Vince Gill to Join Clapton and Friends at Fest

<br>NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) _ It's a good thing Eric Clapton invited Vince Gill to perform at his Crossroads Guitar Festival in Dallas this June, because Gill would have a hard time staying away if he

Thursday, April 15th 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) _ It's a good thing Eric Clapton invited Vince Gill to perform at his Crossroads Guitar Festival in Dallas this June, because Gill would have a hard time staying away if he wasn't.

``It sounds like something I'd like to go to anyway even if I wasn't invited, just to hear,'' Gill said Wednesday in an interview with The Associated Press.

The festival, to run June 4-6 at Fair Park, will include performances by Clapton, Buddy Guy, J.J. Cale, Robert Cray, B.B. King, Carlos Santana, Joe Walsh and many others.

But Gill and Union Station members Dan Tyminski and Jerry Douglas are the only Nashville pickers on the list.

``I was flattered beyond words that I got included,'' Gill said. ``I listened to all of those guys. Probably as a guitar player, I tried to find more from the rock world than I ever did from the country world early on.''

Known mostly for his singing and songwriting, Gill also is an accomplished guitarist whose playing reflects a variety of styles, from country and bluegrass to blues and rock.

Before his success as a solo artist, he was lead guitarist for the country-pop group Pure Prairie League and alt-country band the Cherry Bombs. He once turned down an invitation by singer-guitarist Mark Knopfler to join the English rock band Dire Straits.

``I think most people think of me as a singer, and they're kind of surprised that I can play loud,'' he said. ``Not necessarily good, but loud.''

A fund raiser for Crossroads Centre Antigua, a substance abuse treatment and education center founded by Clapton, the guitar festival will include clinics for fans and other interaction with performers.

Gill, 47, says he could not imagine having that kind of access when he was a teenager in Oklahoma. He remembers listening to Led Zeppelin and Cream records over and over, trying to learn the solos.

``In the days that I grew up you very rarely even got to see it on TV,'' he said. ``You listen to it and all you can do is use your mind and go 'How do they do this.' The light that would go on just when you saw it done, it's amazing how much that helped.''

Gill's not sure which songs he'll perform in Dallas. But he knows what he won't play.

``I don't think I'll show up and sing a bunch of ballads,'' he said.