Eric Clapton Expands The Road to Escondido For 20th Anniversary

09-14-2026

(fcc) Bushbranch/Surfdog Records has announced the upcoming release of Eric Clapton's The Road to Escondido: Enhanced Edition in honor of the 20th anniversary of the original collaborative album with J.J. Cale.

This new Enhanced Edition is set to release November 20th and features three previously unreleased songs from the original recording sessions, three live tracks from Live in San Diego, and new liner notes.

The offering will be available digitally, as well as on 180G Rusty Red & Sky Blue vinyl and CD. The first single "Roll On," one of the unreleased tracks from the original recording sessions featuring performances by Billy Preston and John Mayer, available now, alongside an accompanying music video.

Originally released in 2006, The Road to Escondido brought together J.J. Cale and Eric Clapton after years of admiring each other's work to create their first album together. The resulting hybrid sound defies being labeled, finding influence across the spectrum of blues, rock, country, and folk. Of his collaborator J.J. Cale, Clapton shares, "People are unaware of how important he is in the tree of the musical history throughout the U.S. and the world, and the effect he's had on people, in a very subtle way, in the way they sing, play guitar, and make records."

This month, Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival 2026 returns to Texas, taking place September 26-27 in Austin, Texas at Moody Center. It will be his seventh festival and is being held in celebration of the 28th anniversary of the 1998 founding of the Crossroads Centre Antigua. The event will feature main stage concerts and multi-artist collaborations by some of the best guitarists in the world from across multiple musical genres. Among numerous Crossroads veterans returning this year will be Joe Bonamassa, Gary Clark Jr., Billy Gibbons, Buddy Guy, Sonny Landreth, John Mayer, Del McCoury Band, Tedeschi Trucks Band, and Jimmie Vaughan, while Trey Anastasio, Tommy Emmanuel, and Julian Lage will be making their Crossroads debuts. As in past Festivals, Eric Clapton will perform both nights.