Eric Clapton: Crossroads Guitar Festival [DVD]

This DVD set is becoming the most watched DVD in my collection. The video is a compilation from a 3 day "guitar festival" organized for Eric Clapton to support his Crossroads Drug and Alcohol rehab center in Aruba.I must say that if you enjoy guitar music, you HAVE to have this DVD in your collection. That's not to say you'll like ALL of the performances. This is a mixed bag of music, from Blues and Rock 'n Roll to Country and Bluegrass to Jazz and even an Indian/Hindu number. Every artist here is technically excellent for the style of music they play.Low points for me were: the Indian piece; Steve Vai who is technically a good player, but I don't care for his style or his attitude; and John Mclaughlin. McLaughlin is a great guitarist, but, again, his style really isn't my taste.High Points: Most of the rest of the video. Clapton is top notch, as always. BB King, Buddy Guy and the rest of the "old blues" artists were quite good and interesting to see in this setting. I enjoyed seeing John Mayer play to a crowd that is a bit older than his typical fan base.I especially enjoyed seeing players that are much less known...some even new to me. It's good to see guys like David Hidalgo and Eric Johnson get more exposure. I wish the video had a few more songs by these guys. Dan Tyminski was quite good, although he seems a little out of place here. (he's the guy who played and sang "Man of Constant Sorrow" on the movie "O Brother, Where Art Thou" that George Clooney lip-synched to.)I'm not a country music fan, but I even enjoy seeing Vince Gill here.Joe Walsh is always entertaining. He has two solo numbers as well as a "cameo" backing up James Taylor while Taylor does his "Joe Walsh imitation".From those who were at the concert, it seems that some of the best music at the festival didn't make it to the DVD. That's unfortunate. It's too bad they don't release a larger or second volume set.The casual viewer or music fan may not enjoy this set as much as I do. Keep in mind that there are many styles here, and the purpose of the DVD is not necessarily to only present the best of the festival, but rather to provide a sampling of what the festival had to offer. As a guitarist, I'm fascinated watching players who are GOOD even when I don't always enjoy their style of playing. If you are a guitarist or interested in learning to play guitar, you simply MUST own this DVD.

yeah that is the worst thing you can say about this show, given the galaxy of stars and the performances!i'm a huge fan of clapton of the late 60s and early 70s and i'm glad that it is in that spirit that he plays here. his jam/duel with carlos santana is itself worth the price of this dvd.the sets of the blues greats - bb king, buddy guy, hubert sumlin are awe inspiring. multiple jams between them and clapton - great stuff!eric johnson, robert cray, robert randolph and john mayer show that axe slinging is still alive with the younger generation. the first two put on an inspiring set.the exotic piece is the hindustani piece played by vishna mohan bhatt from india with his self-invented/styled guitar which he plays with a slide.the highlight of the show (imo) is the piece by john mclaughlin who is the guitarist's guitarist. such control and feel at such speed! unbelievable! i'm sure every guitarist out there was in a state of daze/shock after that 7 minutes of shredded melody!james taylor is boring. and so is jj cale (though he is saved by clapton), larry carlton and steve vai. jimmy vaughn is not great - but i dig him for his spirit (one can only imagine what a show it would have been if his younger brother had been alive to play here - we miss you stevie)!towards the end david hidalgo and joe walsh set the stage on fire and the concert is brought to an end by zz top (a mediocre set).i hear that jeff beck and neil schon got edited out - a pity - as there is some stuff here in the dvd which could have easily substituted for those!btw this review wouldnt be complete without a mention about the guitars used in the show : the fender stratocaster seems to reign supreme in this show - everybody from clapton to walsh to robert cray to jimmy vaughn to buddy guy is shown playing one. surprisingly very few gibson les pauls. john mclaughlin has a weird but solid looking guitar with only one pickup. hidalgo shows off a rare gibson firebird. likewise joe walsh, a brand new black rickenbacker. but imo the guitar of the show was the beautiful leaf shaped red gretsch with its trademark thumbnail inlays, sported by billy gibbons.if you're a fan of the guitar, get this dvd!

This DVD is by far the most stunning electric guitar show ever. Sure people can find shortcomings and I live in Australia so I wasn't there. But this DVD is a magnificent experience. Eric is back in fine form after his supressed mix in the John Mayall 70th Birthday concert. His "Blues In C" is his best playing in years, he is inspired as would any guitarist be after this show. I bought two copies because I knew it would be great.Highlights: All blues songs-especially Hubert Sumlin. Plays as he did with Howlin Wolf-same style. Buddy Guy is his best in years also. He is 70 B.B. is superb- He is 80 Robert Cray- "Time Make Two" is perhaps the best perfromance on the DVD. Eric Johnson-Plays a great pop-style song with a Jimi Hendrix set up. Booker T and the MGs with David Hildago and Joe Walsh is a highlight. Walsh acts as drugged out as ever, but his blues licks a la Albert King's "Drowing On Dry Land" are cool. John McLaughlin is great. His tribute to Jazz drummer Elvin Jones who just died this year is moving and he uses just himself and two drummers; one western and one eastern (tabla) as accompaniment. Fantastic! Eric Clapton's various collaborations are all superb. He plays well with Doyle Bramhall II, whose father played with Stevie Ray and others is great and Doyle plays Albert King style, left-handed and upside down! And plays a good chord backing, too! This is well produced, good sound, good photography except all the crowd shots are young women enjoying the event!! And a great selection of tunes. Jeff Beck should have been included as should have Otis Rush, Mick Taylor and maybe Peter Green, but get this, it is great!!!!

An absolutely splendid show of skill and artistry. The extra interviews are great as well and lets you in on these guys mindset in playing.

Je me lasse pas de me le repasser…je ne peux pas être déçu parce que je le voulais 😍 sur un appareil qui convient…c’est génial !!!

Puros Gods en este concierto.

Como todos los otros Crossroads que poseo, éste es también de una gran calidad.Todo un mítico desfile de lo mejor en guitarras de rock de todos los tiempos.A veces cansa un poco pero la verdad es que es una verdadera delicia ver y escuchar a todos estos grandes artistas.Una verdadera joya para los amantes de la guitarra eléctrica en todas sus variedades.

Questo dvd è eccezionale! 45 canzoni e tante belle interviste.Tanti artisti che suonano fra di loro.Molti non conoscevo prima è cosi si ha modo di fare nuove scoperte. Derek Trucks è magico con la slide; per me è insuperabile! Poi c'è Booker T. Jones con due membri originali dei Blues Brothers. Hanno fatto canzoni degli MG's quando c'era Steve Cropper. C'è Taj Mahal con Keb Mo'....grande! Ci sono gli Allman Bros con Clapton; Jeff Beck con Beth Hart; John Mayer con Doyle Bramhall che fanno il pezzo più bello del dvd: Changes....una canzone che faceva Stevie Ray Vaughn. C'è Buddy Guy che fa "Damm Right, I've got the Blues".Poi c'è Vince Gill con Kieth Urban si scatenano con "Tumbling Dice" degli Stones. Un altro pezzo storico è Clapton con Kieth Richards che fanno "Key to the Highway!" Meravigliosa! Per non dimenticare c'è pure Clapton....che non stanca mai sentire: "Crossroads" e "Sunshine of your Love". Lo consiglio altamente questo dvd!