This album is a special sort of album, even before listening to it. Three of some of the most talented guitarists (at least in their own way) of their time recorded a live performance together? Sounds like a good listening experience for many out there. Although this is merely acoustic guitar-based music, the gorgeous album artwork alone indicates that we have a very special album here to listen to. More often than not, one can judge a music album by its cover, oddly enough. There are only five songs in total and the album runs for just under 45 minutes. All tracks (except Guardian Angel) were recorded live at the Warfield Theatre in San Francisco, hence the album title. Let’s take a listen and explore this album, and hopefully, the supergroup present on this album will be worth hearing.

Mediterranean Sundance / Rio Ancho launches straight into the live performance, with some descriptively beautiful Spanish guitar playing. The trio play extremely well on this tune, and it is instantly gorgeous and pretty simultaneously. The music changes very nicely after a minute or so, and the playing becomes tighter and more intense. Nonetheless, this is a pretty, sweet and magical listening experience throughout this 11-minute plus tune. There is some mental and precise shredding on the acoustic guitar here. It sounds joyous and beautiful. The three legendary musicians play their acoustic guitars so well that this gives a new meaning to music rather than the acoustic guitar being limited to Folk Rock as such. All in all, a very great performance. The playing and musicality here are nothing but absolutely amazing. The musicians duke it out for shredding, and the playing is among some of the best acoustic guitar work you will ever hear in your entire life. Simply put, that is how good it all is. It also sounds original, fresh and upbeat throughout. The rhythm and lead acoustic guitar playing is truly awesome. A really great listening experience that is a true standout and absolutely magical. These three musicians were obviously very well-established, even on their own terms. The midsection has some incredible and amazing shredding to boot. Really energetic and sweet, this music is so wonderful that it cements this album already as a classic album, hands down. Even today, this music sounds insanely good. A great moment of music in the history of mankind, the crowd screams and yelps because that is simply how great this music is. All in all, a sensationally sweet and enduring listening experience that is worth every moment of hearing. The playing and shredding on the acoustic guitar is insanely good. The guitar-playing techniques used are something that Django Reinhardt himself would have been jealous of. Never dull nor boring throughout the entirety of this listen, this works beautifully. Towards the end, this tune slows down a little, but still has energetic shredding throughout, with the players taking turns throughout. The crowd cheers to go with it. An awesome piece of music, this works wonders. A truly great musical experience, this ends after 11 minutes with a ton of cheering by the audience. Pure gold.

Short Tales of the Black Forest begins with some subtle cheering, before launching into some awesome muted guitar which has a call-and-response section throughout. A very precisely played and intricate piece of acoustic Spanish guitar work is throughout this album. A really great and fantastic listen, the supergroup plays the guitar unlike anyone else out there. Surely, even Eddie Van Halen was paying attention here as well at the time? Regardless, this is mind-blowingly great. A sensational piece of music, there is never a dull moment on this album. The manic shredding and playing throughout is tuneful, wonderful and so precise that it has the precision of a laser surgeon, set to music. Regardless, this is a really exciting, cool and powerful listen for acoustic guitar work. Towards the middle is some manic shredding that sounds really excellent. This continues on nicely throughout this piece of music, and the trio explore the depths of acoustic guitar work in an insane and wonderful way. The middle of the tune is a bit more subtle, with some interesting variations on melodies that sound absolutely awesome. Soon enough, some Bluesy melodies emerge and the audience claps along with the Spanish guitar playing. A truly great musical moment is present on this album. This jam section goes on for some time, before launching back into freeform shredding at hand. A great, great listening experience. The guitar work gets subtle towards the end, before returning back to the amazing shredding. Some flamenco-styled playing is present, and this piece of music progresses very nicely throughout it all. As we draw close to the conclusion of this tune, the guitar playing gets loud and manic, increasing in tempo. Nonetheless, a truly great performance and the audience goes wild at the end. Brilliant.

