Any Given Thursday
Encyclopedia
Any Given Thursday is a live
CD
/DVD
by John Mayer
, recorded in Birmingham
, Alabama
at the Oak Mountain Amphitheater on September 12, 2002, during the Room for Squares
tour. The album quickly peaked at #17 on the Billboard 200 chart. It features mostly songs from Room for Squares
, as well as several covers, including "Lenny
" by Stevie Ray Vaughan
and "Message in a Bottle
" by The Police
. Covers have since become a regular feature in Mayer's live shows.
", which appeared on Heavier Things
, his following album, and is the only song to have appeared on every live release. It also features "Comfortable" from his original EP
, Inside Wants Out
.
The DVD contained several features in addition to the concert: an audio commentary of the concert by Mayer and his friend Scotty Crowe (whose blog is hosted on Mayer's site since 2006), a photo gallery from the tour (not exclusively the concert shown in the video itself), and a documentary of an interview with Mayer entitled, "The Morning After", in which Mayer talks about his influences, some meanings of songs, and just general information about Mayer. The video was taken the Friday morning after the concert.
Commercially, Any Given Thursday entered the Billboard Albums Top 100 chart at number 34. It peaked at #23 for one week, and spent a total of 12 weeks on the chart. It quickly peaked at #17 on the Billboard 200
chart. In Australia
, the DVD
is certified 3x platinum by ARIA
for sales of 45,000 copies.
Live album
A live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
/DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
by John Mayer
John Mayer (musician)
John Clayton Mayer is an American pop rock and blues rock musician, singer-songwriter, recording artist, and music producer. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and raised in Fairfield, Connecticut, he attended Berklee College of Music in Boston. He moved to Atlanta in 1997, where he refined his...
, recorded in Birmingham
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
at the Oak Mountain Amphitheater on September 12, 2002, during the Room for Squares
Room for Squares
Room for Squares is the debut studio album of American musician John Mayer, released September 18, 2001 on Columbia Records in the United States. Originally released independently through Aware Records on June 5, 2001, the album peaked at number 9 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart...
tour. The album quickly peaked at #17 on the Billboard 200 chart. It features mostly songs from Room for Squares
Room for Squares
Room for Squares is the debut studio album of American musician John Mayer, released September 18, 2001 on Columbia Records in the United States. Originally released independently through Aware Records on June 5, 2001, the album peaked at number 9 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart...
, as well as several covers, including "Lenny
Lenny (Stevie Ray Vaughan song)
"Lenny" is the tenth track on the first Stevie Ray Vaughan album Texas Flood. The song is in 4/4 time and is played very slowly and freely, as it was often played at live shows. The song itself was written and named for his wife at the time, Lenora. Vaughan also named one of his guitars "Lenny"...
" by Stevie Ray Vaughan
Stevie Ray Vaughan
Stephen Ray "Stevie Ray" Vaughan was an American electric blues guitarist and singer. He was the younger brother of Jimmie Vaughan and frontman for Double Trouble, a band that included bassist Tommy Shannon and drummer Chris Layton. Born in Dallas, Vaughan moved to Austin at the age of 17 and...
and "Message in a Bottle
Message in a Bottle (song)
"Message in a Bottle" is a 1979 song by The Police, from their second album, Reggatta de Blanc.The song is ostensibly about a story of a castaway on an island, who sends out a message in a bottle to seek love. A year later, he has not received any sort of response, and despairs, thinking he is...
" by The Police
The Police
The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...
. Covers have since become a regular feature in Mayer's live shows.
Production and content
Though mostly featuring songs from Room For Squares, the album also features "Man On The Side" (co-written with Cook and appeared on the Lo-Fi Master's Demo) and "Covered in Rain", neither of which had ever been released on a studio recording. "Covered in Rain", according to a documentary included in the DVD release, is "part two" of the song "City Love", which features the line, "covered in rain." The concert features songs previously not heard, such as "Something's MissingSomething's Missing
"Something's Missing" is a song by John Mayer. It is the third track from Heavier Things, Mayer's second studio album. This song is distinct from all other songs by Mayer as it was the only song to have appeared on every live release Mayer had contributed to up to Where the Light Is. This included...
", which appeared on Heavier Things
Heavier Things
Heavier Things is the second studio album by American musician John Mayer, released September 9, 2003 on Columbia Records in the United States. The title of the album itself is a subtle response to certain criticism of Mayer's music. The album debuted at number 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart,...
, his following album, and is the only song to have appeared on every live release. It also features "Comfortable" from his original EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, Inside Wants Out
Inside Wants Out
Inside Wants Out is the debut extended play and very first overall release by American blues rock musician John Mayer. Released by Mayer Music on September 24, 1999, the album was later re-released by Columbia Records on August 2, 2002 with the omission of "Neon 12:47 AM"...
.
