John Mayer - Where The Light Is [Blu-ray] [Region Free]

I have been listening to John Mayer since his earliest years as a professional player, having happened upon him by chance on the internet and of course, more prominently, as a guest of Eric Clapton, at the great man's Crossroads guitar festivals. In the first of these, he struck me as a seemingly pleasant guy, who was clearly influenced first and foremost by Stevie Ray Vaughan and to my mind, offered an impressive interpretation, as did his contemporaries such as Kenny Wayne Shepperd.However, this DVD showcases a very different John Mayer, who seems to have come of age as a player and no question about it, the 'SRV clone' tag is long-gone. Whilst he still pays homage to his heroes, it's clear that he has evolved dramatically to his own playing identity: melodic but very bluesy, with great technique, feel & dynamics, ranging from the gentle to the full-on, hard-hitting stuff, his soloing is very tasteful and always approrpriate to the song in hand: he could never be accused of over-cooking it as many others do. Also, he is without question a far better vocalist than any of those who have influenced him.The DVD shows 3 sides of JM, starting with an acoustic set, which proves he is no slouch with a Martin, with some immensely skillful and sensitive playing which, to be honest, I didn't think he had in him. Its quite an emotional and soulful set, brilliantly sung as well, which will have the 'folkeys' amongst us drooling. The blues trio is a sign of where John may be headed in the future - lots of blues and jazz flavours, which combined with a world-class rythm section, is as tight as tight gets. Could do with loosing the suits, though.. The full-band set follows which showcases his pop-inclinations, but there's plenty of blues in there.The common factors which unify all three sets is bluesy-soulful music, tastefully arranged, stellar musicianship all round and John's vocal performances which are as impressive as his guitar playing. I have this DVD on in the kitchen regularly and even non-guitar-folk are stopped in their tracks by this guy's ability to carry a tune.Commenting on a couple of points made by other reviewers, suggesting he should 'shut up and concentrate on playing' is a bit unfair - the interviews are very short, they barely take up space on the DVD and wouldn't decribe them as 'insufferable.' Yes, JM does have a strong personality and has a bit of an ego (though not too bad - he'd never get into Guns & Roses for example...). He maybe isn't the most mature 30-year-old you'll ever see, but people shouldn't expect a younger guitar-touting version of Cliff Richard. He's become very wealthy, his career as taken off meteorically in the US and he's on the verge of large scale popularity and he's becoming prized gossip-column fodder, so of course he's going to have a bit of attitude and spark about him. But then, he has a self-deprecating and sharp sense of humour (just check YouTube!) and he's obviously a very well-mannered guy who never misses an opportunity to thank his fans, which seems gracious and sincerely meant.As for comparing him to Larry Carlton, as a serious-minded guitarist myself, Carlton is my all-time hero, so quite relate to that, but its missing the point - Larry is a brilliant world-renown instrumentalist, the guitar-player's guitar player, whereas Mayer could be that in time (if he keeps his head straight), but is more of a front-man personality. Also, lets not forget that Larry is twice his age!So this is a great DVD which shows a young guy at an important stage in his journey, hopefully he'll keep it on the straight & narrow and if he does, he will be the next big thing certainly in the guitar playing world. As one magazine has commented, he seems to have it all. The rest is up to him, but somehow, don't think he'll disappoint. Guitar players and just live music fans alike will surely love this DVD.

Fantastic concert

I am new to John Mayer & have bought this DVD on the back of his performances on the 2 'Crossroads' DVDs.It's a bit difficult to categorize Mayer as although he is undoubtedly a very accomplished guitarist he does not seem to highlight his own playing very much. Rather he seems to throw his real efforts into his singing which, as has already been noted, is very Stevie Ray Vaughan in quality, so that his guitar work seems to come second in his priorities. A shame as he really has some talent that works equally well when unleashed & raw,(his work on 'Who did you think I was' is really very impressive), or when stripped down to the bone in the quite beautiful & moving cover of Tom Pettys' 'Freefalling' with just mayer, an acoustic guitar & 2 others providing contrast & harmonies.Not everything works here. Although the offstage footage may be of interest to Mayers fans it detracts from the concert feel & quite frankly he is a bit of a pretentious 'artiste',(his getting the hump with the papparazzi- what did you expect? Then his 'oooh which of my ever so expensive watches shall I choose to wear on stage?' bit was immature & crass),. A shame as quite frankly I didn't buy this to get to know the guy but just to watch a concert. Also the idea of splitting everything into 3 separate sections is just too awkward & stagey. Just get out there & play, some acoustic, some as a 3 piece, some as the whole band, don't make a big thing of it.The moans aside this is still a 5 star DVD because when Mayer gets it right he is superb, touching & vulnerable,(he is obviously very grateful to his fans & treats them with respect & thanks), with a soulful voice & a deft touch with the guitar. His choice of accompanying musicians is also spot on.The DVD is simply but effectively shot with a slightly grainy finish which helps with the 'live' feel. The sound is very well mixed with the audience placed firmly behind the listener & a very open soundstage that really lets each instrument sound out loud & clear & as separate from the others while none are allowed to drown out Mayers voice which is locked firmly & clearly in the centre.A lot of tracks, some extra footage & a variety of playing styles mean that this is a great place to start if you are curious as to what the fuss about Mayer is all about. This is great value for money & leaves the viewer in no doubt that although still developing, there is a real talent on display.

This review will be somewhat biased as, despite John Mayer's best efforts to alienate me with his pretention, I am a fan of his output.This video presents a three set concert, featuring Mayer in an acoustic setting, his blues trio and a full band. Shot seemingly after the release of his Continuum album, this presents a comprehensive cross-section of his music, both covers and originals, from ballads through blues to his more hard rocking numbers. Here you'll find most of his Continuum original pieces, along with some really tasty covers, including Hendrix pieces such as "Axis". The playing is immaculate, yet soulful, with the various accompanists providing superb support. Highlights include "Stop this Train", from his acoustic set, as well as "Gravity" and "Axis" from his full band set.So if you really want a good introduction to the whole John Mayer hype, this is a good place to start. And I use the term hype advisedly, for amongst the excellent pieces, we are also "treated" to some of John's musings and showmanship. The King, nay Emperor of the Humble Brag, the Burgermeister of BS, anyone familiar with John, especially from his early days, will know that he is not known for his modesty and we do get a fair helping of Mayer BS here: from the overly pretentious discourses with the audience, through to all the little pretentions he puts his bandmates through, you're looking at the Blues equivalent of Justin Bieber here. That said, if you overlook the BS and focus on the music, you will hear a musician who wants to carry the torch for Hendrix and SRV, which is noble.