Released on July 1, 2008, John Mayer’s CD and DVD “Where the Light is: Live in Los Angeles” is a live musical journey through the career of an artist who has definitely seen his triumphs and failures in the industry. The DVD opens with John Mayer playing his guitar on a hill then cuts to him driving in his Mercedes driving through the same streets that were his backdrop just moments before. During this in-car interview Mayer states, “part of me doesn’t like it when everything works.” While he may like it when things aren’t working perfectly, the live performances on his DVD show how awesome it can be when everything does work.

The DVD and CD cover three different set list with three very distinct performances that comprise one awesome concert that took place December 8, 2007 at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles. The first is an acoustic set that begins the concert with just John and his guitar. The second is with the John Mayer trio consisting of John Mayer, Steve Jordan and Pino Palladino. The last is a set list with John Mayer’s full band.

Mayer explains in the DVD, during another short in-car interview after his first set, why he chose to break the concert up into those three distinct parts, “the acoustic set reminds me of when I first started, I don’t have to nod to anyone and let them know, ‘this is where we are going,’ the band is my pop sensibilities, what I love doing, the melodies, the hooks, the John Mayer trio when I was successful with that I felt almost cornered by it and I knew there was some other stuff I wanted to get out: almost the antidote to the pop stuff is the trio. This concert shows all three sides to Mayer’s musical abilities and offers long time fans and those who may just be getting into John Mayer an opportunity to really see how dynamic and multi-layered an artist he really is.

Highlights of both the DVD and CD include a song that Mayer expresses “fell out of fashion” for him and “just recently fell back into fashion,” “In Your Atmosphere,” Mayer’s acoustic cover of Tom Petty’s “Free Fallin,” a performance of “Come When I Call” with The John Mayer Trio and “The Heart of Life” performed during his full band set. What is truly amazing about these three distinct set lists that comprise one live show is how well is works as both a DVD and live CD. There is something for every kind of music lover to be found within the CD and DVD. Even if John Mayer’s seemingly pop-aesthetic is not for you, his acoustic songs and rare performance with the John Mayer Trio will certainly give you something to applaud.

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