Tonight, Not Again: Jason Mraz Live at the Eagles Ballroom - Jason Mraz > Reviews > Tonight and every night in this house!

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Sublime
Quality and consistency of tracks	A couple of weak links
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Outstanding
Value for Money

Advantages:	A live album like no other live album ever !
Disadvantages:	Um .  .  . ah .  .  .  None !

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Jason Mraz’s 2002 album ‘Waiting For My Rocket To Come’ (henceforth ‘WFMRTC’) was his first mainstream release and catapulted the Californian one time ??? and Seattle coffee shop entertainer to the heights of stardom, on the other side of the Atlantic anyway, here he is still pretty much unknown. The song ‘The Remedy (I Won’t Worry)’ being the only time I’ve heard any of his music on UK radio, Virgin to be specific. The Remedy is a beautifully crafted song and forced its way into my head in a very short space of time. Leading me to track down his website, listen to other songs of his and then buy the album.

A little background courtesy of Jasonmraz.com -:

“Jason Mraz is a southern california wanna-be born in Virginia to a brief stint in New York studying the ancient art of musical theatre. Jason began playing guitar late in life, 18, at strawberry fields and on the streets of Manhattan. During that period of experimentation and transformation, Jason was inspired by a psychic in central park to dream the way he does today. The lesson offered to him was "to avoid the questioner and go with what you know. Get experience youth, he said" and following this new rule as well as his instincts to sing he eventually made his way out west where he spent two years in San Diego learning from the best about sleep, peace, and poetry in song.
In 2002 Jason set up camp in Los Angeles and partnered with percussionist Toca Rivera and played weekly there at the world famous Java Joes in Ocean Beach.”

WFMRTC is an incredible album of rock mixed with pop, the vocal dexterity of a rapper and a smattering of jazz. There are reviews of this album here so search them out if you want to know more. This review is about ‘Tonight, Not Again - Jason Mraz Live At The Eagles Ballroom.

‘Tonight, Not Again’ was recorded live at The Eagles Ballroom (surprisingly!) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on October 28th 2003 and features 14 tracks, seven from the album and seven others (new, older and live only it is difficult to tell as all tracks are copyrighted 2003).

Although there are seven songs from WFMRTC they are so different live that they are almost completely new songs. Adlibbed verses, a more distinct percussion sound and some brass interludes for example.
Often with live albums, and this is the main reason I tend not to buy them, the only difference from the original songs is a slight rawness (often removed too much these days in post production) to the sound, solos and the interaction between the band/singer and the audience. Not so with ‘Tonight’, the songs morphed into living entities, they have evolved from the studio recordings and have become something entirely different. Jason Mraz live is a different creature to the one recorded in a studio, you feel that the studio made him compromise and stick to a style of music they could sell, a soft rock base for an American audience so to speak.

Live he shows how much he is influenced by many, many different styles and how easily he has mastered a goodly number of them. Live he encompasses rock, pop, jazz (a much bigger jazz influence flows though the tracks live, vocally and musically. I don’t really like jazz but here it really works), the rapping style of Curbside Prophet, the soulful vocals of Sleeping To Dream and the stunning reworking of No Stopping Us.
It’s his partnership with Toca Rivera and his percussion skills that shine live. Percussion is an art that is lost in the studio, drowned by vocals and electric instruments live you realise how important they are to an artists overall sound. Toca Rivera is the rhythm behind the vocals! The individuality behind the music!

To me what show more than anything how good Jason Mraz's music is, is the number of tracks I would put on a compilation disc if I was to make one right this moment. The Remedy for it's po/rock brilliance, Curbside Prophet for its lyrics and the speed with which he can sing the lines, You and I both for the lyrics again and the emotion behind them. Sleeping to Dream, just so beautiful, No Stopping Us for the brass backing and Not So Usual for it's brilliance.
So many that I am foregoing the track by track rundown as it will end up as me gushing over everytthing!

Lastly:-

If this package included just this album I would heartily recommend it but along with the CD album you also get a DVD of the concert as well. Bargain or what!
With the DVD (Region 1 only but you can buy just the DVD on it’s own in Europe) you get the whole concert, with one extra song, plus a whole load of snippets about life on the road, performing, the band, getting up early and the explanation for the Rooster on the cover of WFMRTC!
You also get a selection of DVD bonus features including Jason in Japan, behind the scenes stuff, the reasoning behind some songs not being on the DVD and Jason performing Sleep All Day acoustically in London.

Tracks

Tonight Not Again*
Not So Usual
No Doubling Back
You And I Both*
Absolutely Zero*
1000 Things
Common Pleasure
Curbside Prophet*
Sleeping To Dream
Unfold
The Right Kind (DVD only)
No Stopping Us *
The Remedy (I Won’t Worry)*
After An Afternoon
Too Much Food*

*Tracks taken from WFMRTC

The Band

Jason Mraz – Vocals, Guitarist
Toca Rivera – Percussion, background vocals
Bill Bell – Lead Guitar
Ian Sheridan – Bass, background vocals
Eric Hinojosa – Keyboards, banjo
Adam King – Drums

Special guest – John Popper – Harmonica (Anyone know him? He seems to be a big thing to the Americans)

The Chicago Storm/Ohio Players Horns

Kenny Anderson – Trumpet
Jowestly Boston – Saxophone
Johnny Cotton – Trumbone

Available from Amazon - £15.99
CD-101 - £14.99
Both imports as this hasn’t been released here for some reason, though the DVD has had a region 2 release by itself in Europe.

Website – jasonmraz.com

From bottom back of CD – “We don’t have to cut forests to make paper anymore. That’s why Jason printed this CD/DVD booklet with soy inks on Déjà vu matte coated paper made from 10% tree free fibres hemp-flax, 40% post consumer waste, 20% pre consumer waste and 30% certified sustainably harvested wood from www.livingtreepaper.com”

Just thought I would tell you that, as I like the first line! Wouldn’t it be great if all businesses could make paper this way and save the forests from being continually destroyed.

There is DVD Easter egg hidden on the disc (well the only one I’ve found so far as I’m crap at finding them!) – Of Adam King singing karaoke of ‘The Remedy’

It starts of with this great warning, spoofing the FBI warning that opens every region 1 DVD……

“This following material was shot the night before Mraz’s concert in Milwaukee. There were no actors and the footage has not been altered from its origional (sic) state. Please tell no one you have seen this, especially Adam King.

Your DVD player may self destruct after viewing.”

Again not needed for the reviw but I liked it!