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Counting Crows still ‘Hangin Around’
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by Matt Modell and Katie Topinka
Monday, August 11, 2003
MILWAUKEE, Wis. — What do you get when you have a lineup that includes up-and-comer Graham Colton, the Counting Crows and John Mayer? A great night of entertaining music.
“It’s my birthday, so we’re starting with this one,” Counting Crows lead man Adam Duritz told the crowd at the Marcus Amphitheater in Milwaukee as the band broke out with its song “Rain King.” Counting Crows opened the evening with a slower and stronger version than the studio recording familiar to most listeners. Perhaps Duritz’s birthday helped to motivate the band, which performed much better Friday night in Milwaukee than it did in its October visit to Madison.
Although the Crows preceded John Mayer in the concert lineup, they did not sound as though they deserved to be anything but a headliner. In the shortened set (due to the co-headlined show) the Crows managed to fit in many of their most popular songs, including “Mr. Jones” and “Hard Candy.”
Duritz managed to entertain the crowd not only with his crisp vocals, but also with stories of what his songs were about. Before “Goodnight Elizabeth,” for example, he told the crowd the song was written about an ex-girlfriend after she had dumped him.
More entertaining was when Duritz told the crowd that “American Girls” was not written about having fun in the summer and meeting girls, but actually about him “being a dick.”This made an otherwise mediocre song amusing, if nothing else.
The lead singer for the opening act of the night, Graham Colton, reappeared during the Crows’ set and helped sing a verse of “Hanging Around,” which was certainly a crowd favorite with its exciting sound and the display of flashy stage lights.
The encore featured Duritz soloing on the piano, singing “Goodnight L.A.,” followed by the rest of the band joining him for “Long December.” Before the Counting Crows left the stage, Duritz made sure to have the crowd and the band sing “Happy Birthday” to him, which capped off an exciting performance from the band. The biggest disappointment was that the Crows had to leave the stage so early — there is no question that they left the crowd wanting more.
Headliner John Mayer was greeted with loud shrieks from the many teenage girls in the audience, many of whom were clad in shirts with messages to John, including at least one saying, “John, your body is a wonderland.” However, there is more to John Mayer than his boyish good looks and his somewhat uninteresting studio recordings.
Mayer’s guitar-playing abilities do not come through in the studio tracks. Throughout the performance, he featured several new, unreleased songs that showed off these magnificent skills to good effect. During the yet-to-be-released “Come Back To Bed,” Mayer played a string of electric guitar solos that were the highlight of the show. When the song was over, he told the audience that he had “never had that much fun playing the guitar.” (Followed by high-pitched screams.)
Mayer followed up with a stirring rendition of his top-40 hit “Your Body is a Wonderland.” His singing abilities, combined with his skill as a guitarist, gave others in the audience something to scream about as well: musical talent.
Overall, Graham Colton, the Counting Crows and John Mayer put on a solid show in Milwaukee. The acoustics in the ampitheater were clear, creating a great sound for both the instrumentals and vocals. There was excitement in the audience, and it seemed Counting Crows fans were pleasantly surprised with John Mayer’s performance. Likewise, Mayer fans seemed to love the Crows.
