John Mayer / Star Tribune photo by Tom Wallace
I missed his wit, smile and personality. John Mayer has reined himself in so much that all we got at the X on Tuesday was his guitar and his voice. However, without his personality, he just didn't connect with the crowd. (Official attendance was 12,000; I'd say there were maybe 9,000 people there, down nearly 40 percent from his 2007 concert at the X.) There were a couple of moments when Mayer allowed himself to be himself. After "Perfectly Lonely," he said that the song can be"either beautiful or depressing, depending how you feel at the moment. Right now it feels quite beautiful to me." The only other glimpse into his personality was when, as always, he read a bunch of homemade signs held up by fans. "Will you marry me?" Said Mayer: "We'll have to talk." "Why do you never play 'St. Patrick's Day'?" So he played a passage. "Assassinate me." Mayer said: "That's the weirdest sign ever. You did a good drawing of Glock 21." (the sign refers to his song "Assassin.") All told, it was an efficient but not memorably Mayer show. For full review and photo gallery, click here. Here is Mayer's set list, which was drawn largely from his new "Battle Studies," much to the consternation of the dude behind me who kept yelling "No Battle Studies": Heartbreak Warfare/ Crossroads/ Why Georgia/ Vultures/ Perfectly Lonely/ Assassin/ solo acoustic In Your Atmosphere/Something's Missing/ Free Fallin (Tom Petty)/ Waiting on the World To Change/ Belief/ Half of My Heart with Dreams (Fleetwood Mac)/ Gravity ENCORE Who Says/ No Such Thing
