Chula Vista, CA
Written by Marianne.
When I first found out where the show was, I'm thinking, "oh, San Diego!" ...yeah more like MEXICO! We're driving up to the amphitheater and we can see border patrol everywhere. So yeah a lil scary. But the excitement that had built up for FOUR MONTHS wiped away any reservations I might have had about the venue.
It was about a 6 hour drive to the show, traffic was TERRIBLE the whole way through LA all the way to San Diego, that part alone took 4 1/2 hours. Luckily, my friends and I had brought every single John CD we had, which ended up being 12 total, so we were very entertained the entire way. And we got plenty of weird looks from people on the freeway as we had the volume up full blast and were singing at the top of our lungs. Try that in stop and go traffic for four hours, its great fun!
FINALLY we got the the venue which was super nice! I think its relatively new, and was surprisingly clean. Standing in line to get in I saw a sign that said no cameras. Yeah right. I was not going to this close to John and not take pictures! So even though it was about 90 degrees, i stuff my camera down my shirt and put on my sweatshirt. Works every time.
We got in at the end of Maroon 5's show and saw their last song. It was alright but I was definitely there solely to see John. We knew we had pretty good seats but weren't sure exactly where they were so we found an usher to help us. Before we knew it, he was leading us to the front row of the second section which was 20 yds from the stage. NIIIIIIIICE. We sat, waited, and waited, and grew more and more antsy throughout the CC show. They were alright too, but I was too busy freaking out about the fact that I would be seeing John in like half an hour. CC finally finished and Adam says to the crowd, "Ok, we're done so you can see what you're all here from. And let me say, John's show is amazing!" Ohhhhh boy, I was DYING w/ anticipation.
When John finally came on stage I thought my heart was going to stop. He said hi and all that good stuff and immediately went into the intro of 3x5 that he does on Any Given Thursday. And yes I will admit it, I started crying. I know I know, how pathetic is that, but I had seriously been waiting for this show since the tour dates were released in March. And the fact that it was finally happening was overwhelming. Plus the fact that he opened w/ one of my favorite songs was the 2nd best part of the night. I called my friend back home so she could listen and we both sat there crying. (Gosh writing this now it sounds even more pathetic).
After 3x5 he went to introduce his new drummer, JJ Jackson (he was new for our show I think). Then John yells, "SEXUAL CHOCOLATE!" at which I just about died. I don't know how many of you have seen the movie Coming to American w/ Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall, but if you have, you know what he's talking about. And I'm pretty sure that I was one of the few people at the show who actually got that joke, b/c everyone else just looked at each other, confused. Wooo go me!!
He went on to play My Stupid Mouth which is so damn good live! The range of his voice is incredible and the way he rocks the acoustic guitar is amazing. Next came Neon which I continue to be bummed that he plays it electric now b/c I LOVE it acoustic. But oh well, the intro was super long which was cool.
Next came the absolute highlight of my show. He goes into a story of a song on Room For Squares that he used to really not like. And how he never played it. He called it "the ugly duckling of my record" but then he added "but now, having toured, and lived a little bit more, I realize that its actually the song that means the most to me on the record." And he proceeded to play Great Indoors. I went berserk and cried AGAIN. I should explain that that is my absolute favorite John song. And having read the set lists for all the other shows this summer, its been played at a grand total of 2, one being mine. I was floored. It such an amazing song and watching him play it was mesmerizing.
Next came Back to You which he preceded with a story about something that really hurts you but you keep on going back for more, "its like putting your hand in the fire, so stupid, but maybe you like the whole burning sensation." Next came Something's Missing which kicked ass. It was about 10 minutes long because he kept adding verses into the bridge, plus he has a short guitar solo which was super cool. 83 was up next which he played the same version as the one on Any Given Thursday. Very cool.
Come Back to Bed followed. Now I had heard this song before and loved it, but seeing him perform it. *gets the chills AGAIN*. Its SO good. He played this massive guitar solo in the middle that brought down the house. Everyone just stood in awe of his playing skills, it was an incredible thing to witness. Your Body is A Wonderland was next, and while yes I like the song, it really showed all the people who were there that are "radio fans", which bugs me. Its a good song still but he's got so much better that it always annoys me when people obsess over it. OK I'm done venting about that. No Such Thing, which was next, has the same effect. Except before he started, he saw a girl with a Happy Birthday sign and told us a story about how he, Scotty and dela were trying to write a new Happy Birthday song and "so far is goes like this: I wanna wish you a happy birthday, I wanna wish you a happy day. etc. etc." to the chorus of No Such Thing. Now that was pretty cool. This was his last song so he thanks us by saying, "awwwwe thanks, Mexico you my faaaaaavorite," in a real cheesy like voice, but it was funny.
He came back for the encore which was Wheel. Halfway through the intro, he stopped b/c some girls were just screaming uncontrollably. He said something like, "shut the f*ck up, its not that kind of song." and then something like "god it sounds like someone is getting stabbed out there! I just wanna play this song so gimme 4 minutes and then you can get back to your... whatever that was," This made me sad, because now i can see what a personal song it is to him and the moment kinda got ruined. It was an amazing performance though, solo acoustic. He then closed with Why Georgia which rocked like no other.
When it was all over and done with, I sat back in my seat and thought about what I had just witnessed. I can honestly say that it was the best night of my life. And before the show, I didn't think it was possible to love him more than I did, but now looking back, I love him a whole lot more. He's so talented, witty and just down right fabulous.
Wow, I just reread all that I wrote and I think I might just be pathetic and crazy, but its all for John, so its alllllll good! If haven't seen him live yet, you poor poor deprived people. Go see him. It is worth every cent and so much more.
And for the record, my favorite John obsessed friend and I are driving out to Austin, TX to see John in November. From California. That would be over 3000 miles round trip and 48 hours of driving. Now that'd dedication. Or mental illness. But it will be worth every mile driven, every penny spent, and every hour of sleep lost. It will be more than worth it.
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