1st, 2004
Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival
Introduction

In the summer of 2004, a spectacular gathering of musicians from across the guitar world performed together at Eric Clapton’s three-day Crossroads Guitar Festival in Dallas. GREAT PERFORMANCES presents highlights from the unprecedented event featuring a once-in-a-lifetime showcase of guitar luminaries performing rock anthems, blues classics, and bluegrass hits. Joining Clapton are fellow axe legends Carlos Santana, Joe Walsh, and J.J. Cale; bluesmen Robert Cray, Buddy Guy, B.B. King, Hubert Sumlin, and Jimmie Vaughan; as well as James Taylor, country superstar Vince Gill, bluegrass player Dan Tyminski from Alison Krauss’ band Union Station, and young star John Mayer. Highlights include renditions of classics like “After Midnight” and “Layla,” as well as recent hits like Mayer’s “City Love.”

Proceeds from the extraordinary guitarfest went to support the Crossroads Centre in Antigua, a nonprofit drug and alcohol rehabilitation center founded by Eric Clapton in 1997. The festival also offered guitar clinics, exhibits by leading manufacturers, and displays of guitars from the private collections of Clapton and his friends, which were auctioned by Christie’s in June 2004 and garnered more than $7 million to aid the Crossroads Centre.

Visit the Web companions of two other shows that featured Eric Clapton, CREAM REUNION CONCERT (2005) and CONCERT FOR GEORGE (2003).

Special funding for ERIC CLAPTON’S CROSSROADS GUITAR FESTIVAL was provided by SBC.

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20 comments

#1

your writeup stinks.you didn’t mention albert lee. who was the bass player with jeff beck. in fact, who were the drummers, the backup singers, the black bass player w/clapton, the ancillary guitars? in fact, all the musicians? and with video as a medium,you could print their names under their figures like a closed caption, and include complete discographies on the web site instead of a laughingly incomplete blurb

#2

Sorry Steve. Albert Lee was never a bass player. He is the most fantastic electric fingerstyle guitarist alive today. giyf…

#3

the way it’s set up on google I’ve gone thru pages just trying to find regular PBS electric guitars.. I’ve EVEN typed in to search for JUST electric guitars by PBS n I get banjos, resonators, 4 n 5 stringed instruments, tenor guitars to guitar lessons. WHY ISNT THERE JUST ONE SITE ON THE INITIAL PAGE OF GOOGLE FEATURING JUST REGULAR GUITARS BY PBS?? THIS IS WAY TOO FRUSTRATING SO GUESS WILL STICK W/MY FENDERS N OVATIONS.. I WAS STUPID TO LISTEN TO A GOOD FRIEND N FELLOW ROCKER TO CHECK INTO PBS GUITARS AS ALL I’VE GOTTEN NOW IS A HEADACHE!!!

#4

WHEN WILL IT AIR AGAIN, AND CAN IT BE PURCHASED??

#5

When/where will the next Crossroads concert be held? I LOVE the CD’s of the previous ones!!!

#6

tm Says:
‘Sorry Steve. Albert Lee was never a bass player’

hey tm, re-read what steve wrote again……notice it now? I’m just sayin’

#7

albert lee fue un legendario guitarrista de las decadas del 60 y 70 de un grupo llamado Ten Years After, hoy sigue tocando y hay varios discos solistas

#8

I would also like to know when it will be aired again I missed some of it and would like to see the whole concert.

#9

I also would love to see ti aired again , wasnt this the tour where that butieful verry talented young femail teen base-player played with Jeff Beck? what is her name?
I was blown away , thanks PBS.and all the players .

#10

Karen, I think your looking for ‘PRS’ guitars. :)

#11

Tal Wilkenfeld was the young lady that made Jeff Beck wish he was 20 years younger …

#12

Eric Clapton stinks!

He struggled for years and still struggles to meld blues and rock into a cohesive riff.

Jimi Hendrix attained this ability naturally.

Clapton emulated and downright copied Hendrix and his sound and style.

Like I said, Clapton stinks!

#13

Hey, Gustavo (#7), the “Lee” from Ten Years After was ALVIN LEE and not ALBERT LEE.

#14

Eric Slapton copied Jimi Hendricks, what a crock while I agree his speed may not be like the heavy metal slashers (hence the name slowhand) he playes with so much soul he makes up for it.

#15

amazing concerts indeed – I bought both DVD sets & luv it. Yeah when will the next concert happen ? I’m from South Africa & am a keen follower.

#16

jack, what the f*** are you talking about?! 1st of all both Clapton and Hendrix are amazing guitarists. And 2nd, Clapton has a completely different style and sound than Hendrix did. Try listening to the music next time!

#17

Sas EC in Glendale, AZ – Jobing.com Arena 06/26 (with Steve Winwood)still got it BIG time at the age of 64….btw the nickname ’slowhand’ was give to him as a pun

It was during this time period that Clapton’s Yardbirds rhythm guitarist Chris Dreja recalled that whenever Clapton broke a guitar string during a concert, he would stay on stage and replace it. The English audiences would wait out the delay by doing what is called a “slow handclap”. Clapton told his official biographer, Ray Coleman, that, “My nickname of ‘Slowhand’ came from Giorgio Gomelsky. He coined it as a good pun. He kept saying I was a fast player, so he put together the slow handclap phrase into Slowhand as a play on words”

#18

Clapton is one of the greatest guitar players ever along with Carlos, Jerry, Stevie Ray, Jimi, Buddy, Robert, and just about everyone he invited to join him at the Cotton Bowl and Chicago. It doesn’t get any better than listening to these fabulous musicians jamming together and sounding like they’ve been rehearsing these concerts for six months. I listen to them at least once every two weeks at HIGH volume!! HOLY SHIT!!!

#19

Ryder, The FANTASTIC gal that played bass with Jeff Beck was Australia born Tal Wilkenfeld. IS SHE SOMETHING OR WHAT!!!!

#20

Hey splatt…step in front of a bus… you have no idea what you are talking about!

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