Clapton, Daltrey Tour Starts in The Burgh Tonight! Best Rock Guitarists of all Time

Hello World Family,
The Eric Clapton/Roger Daltrey Tour begins today in Pittsburgh, PA. We are extremely happy here in Pittsburgh, since Clapton has chosen us 3 times to begin his tours. The Clapton/Beck shows last week were FANTASTIC! Falcon doesn’t expect these shows to be any different. Clapton seems to be pulling out some real treats from deep in the archives, and the shows should be spectacular. See this tour if you can!

On the subject of rock guitar gods, once again discussion has risen about the best of the best. We are talking about just the genre of rock, ‘cause we would be here for years discussing all the greats. We could go on for hours about the greats of rock alone.

Here are a dozen of Falcon’s favorites, not in any particular order…except one.

FALCON’S TOP ROCK GUITAR PLAYERS OF ALL TIME

1. Jimi Hendrix-he is number one, and there will never be his equal. This I am certain. He was innovative, self taught, creative, profound, technically masterful, soulful, beautiful…died too soon.

The rest of the list, again, not in any particular order because they are all exquisite masters:

Jimmy Page

Eric Clapton

Jeff Beck

Robert Johnson-he is on this list because I believe that the true father of the rock movement in guitar mastery is Robert Johnson.

Steve Howe

Robin Trower

Duane Allman

Stevie Ray Vaughn-played the best solo I have ever heard live in my life!

Carlos Santana

Chuck Berry

Jerry Garcia

HONORABLE MENTIONS
(this list could have had a hundred guitar players on it)

Keith Richards

Nancy Wilson (Heart)

Kirk Hammett

Eric Johnson

Randy Rhoads

Lita Ford

Trevor Rabin (for playing all the Yes stuff he had to master, playing with Manfred Mann, and all those film soundtracks-he’s just as good a pianist as a guitar player…and yes, I mean pianist, not keyboard player)

Pete Townsend

B.B.King-has played with enough rock artists to be in this category-would be in the top ten of guitarists of all time in any genre

Richie Blackmore

Dick Dale (surf guitar)

Joan Armatrading (new CD ‘This Charming Life” comes out in March 2010)

If you are unfamiliar with any of these legendary artists, check them out online and buy some music!

Peace,
Falcon

Rodrigo y Gabriela Tour Updates/Workout Tunes

Hey World Family,
Falcon, here. There will be a couple of updates today; so much going on in the world of entertainment.

There have been some updates in the tour schedule of Rodrigo y Gabriela, so we wanted to pass these on to you ASAP.

This is the full schedule as we know it at the moment. Of course, the new album 11:11 will be out in September, so when it is, we will let you know;)

RODRIGO Y GABRIELA

July, 15 2009 08:00 PM - Jazz Festival, Gent, Belgium
http://www.gentjazz.com/

July, 17 2009 08:00 PM - Festival Les Suds (Old Arena), Arles, France
http://www.suds-arles.com/

July, 19 2009 08:00 PM - Lovebox ( 2nd stage), Victoria Park, Hackney, London
http://www.lovebox.net/

July, 21 2009 08:00 PM - Blue Balls Festival, Lucerne, Switzerland,
http://www.blueballs.ch/

July, 23 2009 08:00 PM - Paleo Festival (Chapiteau Stage), Nyon, Switzerland
http://www.2009.paleo.ch/

July, 24 2009 08:00 PM - Les 3 Elephants Festival (Main Stage), Laval, France
http://www.les3elephants.com/2009

July, 26 2009 08:00 PM - Secret Garden Party (Main stage), Cambridge, UK
http://www.secretgardenparty.com/2009

July, 28 2009 08:00 PM - Dolans Warehouse, Limerick, Ireland
Box Office 061 314483 & www.dolanspub.com

July, 29 2009 08:00 PM - School of Music, Cork, Ireland
www.cyprusavenue.ie

August, 1 2009 08:00 PM - Presqu’ile de Crozon Festival, Crozon, France
http://www.festivalduboutdumonde.com/

September, 4 2009 08:00 PM - Electric Picnic Festival, Stradbally, Laois
http://www.electricpicnic.ie/

