2 weeks, 2 concerts

After a decade of deprivation, my concert-going drought ended a few weeks ago when I attended not one, but TWO amazing concerts. The artists (and the shows) could not have been more different, but I loved them both—and, in an effort not to forget the good times that were had, I will now devote the rest of this post to describing the highlights of each night.

First up... Michael Bublé!

The thing about buying tickets to a show in an arena that you've never been to before is that you really can't tell from a seating chart what your seats will be like. I was very pleasantly surprised to discover that our seats weren't awful. Seated next to me were four 40-something Canadian ladies who had come to Chicago for the weekend just to see the show. They were actually really nice and considerate, talked hockey with us (I fudged my way through that conversation), and weren't even obnoxious after their fourth or fifth beer. That's one thing I'd forgotten about at concerts—holy crud there's a lot of booze. And when people drink they soon after have to pee, which explains why there was a constant stream (pun intended) of folks headed up and down the aisle all evening. But we didn't care!


Some highlights:

• The opening act, Naturally 7, was a really incredible a cappella group. The way they could manipulate their voices to mimic instruments like harmonicas and drums was impressive. Even Scott, who sang with an a cappella group in college, approved.




• Bublé mentioned Team Canada's gold medal , and when members of the crowd began to "boo" he yelled "Suck it, Chicago!" He then went on to joke about how Americans must get so bored following the medal count during the Olympics, since we always lead it. :)


• Half way through the show some random woman in the audience interrupted Michael while he was talking by shouting at him. He ripped into her and it was hilarious. "I don't come down to the 7-11 where you work and interrupt you!" So funny!


• He opened with "Cry Me a River" and at the end of the song there were some pyrotechnics. Later he said something like, "Did you like the fireworks? Good. That stuff (only he didn't say stuff) was expensive!"


• He mentioned how he got engaged recently and indicated that the ring he's wearing on his left ring finger is something men do in his fiance's Argentinian culture, "At least, that's what she tells me."


• He sang a few of my favorites, like "Everything," "Home," and "Feeling Good." When he sang "Me and Mrs. Jones" the cute woman next to me who was celebrating her birthday, was so excited. Her last name is Jones, and that song, she felt, was meant for her. :)

At one point he came off the stage and walked through the audience, mounted a "b-stage" directly in front of us, and sang a song or two there. He started to sing Jason Mraz's "I'm Yours" and then deadpanned "I wish I wrote that song."

He closed the show with "Song for You," which is a beautiful song that he makes amazing by lowering the microphone for the last part and just belting it out. So incredible!


(Our seats were not nearly this good. I just poached this video from youtube.)

We had a wonderful time. The crowd was really diverse, a mixture of young and old. People watching was a joy. We hit the jackpot when we spotted a Kim Kardashian wannabe, wearing what I can only describe as a slutty prom dress, accompanied by a man twice her age who was definitely not her father. Wish I'd snuck a picture. We have vowed to go back the next time he swings through town, so it seems I won't have to wait another decade to attend my next concert.

And now... John Mayer:

To say that the John Mayer concert and the Michael Bublé concert were like night and day would be an understatement. The crowd was younger, the music was louder, the venue was bigger, and the vibe was hip-er. I loved every minute of it! Scott was really not interested in seeing John Mayer live. Though he likes his music, Scott really isn't much of a concert-goer in general. Thankfully, I got four tickets and we brought friends along!

Karin and Joe made the night super fun! We wandered through the United Center before the show began, then took our seats and listened to the earsplitting opening act, Michael Franti and Spearhead. At one point, Michael Franti came singing through the audience, stopped directly in front of us, noticed that we weren't screaming like idiots, then turned around and went the other direction. I would've taken a picture but I didn't want to bother turning on my camera. Besides, he was really sweaty and I was more concerned with not getting wet.

At some point during the evening, we invented a game called “slut bug”—our own version of “slug bug” where every time a really scantily clad girl walked by we punched each other. There was a lot of punching going on—girls seem to really like getting dressed up for John Mayer. It's fun to imagine what they are thinking when they're getting ready for the concert: "Maybe if I wear this sequined halter top and flail around like a lunatic, John Mayer will notice me!"

Other highlights:

• Some fool proposed to his girlfriend onstage during the opening act. If Scott had done that, I would have said no.


• During Michael Franti's final song, he invited pretty much whoever felt like it to come up onstage. In addition to hordes of skanky girls, there were these guys running around the stage in masks and capes looking ridiculous. A few days later I found out that it was actually John Mayer and some of his bandmates dressed in disguise. It wouldn't have induced me to go up onstage, but still...


• John Mayer and his band were amazing. So fantastic! He played many of my favorite songs, like Assassin, Free Fallin', Good Love is on the Way, and Stop this Train. There was no "Your Body is a Wonderland," which was FINE with me. It was the last night of the tour, and everyone on stage seemed to want to end strong. The concert was delightfully long, with John Mayer coming on at 9:30 and ending close to midnight.


• During "Half of My Heart," after Mayer sang the lyrics "Made a plan to stay the man who could only love himself" he added "And how's that working out for you, man? Crappy! (only he didn't say crappy)" which, from what little I know about his personal life, seems to be true.


• Mayer talked about how much he was looking forward to returning home to LA, which prompted the audience to "boo!" He went on to have this little exchange with the crowd: "You're booing me because I'm going home? I can't wait to be home! It's gonna be awesome. [More booing] What just happened here? This is great. Actually, this is essential to a passionate relationship... A little bit of grit... How am I going to bring you back? How can I possibly get back what we had about 35 seconds ago?"


• In addition to Free Fallin', he covered parts of Homeward Bound and Don't Stop Believin', which I'm fairly certain were the songs Scott recognized the most all night.


• We tried not to mock the teenage girls sitting next to us who spent the entire time inadvertently blocking our view and/or texting.

I remember going to a Dave Matthews Band concert once where he essentially ignored the audience and jammed incessantly after each song. I must admit I had feared that John Mayer might do the same. I was grateful he didn't ignore the 17,000 of us who came to hear him play. His interactions with his band and the crowd were perfect.

So, a big thanks to Michael Bublé and John Mayer for bringing me out of retirement—I’m a born-again concert-goer because of them. And thanks to my sweetie for allowing me to drag him along. I think our next big night out will be one of his choosing. Maybe a night at the Lyric Opera? I'll keep you posted!