John Mayer stood beneath the vast night sky and swatted a bug off his cheek.
"Is it just me or are there a lot of bugs out here?" he asked the crowd at Sleep Train Amphitheatre on Friday night.
Mayer had just finished playing his opening number "Waiting on the World to Change" and the gnats, mosquitoes and moths were buzzing thick around his face.
"Is this just how it is? Because I can deal with it if it's just a hometown thing?" he continued. "It is? OK, then, not only can I deal with it, I can get down with it."
And with that, the 30-year-old singer-songwriter jumped in the air and cheerfully high-fived the cloud of insects that hovered in the lights shining above his head.
The tabloid appearances, the paparazzi-magnet girlfriends, and the playboy reputation - sometimes it's easy to forget that John Mayer is a smart, funny and down-to-earth guy who, inarguably, knows his way around a wicked guitar lick or two.
Backed by a six-piece band that included guitarist Robbie McIntosh (who over the years has played with, among others, Paul McCartney and the Pretenders), Mayer reminded fans just who he is during a two-hour set that blended radio-friendly, lite-rock hits with the noodlely blues that have won him acclaim as a musician's musician.
Certainly, songs such as "Clarity," "Bigger Than My Body" and the aforementioned "Waiting" epitomized the reason many have dismissed Mayer as the kind of guy who makes rock that's perfect accompaniment for your mid-afternoon decaf skim latte: pleasant, if not more than a little bland.
But other tracks, the nostalgic yet acerbic "No Such Thing" and the Grammy-winning "Daughters" showed off his clever and stylish side, while "I Don't Trust Myself (With Loving You)" and a cover of "Crossroads" - the 1930s Robert Johnson song made popular by Cream during the late '60s" - indulged his love for showy, lightening-fast guitar moves and seemingly neverending riffs.
John Mayer really likes to play his guitars (he swapped out models no fewer than seven times during his set) - so much so that even those who may complain that some of songs just seem to go on (and on and on) can't really fault the guy for the sheer joy and enthusiasm he brings on stage.
Because, even if Mayer's probably more famous, at least these days, for his high-profile love life, he seems most at home with his fingers flying up and down the fretboard, head and mouth jerking, Joe Cocker-styled as lays down the blues, kicks out a Chuck Berry-styled duck walk and floats through covers such as Tom Petty & the Heartbreaker's "Free Fallin'."
Folk singer Brett Dennen and Colbie Caillait opened the night. Caillait as an appealingly husky voice but little stage presence. Indeed, the 23-year-old was swallowed up by the vastness of her surroundings - and a profound lack of knowing what to do with such a space. Even the easygoing charm of her hit "Bubbly" did little to make her stand out.
Caillait could stand to learn a thing or two about charisma and confidence from her tour mate - the kind of guy who even makes getting swarmed by flying insects seems like just another part of the party.
Call The Bee's Rachel Leibrock, (916) 321-1176
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