Soliloquy

BOMBAY, INDIA: American singer-songwriter John Mayer, as part of his solo tour, performed live at the Mahalaxmi Racecourse in Bombay on Wednesday, February 11. He enthralled the crowd (some 20,000-strong) from the first minute and captivated them with his iconic guitar-playing skills.

Known widely for his impressionable vocals, soul-wrenching lyrics and skilful string playing, Mayer was welcomed onto the stage by his fans screaming his name in delight. Some had come far, and many had been waiting for his arrival on the stage near the barricades by standing for eight hours straight; they were amply rewarded for their efforts.

Starting with the legendary ‘Slow Dancing In A Burning Room’ (Continuum), Mayer spoke at length with the crowd, even choosing to play ‘Emoji Of A Wave’ (The Search For Everything) on their demand. Clips of his interviews from the past, including ones used for the promotion of Room For Squares and Continuum, were played on the big screen on the stage, adding equal parts gravitas and levity to the event.

John Mayer also covered George Harrison’s My Sweet Lord on stage

At one point, he asked the spotlight to be directed onto the crowd, and seeing a young man brandishing a banner asking for George Harrison’s My Sweet Lord to be covered onstage, he acquiesced delightfully. Mayer, whose latest album Sob Rock came out in 2021 but met with mixed reviews, especially after the highs of Battle Studies in 2009, charmed the crowd by replacing New York with Mumbai in ‘Who Says’ from the latter record.

He signed off, as is his wont, with a rendition of ‘Edge Of Desire’ from Battle Studies by playing the double-necked acoustic on a high stringline, while ‘Gravity’ from Continuum was left for the last. He was also heard joking with the crowd, appreciating the men for their funky hairstyles, and expressing a mock annoyance at his own inability to style it the way Bombaykars do.

To this correspondent, the show was nothing short of a dream coming true, as it was, undoubtedly, for the other 19,999 who had gathered under the moonlight at the racecourse enclosed by Bombay’s skyscrapers.

The setlist from this show can be found here.

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