The first-rate musicianship of Mayer and his bands as well as the sheer volume of material should make this an easy recommendation for fans of his more recent work. Mayer's nimble fretwork is dazzling, and his deep passion for music beams from the stage so brightly that it's practically infectious. I Don't Trust Myself (With Loving You) ĭespite it veering fairly far away from what I generally listen to, I really enjoyed Where the Light Is.These snippets are short and infrequent enough that they don't drag down the pace of the show, and some of the comments are fairly insightful: how much he and his band get a kick out of trying to impress each other musically, how much the three-act structure of the concert feels like he's playing in three separate bands with their own ups and downs, and the thrill of playing with other musicians after years of plucking away on a guitar in his bedroom.īetween the songs and the interstitial candid footage of Mayer, Where the Light Is clocks in just over two and a half hours.
These interstitials include Mayer talking to the camera as he drives to rehearsal, changes into a full suit and tie for his set with the John Mayer Trio, and improvises a quick song about a dumpy paparazzo who starts trailing him. Where the Light Is closes out with a performance by Mayer's full band, including keys, horns, and, by the end, even a couple of bassists thumping away on-stage.Įvery few songs, Where the Light Is cuts away from the stage.
This incendiary stretch of the show includes a couple of slower blues grooves like "Out of My Mind" and "Come When I Call" alongside barnstormers like a cover of Jimi Hendrix' "Wait Until Tomorrow".
The second set features the reunion of the John Mayer Trio, a blues project backed by the rhythm section of legendary studio musicians Steve Jordan and Pino Palladino.
Where the Light Is opens with three solo acoustic numbers, with more guitarists joining Mayer on-stage for performances of "Daughters" and a low-key cover of Tom Petty's "Free Fallin'".
Mayer essentially opens for himself - twice, no less - in this series of three separate sets. "Neon" - overlap with Mayer's previous concert DVD, and the bulk of the setlist is culled from 2006's "Continuum" and the John Mayer Trio's live album.Įven the concert itself is uniquely structured.
Rather than play as a "greatest hits, live" show, Mayer largely shies away from his older material, passing on playing early hits like "No Such Thing" and "Your Body Is a Wonderland". For one, director Danny Clinch opted to shoot the concert on 35mm film, a stylistic choice that's rarely seen in this day and age. In the same way that Mayer has shrugged off the sensitive singer/songwriter label and started to explore more mature, more blues-oriented musical territory, Where the Light Is also veers away from the usual expectations for this sort of concert film. His virtuosity on the guitar defines Where the Light Is, a document of a charity concert filmed in Los Angeles last November. While my taste in music admittedly leans more towards sugary power-pop than blues-inflected rock or soulful acoustic numbers, it's impossible not to marvel at John Mayer's immense talent.