Mr. A-Z: It's all about the wordplay

Being the music lover I am I find it fitting that my first post is a concert review. Wednesday, September 30th had Jason Mraz bringing his Gratitude Cafe tour live to GM Place. My first reaction to hearing this was "That's a little bold of Jason to believe he can fill up an 18,000+ seat arena." We've seen him several times in settings from tiny cafes to larger concert halls. And while we've always been a big admirer of his talented voice, we thought it might be hard to find that many admirers of his. However, he was able to fill the arena to an almost sold out crowd.


Up first in the evening was K'NAAN. Yeah, I know what you're thinking…who the hell is K'NAAN? Well, he is an Afro-beat, hip hop, folk singer. My thoughts exactly so we were in no rush to arrive for the start of the show. We walked down to our seats just as he was wrapping up his set. I may not be a fan but apparently lots of people are as the stadium was near capacity and cheering loud at the conclusion of his final song.


A nice touch to the evening was the fact that this tour had a host that came out between set changes to entertain the crowd. The birthday boy, Bushwalla, was actually quite funny walking out into the crowd with his wireless mic chatting with random fans including a cute 7-year-old boy attending his first ever concert which Bush tossed onto his shoulders and paraded around the floor while the large crowd cheered loudly. Great experience for the boy at his first ever show. However, the entertainment with our host is short lived as he hypes the crowd up for the soon arrival of Jason…or so we thought.


Almost 1 hour after Bushwalla got us all cheering for Mraz "coming up next" we find ourselves still sitting in our seats with background music blaring and house lights still on. It appears that maybe the BC bud has hit the band harder than they expected, but wait, just before 9 here they come to a thunderous roar throughout the arena. I haven't seen all of the new members perform together before and I must admit, I still haven't really listened to the latest CD that has now been out for over a year so we sit with anticipation of the show to come. Overall, the show was extremely mellow. Kind of an odd style of performance for such a large venue, but the die hards were loving it, singing along to every lyric. Now I realize why I haven't listened to the new stuff that much, simply because I'm not the biggest fan. However, I am still amazed at what a great voice Mraz carries singing everything from tenor, to falsetto and even soprano. Wow! that is high.


While for the most part it is a totally chill type show, a few small groups of people feel the need to stand and sway to the music. I have no issues with this. We're at a concert, you do what you want. But only 10 minutes into the show some geriatric complains to a group of people in front of us that they are blocking his view. He then runs and tells on us, like a little brat, to the aisle usher before scampering back to his seat. Now I'm thinking, "Fuck you for thinking you run the show" so we tell the people in front to stand all they want and we ourselves even feel inclined to now rise to our feet. Funniest part of all that is when we look back to make disgusted faces we find him cuddling up close to his 13-year-old asian toy. Ewww, gross!


Anyways, back to the reason we paid $60/ticket to go out. Oh yeah there's a concert happening and we're groovin' along, recognizing maybe 4 or 5 songs throughout the evening. About an hour in he's already thanking the crowd for being a great audience and ready to pack it in for the night as he and the band walk off stage. But just as the eager beavers are storming up the stairs in an attempt to beat the traffic, what's that we see? A flashlight shining on the floor leading 3 guys out from the back of the arena to a small makeshift stage where Jason, Toca (percussionist) and unknown bass player strike up a mini acoustic set for the folks in the binocular seats. A nice touch of class to the guys who even invite a friend from San Fran up to sing the ever popular duet "Lucky." Then as the mob ensues as the trio try to make their way back to the stage we realize this was just a little break in the action, back to the main stage for a few more songs that are still a little to laid back for me.


The highlight of the night isn't even a Mraz original but a great rendition of our parents and yours favourite permed soul singer from the 80's, Lionel Richie's "All Night Long." Then a couple last tunes and the evening comes to a conclusion.


In the end, I'd give the show a C. Great lyrics and an amazing voice singing them, a really tight band with great brass section but overall, no panache to keep me moving on my feet, or even my toe tapping for that matter. Would I return to see another Mraz concert? (my 9th overall) Not before listening to the new tunes first. Apparently I've just grown out of the fan club I guess.


Check out the setlist and video below:


The New Intro -
Traveler/Make It Mine
Anything You Want
Coyotes
You and I Both
Reggeady
Details
Only Human
Dynamo
Beautiful Mess
I'm Yours - plus tres pequiños aviones
Glass …Happy Birthday Bushwalla!
Life, Lucky, Duo (acoustic set on the rear stage)
CopChase
All Night Long
Butterfly