CD/DVD: CROSSROADS Guitar Fest Ft. Eric Clapton, Allman Bros, Jeff Beck, Keith Richards, Gary Clark Jr & More

Last spring in New York City, Eric Clapton once again assembled an unparalleled lineup of the world’s most celebrated guitarists for the fourth incarnation of his legendary Crossroads Guitar Festival. While the previous three festivals were all hosted in sprawling outdoor stadiums, Clapton took the festivities indoors for the first time this year to “The World’s Most Famous Arena” Madison Square Garden. You can soon relive highlights from that epic, two-night display of guitar virtuosity with new video and audio collections coming this fall from Rhino.

Held every three years since 2004, the Crossroads Guitar Festival has quickly become the ultimate guitar-concert event, where the world’s greatest players perform together to raise funds for the Crossroads Centre in Antigua. Clapton founded this treatment and education facility in 1998 to help people suffering from chemical dependency.

This year’s shows featured performances by Clapton, the Allman Brothers Band, Blake Mills, Buddy Guy, Derek Trucks, Doyle Bramhall II, Gary Clark Jr., Jeff Beck, John Mayer, Keith Richards, Keith Urban, Los Lobos, Robert Cray, Sonny Landreth, Steve Cropper, Vince Gill, Warren Haynes and more.

CROSSROADS GUITAR FESTIVAL 2013 will be available on November 19 for a suggested list price of $29.99 (two Blu-ray discs) and $24.99 (two DVDs). Both versions feature nearly five hours of music across 45 tracks, plus conversations with the artists and other behind-the-scenes footage from this all-star concert.

For the first time ever, audio highlights from the festival will also be released on CD and digitally, featuring 29 tracks. Released on the same day as the videos, the 2-CD set and digital download will be available for a list price of $19.98.

In addition to rousing performances of blues classics and renowned hit songs, many of the most memorable performances saw artists coming together for some stirring collaborations. Among the highlights were the surprise pairing of John Mayer and Keith Urban for the Beatles’ “Don’t Let Me Down,” Vince Gill and Clapton taking on “Lay Down Sally,” Keb Mo and Taj Mahal covering the Sleepy John Estes’ song, “Diving Duck Blues,” Gill performing “Tumbling Dice” with Urban and Albert Lee and members of the Allman Brothers – Gregg Allman, Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks – joined forces for a haunting acoustic cover of Neil Young’s “The Needle and the Damage Done.”

As you would expect, Clapton features prominently throughout the show, including with his own band for “Tears In Heaven.” The legendary guitarist also tore through the Derek and the Dominos’ classic “Why Does Love Got to Be So Sad” with the Allman Brothers Band, revisiting the time in 2009 when he joined the band during their annual residency at the Beacon Theater in New York.

The first Crossroads Guitar Festival was held in 2004 at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas and gathered together an unprecedented collection of guitar icons from blues, rock and contemporary music. The sold-out show was chronicled in a two-disc DVD that has since gone on to become one of the world’s top-selling music DVDs, achieving the 10x platinum mark in the United States alone. The other two DVD sets met similar acclaim. The 2007 collection was certified 6x platinum, while the set from 2010 was certified 4x platinum.

CROSSROADS GUITAR FESTIVAL 2013

DVD Track Listing
Disc One
1. “Tears In Heaven” – Eric Clapton
2. “Spider Jiving” – Eric Clapton with Andy Fairweather Low
3. “Lay Down Sally” – Eric Clapton with Vince Gill
4. “Time Is Tight” – Booker T. with Steve Cropper
5. “Born Under A Bad Sign” – Booker T. with Steve Cropper, Keb’ Mo’, Blake Mills, Matt “Guitar” Murphy & Albert Lee
6. “Green Onions” – Booker T. with Steve Cropper, Keb’ Mo’, Blake Mills, Matt “Guitar” Murphy & Albert Lee
7. “Great Big Old House” – The Robert Cray Band
8. “Everyday I Have The Blues” – The Robert Cray Band with B.B. King, Eric Clapton & Jimmie Vaughan
9. “Next Of Kindred Spirit” – Sonny Landreth
10. “Cry” – Doyle Bramhall II with Alice Smith
11. “Bullet And A Target” – Doyle Bramhall II with Citizen Cope
12. “She’s Alright” – Doyle Bramhall II with Gary Clark Jr.
13. “This Time” – Earl Klugh
14. “Mirabella” – Earl Klugh
15. “Heavenly Bodies” – Kurt Rosenwinkel
16.  “Big Road Blues” – Kurt Rosenwinkel with Eric Clapton
17. “Next Door Neighbor Blues” – Gary Clark Jr.
18. “Queen Of California” – John Mayer
19. “Don’t Let Me Down” – John Mayer with Keith Urban
20. “Damn Right, I’ve Got The Blues” – Buddy Guy with Robert Randolph & Quinn Sullivan
21. “Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad” – The Allman Brothers Band with Eric Clapton
22. “Whipping Post” – The Allman Brothers Band

