The Crossroads Guitar Festival was a music festival and benefit concert first held in 2004 and again in 2007. The festivals benefit the Crossroads Centre founded by Eric Clapton, a drug treatment center located in Antigua. The concerts are also intended to be a showcase for a variety of guitarists. All were hand-picked by Eric Clapton himself, who addressed the 2007 audience, saying that each were some of the very best, and those who had earned his respect.
The first Crossroads concert was held at the Cotton Bowl stadium in Dallas, Texas, from June 4, 2004, to June 6, 2004. A two-disc DVD containing 250 minutes of footage of the 2004 concert was released in the same year.
The 2007 Crossroads Guitar Festival was held at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Illinois on July 28, 2007. Tickets were estimated as sold out for the 28,000 capacity park in 22 minutes. A DVD of the concert was released on November 20, 2007. The second Crossroads concert showcased notable guitarists—most becoming household names- with many of the seasoned musicians providing a semblance of mentoring a larger number of younger artists and female artists, providing exposure for some who were relatively unknown to the public on a large scale, such as Derek Trucks, whose band, The Derek Trucks Band (additionally featuring his wife, Susan Tedeschi as a vocalist and guitarist) opened for Clapton's band, with Trucks remaining on stage as part of his touring band along with Doyle Bramhall II as well. Others who benefited from the exposure included 21 year old Orianthi, an Australian guitarist fresh from a tour with Santana, who also opened for the other performers. Jeff Beck included a trio performing with him; drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, keyboardist Jason Rebello, and bass guitarist Tal Wilkenfeld, another 21 year old woman from Australia. However, Wilkenfeld's name was omitted on some of the performances, and some viewers mistook her for Beck's daughter, due to her youth; she is a petite woman and was only 21 years old at the time of the tour. However, she is credited on the DVD.
John Mayer - Guitar Solo
Sonny Landreth Uberesso
Eric Clapton Crossroads
JOE WALSH Rocky Mountain Way
Jeff Beck with Tal Wilkenfeld Cause We've Ended As Lovers & Big Block
Poor Johnny The Robert Cray Band
Layla Eric Clapton
ZZ Top La Grange
Sheryl Crow & Allison Krauss - Are You Strong Enough
Anyday The Derek Trucks Band
Dear Mr Fantasy Steve Winwood / Eric Clapton
Sweet Home Chicago Buddy Guy
I'm the hell outta here - Steve Vai (Embedding disabled, limit reached)
I'm the hell outta here - Steve Vai
