Few human beings have achieved icon status in the way of the all-universal John Mayer, now a 19-time Grammy nominee and the winner of seven of those awards.
Mayer, who attended the famous Berklee College of Music but left after a couple semesters, just turned 46 years old and holds one of the most influential positions in all of music. The Connecticut native recently completed an important and monumental run with Dead & Company while simultaneously expanding his own catalogue and raising his own trajectory as one of the most adored guitarists and singer-songwriters on the planet.
It’s been years since Mayer headlined the Charm City in any manner, and so this past Friday night gave thousands of his listeners all the reason needed to battle through a heavy downpour and find a seat at CFG Bank Arena for what would become an unforgettable solo set.
Playing material from across his catalogue and some festive covers, too, Mayer delighted a packed house the night of Oct. 20, first offering up an intimate batch of songs in unadorned fashion — on a chair with just an acoustic guitar — before moseying over to a grand piano and then sitting back down for another go that saw him pull out a double-neck acoustic guitar.
Revisit John Mayer’s 80’s-inspired album, Sob Rock, released in 2021:
For any attendee longing to see and hear Mayer on his electric guitar, redemption came in the second and final song of the night’s encore, John’s Grammy-winning masterpiece “Gravity.”
Beginning in New York City and wrapping up next month in Los Angeles, the tour is being billed as the first true solo tour of his career and as expected it’s one of the most anticipated of this fall season.
View the promo video for what’s being billed as John Mayer’s first true solo tour:
Thanks to a choice selection of tunes that included some of his favorite hits, the stop in Baltimore proved to be a rewarding experience and long overdue for a city full of music listeners who celebrate a visit from a world-class musician like this one.
Setlist
(acoustic guitar)
Slow Dancing In a Burning Room
Clarity>
Love on the Weekend
XO (Beyoncé)
Why Georgia
On The Way Home
Who Says
Waitin’ On The Day
They Love Each Other (Jerry Garcia)
Something Like Olivia
The Age of Worry
Something’s Missing
In Your Atmosphere
(piano)
You’re Gonna Live In Me Forever
Changing
(acoustic)
Stop This Train
In The Blood
Your Body is a Wonderland
The Heart of Life
Walt Grace’s Submarine Test, January 1967
If I Ever Get Around to Living (with double neck acoustic guitar)
Edge of Desire (with double neck acoustic guitar)
Encore
Neon
Gravity (with electric guitar)
Here are home developed/scanned, uncropped 35mm film images of John Mayer, along with the night’s opening act, JP Saxe, performing at CFG Bank Arena in Baltimore the night of Oct. 20, 2023. All photos copyright and courtesy of Casey Ryan Vock.
JP Saxe