Disc Two
1. “Congo Square” – Sonny Landreth with Derek Trucks
2. “Change It” – John Mayer with Doyle Bramhall II
3. “Ooh-Ooh-Ooh” – Jimmie Vaughan
4. “Save The Last Dance For Me” – Blake Mills with Derek Trucks
5. “Don’t Worry Baby” – Los Lobos
6. “I Got To Let You Know” – Los Lobos with Robert Cray
7. “The Needle And The Damage Done” – Allman, Haynes, Trucks
8. “Midnight Rider” – Allman, Haynes, Trucks
9. “I Ain’t Living Long Like This”- Vince Gill with Albert Lee
10. “Tumbling Dice” – Vince Gill with Keith Urban & Albert Lee
11. “Walkin’ Blues” – Taj Mahal with Keb’ Mo’
12. “Diving Duck Blues” – Taj Mahal with Keb’ Mo’
13. “When My Train Pulls In” – Gary Clark Jr.
14. “Please Come Home” – Gary Clark Jr.
15. “Going Down” – Jeff Beck with Beth Hart
16. “Mná Na Héireann” – Jeff Beck
17. “Key To The Highway” – Eric Clapton with Keith Richards
18. “I Shall Be Released” – Eric Clapton with Robbie Robertson
19. “Gin House Blues” – Andy Fairweather Low with Eric Clapton
20. “Got To Get Better In A Little While” – Eric Clapton
21. “Crossroads” – Eric Clapton
22. “Sunshine Of Your Love” – Eric Clapton
23. “High Time We Went” – Ensemble

CD Track Listing
Disc One
1. “Tears In Heaven” – Eric Clapton
2. “Lay Down Sally” – Eric Clapton with Vince Gill
3. “Green Onions” – Booker T. with Steve Cropper, Keb’ Mo’, Blake Mills, Matt “Guitar” Murphy & Albert Lee
4. “Heavenly Bodies” – Kurt Rosenwinkel
5. “This Time” – Earl Klugh
6. “Mirabella” – Earl Klugh
7. “Great Big Old House” – The Robert Cray Band
8. “She’s Alright” – Doyle Bramhall II with Gary Clark Jr.
9. “Bullet And A Target” – Doyle Bramhall II with Citizen Cope
10. “Queen Of California” – John Mayer
11. “Don’t Let Me Down” – John Mayer with Keith Urban
12. “Next Door Neighbor Blues” – Gary Clark Jr.
13. “Damn Right, I’ve Got The Blues” – Buddy Guy with Robert Randolph & Quinn Sullivan
14. “Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad” – The Allman Brothers Band with Eric Clapton

Disc Two
1. “Congo Square” – Sonny Landreth with Derek Trucks
2. “Change It” – John Mayer with Doyle Bramhall II
3. “Ooh-Ooh-Ooh” – Jimmie Vaughan
4. “Save The Last Dance For Me” – Blake Mills with Derek Trucks
5. “Don’t Worry Baby” – Los Lobos
6. “I Ain’t Living Long Like This”- Vince Gill with Albert Lee
7. “Diving Duck Blues” – Taj Mahal with Keb’ Mo’
8. “When My Train Pulls In” – Gary Clark Jr.
9. “Mná Na Héireann” – Jeff Beck
10. “The Needle And The Damage Done” – Allman, Haynes, Trucks
11. “Midnight Rider” – Allman, Haynes, Trucks
12. “Key To The Highway” – Eric Clapton with Keith Richards
13. “Gin House Blues” – Andy Fairweather Low with Eric Clapton
14. “Got To Get Better In A Little While” – Eric Clapton
15. “Sunshine Of Your Love” – Eric Clapton

AMAZON
2-Disc Blu-ray: http://amzn.to/1b6f72z
2-Disc DVD: http://amzn.to/186lYsK
2CD: http://amzn.to/1eguyE2
MP3: http://amzn.to/17JnZul

ITUNES: http://bit.ly/1bNVdbh

VIDEO
http://youtu.be/8_XqKLl5nJk – Eric Clapton’s 2013 Crossroads Guitar Festival (2-minute sizzle reel)