Frevo Rasgado begins with some insane acoustic guitar shredding, and it sounds ridiculously good. A lively, pretty and super quick-sounding tune, this is underrated music to this very day. This is exactly the sort of music that one should listen to when in a Spanish-speaking country on holiday. Even without that scenario, it is simply amazing and so good to hear. The music present is absolutely pretty, brilliant and insanely cool. The shredding on the acoustic guitars sounds absolutely precise and mint. No doubt that these guys had chops, they proved their worth on this album alone. A great, great listening experience, this is something to play to your relatives to get them interested in the guitar as an instrument. A fine, pretty and fantastic listen, the crowd does nicely appreciate this shred mania. Which is a great way to describe this music. Nonetheless, a certainly entertaining piece of music listening. The playing is so spot on and good that it will capture your attention and listening ear for multiple listens. The second half continues the frenetic nature of the music and sounds wild. The mixture of lead and rhythm on these tunes is very near perfect. A great, great album to listen to. This is underrated music, and the music history books should reference this live performance more often. Towards the end, things get a little more restrained in terms of overall tempo, before this piece gradually begins to wrap up. Some awesome Spanish/Classical guitar shred is here before this concludes nicely with a guitar call-and-response section. Great.

Fantasia Suite begins with some sounds of the audience calling out to the trio before some rapid-fire melodies emerge on acoustic guitar. This is melodic, pretty and brilliant to listen to. A super intricate, shred-based and excellently played piece, this sounds really very cool. A wonderful, upbeat and joyous listen, if you need to be inspired at any point possible to play guitar, this is your album. A slower melodic section is present after a bit, which plays on very nicely. All three men play a mean guitar, without a doubt or question about it all. The music progresses very nicely, with some tremolo picking and intricate melodies throughout. All the guitar players present deserve credit on this album for making it sound ridiculously good. This is also proof that shredders can do such a thing on acoustic guitars as well. There is a clever piece of playing near the midsection that gets quiet, before launching straight into the next melodic section of music. A wonderful and fantastic music listening experience, the wow factor on this album is definitely there. A fine, clever and frenetic listening experience for many people out there, this sounds powerful and supercharged. It is if as though the guitar players had downed a ton of Red Bull prior to this performance. In any case, this album and tune are both fantastic to hear. The shredding and playing throughout the second half are truly amazing. These guys deserve awards for this album and the performances on it. Regardless, a powerful listening experience that is super fun and interesting to listen to. Towards the end, this tune gets into a bunch of duelling solo sections which sound amazing. The audience, again, approves of it all. It speeds up nicely towards the end, before some prominent melodies flow. This wraps up suddenly after eight minutes. Great.

Guardian Angel is the final and shortest track of this album at just over four minutes in length. It begins with some chiming and pretty acoustic guitar in a Classical Music sort of fashion. This does sound really great. This piece has some intricate playing from these three men and it works extraordinarily well. A lovely, pretty and simply fantastic tune to listen to. There is animated shredding throughout which is extraordinarily wonderful and extremely good to hear. No doubt many 1980s Metal shredders would be blown away by this sort of music upon hearing it. Regardless, this is an excellent and tuneful listening experience. The music throughout is quite unlike music from elsewhere. Therefore, these original tunes will blow your mind. The second half of this track has some awesome and sweet shredding on acoustic guitar that sounds very nice indeed. A great listen, this final track on this album is a great example of a short sample of the music on this tune you can play to your friends. This ends nicely.

Although this album release is relatively limited genre-wise, this is one of the greatest live albums and possibly one of the greatest albums ever made. Why? The simplicity of the music matched with shred-style virtuoso-based playing on acoustic guitars is a real winner. Therefore, this album is an instant classic upon hearing. If you dig acoustic guitar-based instrumentals, look no further. Should you listen to this album? Absolutely, it sounds amazing.

A great listening experience to inspire one to pick up the guitar.

9/10