September, 16 2009 08:00 PM - Terminal 5, New York City,
http://www.terminal5nyc.com/

September, 19 2009 08:00 PM - Temple Hoyne Buell Theatre, Denver, CO

September, 21 2009 08:00 PM - Moore Theatre, Seattle, USA

September, 23 2009 08:00 PM - Fox Theatre, Oakland, USA

September, 25 2009 08:00 PM - Orpheum Theatre, Los Angeles, USA


Falcon loves this pair; they are magnificent players and performers combining style, grace, and intensity gloriously. If you haven’t checked them out yet, just go to You Tube; they have a new video, and a ton of classics. Download a couple of tracks for the MP3, too. They are great inspiration for the workout.

FALCON AND DOVE WORKOUT

Yes, questions have swirled about what do Falcon and Dove listen to when we are hitting the gym, yoga, Pilates, weights, bikes, and trails.
Well, Dove has a list she will share with you later (she is in Chi-town this weekend), but I will give you some of my current motivators.

FALCON’S LIST

YES-of course, I am a solid YES fan so I love putting on some stuff from TALES, RELAYER, UNION, and THE YES ALBUM. Of course, YES cousins are great, too: CIRCA, JON ANDERSON, JON AND VANGELIS, ABWH, etc.

QUEENSRYCHE-any album will do, but the latest SOLDIER’S STORY is great on the trails

EVANESCENCE- Yes, they are great to listen to when depressed or in need of some psychological revenge, but are also great on the bike. Having been a dancer for many years, Falcon sometimes forgets to breathe correctly when exercising. Dancers know what I mean when I say this. If I am listening to female vocalists I enjoy and respect, I will often sing along and that keeps me breathing, not holding my breath against the exertion. HEART, STREISAND (yes, Barbra), ELLA, NANCY WILSON (jazz, Heart already mentioned), JANIS, JONI, PINK even CLANNAD is great to bike and hike to while singing. I don’t recommend this for others, but Falcon has had asthma since I was a kid, and I don’t take meds, I just do T’ai-Chi, avoid foods that trigger responses (dairy is the worst for that) and exercise, EVERY DAY! I have to do something active. At my age, it becomes even more important. I can tell you what happens when you don’t exercise…bad stuff can creep in. I can do curls with laundry soap, so take every opportunity you can get to stay or get healthy.

PREDATOR-highly inspiring; I talked about these guys last week. This is my new favorite CD to push me further.

EARTH,WIND, AND FIRE-they will get you up for anything! It doesn’t matter what I am doing, I can always get motivated with them. You have to get moving with them on the player.

STYX- these guys are for the weights. Tommy, Gowan, James and the gang keep me working through the burn

WES MONTGOMERY- cool down time; nothing like a little Wes…

ANDREAS VOLLENWEIDER- I can bike to most of his stuff, but my favorite is of course, DOWN TO THE MOON. I also like WHITE WINDS for a cool down

MOODY BLUES-yes, I love them. These guys are great for hiking in the woods and appreciating nature. Things just look more beautiful when they are on…

KILLSWITCH and SLIPKNOT-for immediately following Pilates class. For some reason, they are just a good addition to do the aerobic stuff I do to keep the muscles loose after the intensity of Pilates. These are my release guys, then a nice bath or shower.

CHIEFTAINS, JOHN MC CANN, TOMMY MAKEM, CAPERCAILLE, BROTHER-Falcon gets Celtic, Scot, and tribal when doing some T’ai Chi and body sculpting.

JAZZ for chillin’- when slowing down relaxing, and trying to stay cool in rush-hour traffic, jazz is the only way to go. Local artists like GEORGE BENSON, AHMED JAMAL, JOE NEGRI, are always nice. There are so many artists I listen to, it would be unfair to single out, but I also like ALAN PARSONS PROJECT for rush hour…er…um..hours. It goes on forever…

This is just a snapsot of the moment; it can change all the time and usually does. Music for dance is entirely different, and that is for another day;)

Stay strong, world family. Have a great week!
Peace,
Falcon and Dove