It is not very often that audiences get to see many big-name guitar players in one place.
And that’s what makes the Crossroads Guitar Festival so uniquely exciting!
Founded by rock and blues guitar legend Eric Clapton, the Crossroads Guitar Festival is a grand festival that introduces new and old talents through a string of great performances.
Eric Clapton personally invites various performers from all around the world to perform their music during the festival. Each of these performers has a chance to showcase their incredible guitar styles to a huge audience. The most recent Crossroads Guitar Festival was held last year on September 20 and 21 at the American Airlines in Dallas.
Still, let’s rewind back in time to one of the most memorable guitar festivals ever held.
Even today, there are plenty of people on the internet talking about how great the 2010 Crossroads Guitar Festival was.
The concert was held at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Illinois with over 26 renowned performers including Jimmie Vaughan, Gary Clark Jr. and even Eric Clapton himself. John Mayer, an American guitarist and singer-songwriter, did one of the most unforgettable performances during that concert.
It was a groovy performance of a famous Bill Withers song.
John Mayer and his band performed four songs at the concert, and one of them is Bill Withers’ “Ain’t no Sunshine.
Mayer started their performance by building up the groove with his electric guitar. The enormous crowd has their eyes fixated on him as he played a riff while dancing along with his tune. The crowd immediately cheered the moment he approached his microphone to sing the first lines of the song. As he continued to the second verse, his bandmates started to accompany him as well
The dance-inducing rhythm he brought to it definitely wasn’t in the original!
Needless to say, Mayer introduced some of his own magic into the much-beloved classic.
The tune sounded more upbeat with a hint of jazz and reggae that hearing it just makes you want to sway your body along with its rhythm. Mayer then continued to vocalize the lyrics with his fluid and raspy voice.
Though the beginning was great, it was Mayer’s awesome guitar solo which made the song soar!
It was a long, incredible guitar solo that’s sure to take you to faraway places.
Mayer’s electrifying guitar kept the audience entranced while he got lost in the music himself.
He smoothly slid his fingers from fret to fret and even included clean-sounding distortion at every end.
Moreover, Mayers continued to display his guitar-playing prowess by performing improvised riffs that you would never get sick of listening. Mayer then ended his more than a minute long solo with his wonderful guitar tapping.
Mayer and the band finished the song with a boom after four minutes of an epic display of talent.
They then carried on to the next song on their setlist.
The whole performance of Mayer’s “Ain’t No Sunshine” was uploaded on YouTube and racked up 11 million views! Judging by the video, the audience in attendance at the Crossroads Guitar Festival surely got their money’s worth. Even if rock music isn’t as popular as it once was, artists like John Mayer are still keeping that old spirit alive.
Be sure to watch the whole video by clicking the link below:
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