Taken during his two night stint at Madison Square Garden at the end of February 2010, this video perfectly encompasses all that I love about a John Mayer concert. His recent addition of "Ain't No Sunshine" not only gives him an opportunity within the set to display what he's best at (guitar solos) but puts such a sophisticated spin on the entire concert. This song actually fits in with his usual collection of songs much better than his own earlier work does. Hearing "I Don't Trust Myself (Loving You)" and then "No Such Thing" never worked for me.
I was lucky enough to be at this performance with pretty much the same seat as the person taking this footage. This was the first time I saw him perform this live and over the summer he played it at every concert I went to - maybe even performing better than in this clip.
Below you can also find Bill Withers' best known version of this song that I have become obsessed with over the past 24 hours. After adding it to my "Lonely Mix", I can't stop listening. I don't understand how he fits so much into 2 minutes. His voice is breathtaking and the "I know, I know, I know" part takes up about 1/6 of the entire song. It almost feels like an inner monologue being played out in song. It's also interesting how much the delivery of the "I know" changes the song from one version to another. In Withers', it almost comes across as melancholy to me while Mayer's version is slightly breathless and darkly intimate. The balance of that is fantastic. I know there are tons of versions of this song and I definitely plan on finding more but for now I'm enjoying these.
Also: take note of the drummer in the second video. He gets so excited when the funky parts come up. I hope this guy is still alive and willing to be my friend. I want to borrow his striped blazer.
Ain't No Sunshine Lyrics
Ain't no sunshine when she's gone.
It's not warm when she's away.
Ain't no sunshine when she's gone
And she's always gone too long anytime she goes away.
Wonder this time where she's gone,
Wonder if she's gone to stay
Ain't no sunshine when she's gone
And this house just ain't no home anytime she goes away.
And I know, I know, I know, I know, I know,
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know,
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know,
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know
Hey, I ought to leave the young thing alone,
But ain't no sunshine when she's gone, only darkness everyday.
Ain't no sunshine when she's gone,
And this house just ain't no home anytime she goes away.
Anytime she goes away.
Anytime she goes away.
Anytime she goes away.
Anytime she goes away.
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