Ten More Songs..

This is a Heavier Things era behind-the-scenes video of John Mayer that I really appreciate. It's cool to hear songs from the record in their infancy ("Wheel" is one of my all-time favorites and the early version shown here is precious).

It was you who put the clouds around me..

http://music.clevver.com/video/24795/eric-clapton-blue-eyes-blue.php

I genuinely enjoy this version of the Clapton video for "Blue Eyes Blue." Most especially the clips from Runaway Bride interspersed with the footage of him playing.

Alexander McQueen x Puma

These shoes are hot.

Upcoming Shows..

Summer/Fall Shows:

April 25 - Bright Eyes @ The State Theater

May 2 - Sara Bareilles & Aqualung @ The Fine Line
May 3 - Ben Gibbard (Death Cab For Cutie) @ First Avenue

June 7 - Albert Hammond Jr. (of The Strokes) @ Station 4
June 20 - Feist @ The Pantages Theatre

July 20 - Sara Bareilles/Rocco Deluca & the Burden @ The Fine Line
July 28 - Crossroads Guitar Festival @ Toyota Park (Chicago, IL)

August 22 - Connie Evingson @ Pizza Nea

August 23 - Connie Evingson @ The Dakota

September 11 - Sara Bareilles @ The Varsity Theatre

Books I'm Reading This Year...

So I've decided to read 50 books this year (give or take a few). After I've finished a book I will add it to this blog.

- The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey by Candice Millard
- All You Need To Know About The Music Business: 6th Edition by Donald S. Passman
- Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
- Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
- The World According To Garp by John Irving
- On The Road by Jack Kerouac
- Isaac's Storm by Erik Larson
- The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
- Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez
- Veronika Decides To Die by Paulo Coehlo
- The Alchemist by Paulo Cohelo
- A Prayer For Owen Meany by John Irving
- The Hotel New Hampshire by John Irving
- The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay
- Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis
- Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
- Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
- Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
- Everything Is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer
- The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
- The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
- A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole
- A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers
- Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
- Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
- Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen
- The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant
- The Alienist by Caleb Carr
- They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky by Alphonsion Deng, Benson Deng, Benjamin Ajak, and Judy A. Bernstein
- Atonement by Ian McEwan
- Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut
- Clapton: The Autobiography by Eric Clapton

John Mayer + Xcel + 13 Feb 2007

John Mayer played at the Xcel Energy Center February 13th. I went with my dad. It was great. Our seats were good (right/center 8 rows back). John's voice and guitar playing sound better everytime I see him (this one was no. 5) and his songs are beautifully well-crafted amalgamations of blues, pop, and soul.

Setlist:
"Grammy Thank Yous He Forgot"
Bigger Than My Body
Belief
Waiting On The World To Change
I Don't Trust Myself (With Loving You)
Why Georgia (with part of "Love Soon")
Clarity
The Heart of Life
Vultures
Good Love Is On The Way
Steppin' Out (Joe Jackson) Intro -> No Such Thing
Gravity
------------
Encore
Slow Dancing In A Burning Room (w/"The Eraser" - Thom Yorke)
Your Body Is A Wonderland (w/"I Burn For You" - Sting)
Neon
------------
Band:
John Mayer - vocals, guitar
David Ryan Harris - guitar, backup vocals
Robbie McIntosh - guitar, backup vocals
Tim Bradshaw - keys
David LaBruyere - bass
JJ Johnson - drums
Bob Reynolds - sax
Brad Mason - trumpet

Minnie Riperton

Before Mariah Carey there was Minnie Riperton. Minnie had a 5-octave vocal range and could sing extremely well in the whistle register. She was able to enunciate words in the higher registers, something most other whistle register singers cannot do well. Although she had minor hits during her career, she is best known for "Lovin' You," a song that has, over the years, suffered the unfortunate fate of being used in every corny love-themed commercial on the planet. She died in 1979, survived by daughter Maya Rudolph who grew up to become a cast member of Saturday Night Live, better known as that show that used to be funny that no one watches anymore.

Leslie Feist, Rockstar

Leslie Feist is a fascinating and incredibly talented musician. I just got done watching a DVD of her performing at the Trabendo in Paris, France and I'm really impressed. She totally rocks out onstage and adds nice little touches to her songs that give them new life live. 2004's Let It Die is one of my favorite albums of all time. If you haven't heard Feist you should check her out: www.listentofeist.com.