BY DEAN BIRKHEIMER | Go Venue Magazine
“New York, London, Paris, Munich. Everybody talk about pop musik” ― Robin Scott
Hot off a successful run on Broadway in the cast of Waitress the Musical Jason Mraz fronted a band made up of Molly Miller on guitar, Eric Hinojosa on Keys, Michael Leroy Bram on drums, Andre De Santanna on bass and Toca Rivera on percussion. Speaking of hot, the 95° weather did nothing to keep away the collection of people who attended this show. Young, old, boys, girls and every cultural group you can think of was there to cheer for Jason and his band mates. The venue may not have been sold out, but you would have been hard pressed to find a decent spot at the spacious Stir Cove. Just a quick note about Stir Cove. It’s an incredible place for a show. You wanna stand, you can stand, you wanna sit, just bring your lounge chair and/or a blanket and sit. So much room and so many vendors to quench your thirst or fill your stomach. Security is always cordial, professional and eager to assist. No wonder it ranked 68th in the top 100 Amphitheaters in the world by Pollstar Magazine. That’s right I said THE WORLD!!! O.K. back to the show..
Jason kicked things off with No Plans, a soft jam with smooth sounds that emanated from the stage and immediately influenced crowd. It had them swaying and singing and already completely engaged. The beat quickened with Unlonely and now instead of swaying, everybody was dancing. After a few more songs, Jason jumped down from the stage and approached the crowd where selfies were taken, and high fives were flying. The spacious stage wasn’t decorated to the hilt, but it was none-the-less beautiful despite its minimalistic style. Jason has an amazing voice and he doesn’t hold back vocally. He can hit any note and croon with best of them. All night long the hot and humid air was filled with music and cheers. Songs like The Minute I Heard of Love, Hearing Double and Lucky were loaded with positivity, love and happiness. During 93 Million Miles we were told that no matter where we go, you can always come back home. The final song was the song of the night. Love Someone felt like it was being sung to each of us individually. When he had finished, he used that soft gentle voice and thanked everyone for coming. He reminded all of us that there is still good in the world. I don’t ever recall being surround by so many, for the lack of a better word, nice people. I went in expecting simple pop music, what I got instead was a professional show by some enormously gifted and artistic people.
SET LIST:
NO PLANS – UNLONELY – YOU AND I BOTH – REMEDY – ONLY HUMAN – LOVE IS TILL THE ANSWER – THE MINUTE I HEARD OF LOVE – HEARING DOUBLE – LUCKY – FRIENDSHIP – SONG FOR A FRIEND – I’M YOURS – 93 MILLION MILES – I WON’T GIVE UP – MIGHT AS WELL DANCE – MAKE IT ALL – LOVE SOMEONE
