Until a few years ago, Mayer's guitar chops took a back seat to his catchy, potetic, finely crafted pop songs. That changed with "Try!" by the John Mayer Trio, a blues/rock power trio consisting of Mayer on vocals and lead electric guitar, and two of the best session musicians in the business: Pilo Palladino on bass and Steve Jordan on drums and backing vocals. With a trio, there's no place to hide... and Mayer doesn't need to. His playing is simply stellar, and he holds his own with his two legendary side men.In this concert, Mayer opens for himself, starting off with a solo acoustic set, followed by a Trio set, followed by a set with his full band. All of the sets are great, but my favorite... this should not be a surprise to you... was the Trio. First off, the guys look cool, dressed in matching tuxedos with thin black ties... sort of Men in Black play the blues. But more importantly, they are cool, pumping out some of the best blues rock I've heard in years (and I grew up on the 60s power trios of the Jimi Hendrix Experience and Cream). Through the special features, I was able to view the concert through the Pino Palladino camera alone. He's not the greatest showman, I'll admit. He stands like a scarecrow (he's well over six feet tall and as thin as a rail) bobbing his head in time. But his super-long fingers are positively flying.
I got a chance to relisten to this concert driving down the the MPPC Men's Summit this last weekend with Marc Swanson. Marc had the CD in his car. This is fine stuff. Flick the DVD or buy the CD. And if you've not yet heard "Try!" get that one, too.
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