The DVD contained several features in addition to the concert: an audio commentary of the concert by Mayer and his friend Scotty Crowe (whose blog is hosted on Mayer's site since 2006), a photo gallery from the tour (not exclusively the concert shown in the video itself), and a documentary of an interview with Mayer entitled, "The Morning After", in which Mayer talks about his influences, some meanings of songs, and just general information about Mayer. The video was taken the Friday morning after the concert.
Reception
The CD/DVD received conservative, although consistent, praise, with critics torn between his pop-idol image, and (at the time) emerging guitar prowess. Erik Crawford (of Allmusic) asked "Is he the consummate guitar hero exemplified when he plays a cover of Stevie Ray Vaughan's 'Lenny', or is he the teen idol that the pubescent girls shriek for after he plays 'Your Body Is a Wonderland?'" Billboard called the DVD "a great introduction to a rising star."Commercially, Any Given Thursday entered the Billboard Albums Top 100 chart at number 34. It peaked at #23 for one week, and spent a total of 12 weeks on the chart. It quickly peaked at #17 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart. In Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, the DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
is certified 3x platinum by ARIA
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...
for sales of 45,000 copies.
Disc one
- "3x5" – 8:05
- "No Such ThingNo Such Thing (John Mayer song)"No Such Thing" is the title of a song co-written and recorded by American singer-songwriter John Mayer. It was released in February 2002 as the lead single from his first album, 1999's Inside Wants Out. Like many of the songs from Mayer's early musical career, the song was co-written with Clay Cook...
" (Clay CookClay CookDouglas "Clay" Cook is a songwriter, producer and musician who co-wrote several songs with Grammy-winner John Mayer including "No Such Thing", "Comfortable", and "Neon"...
, John MayerJohn MayerJohn Clayton Mayer is an American pop rock and blues rock musician, singer-songwriter, recording artist, and music producer. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and raised in Fairfield, Connecticut, he attended Berklee College of Music in Boston. He moved to Atlanta in 1997, where he refined his...
) – 4:46 - "Back to You" – 4:36
- "City LoveCity Love"City Love" is the name of a song by the musical artist John Mayer. He released it on his studio album, Room for Squares. It is the album's sixth track...
" – 5:11 - "Something's MissingSomething's Missing"Something's Missing" is a song by John Mayer. It is the third track from Heavier Things, Mayer's second studio album. This song is distinct from all other songs by Mayer as it was the only song to have appeared on every live release Mayer had contributed to up to Where the Light Is. This included...
" – 6:47 - "Man on the Side" Medley – 8:46
- "LennyLenny (Stevie Ray Vaughan song)"Lenny" is the tenth track on the first Stevie Ray Vaughan album Texas Flood. The song is in 4/4 time and is played very slowly and freely, as it was often played at live shows. The song itself was written and named for his wife at the time, Lenora. Vaughan also named one of his guitars "Lenny"...
" (Stevie Ray VaughanStevie Ray VaughanStephen Ray "Stevie Ray" Vaughan was an American electric blues guitarist and singer. He was the younger brother of Jimmie Vaughan and frontman for Double Trouble, a band that included bassist Tommy Shannon and drummer Chris Layton. Born in Dallas, Vaughan moved to Austin at the age of 17 and...
) - "Man on the Side" (Cook, Mayer)
- "Lenny
- "Message in a BottleMessage in a Bottle (song)"Message in a Bottle" is a 1979 song by The Police, from their second album, Reggatta de Blanc.The song is ostensibly about a story of a castaway on an island, who sends out a message in a bottle to seek love. A year later, he has not received any sort of response, and despairs, thinking he is...
" The PoliceThe PoliceThe Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...
– 5:06- Features "JógaJóga"Jóga" is a song by Björk, and the first single from her 1997 album Homogenic. It features a mix of classical string instruments with heavy electronic beats which is present in the whole album.-Background:...
" (DVD version only) (BjörkBjörkBjörk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
)
- Features "Jóga
- "Love Song for No One" (Cook, Mayer) – 3:35
Disc two
- "Why GeorgiaWhy Georgia"Why Georgia" is the third single released by John Mayer from his first album, Room for Squares. As a B-side, the international version single featured the live version of "Why Georgia" as it appeared on Mayer's first live album, Any Given Thursday, as the single followed the live album's release...
" – 8:24 - "Your Body Is a WonderlandYour Body Is a Wonderland"Your Body Is a Wonderland" is the title of a song written and recorded by American singer-songwriter John Mayer. It was released in October 2002 as the second single from his first album, 2001's Room for Squares...
" – 6:05 Note: Mayer preempts playing this song by telling the audience that he wrote it in BirminghamBirmingham, AlabamaBirmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
. - "My Stupid Mouth" – 5:02
- "Covered in Rain" – 10:25
- "83" Medley – 7:29
- "83" (Mayer)
- "Girls Just Want to Have FunGirls Just Want to Have Fun (song)"Girls Just Want to Have Fun" is a song written by Robert Hazard. It was the first major single released by singer Cyndi Lauper as a solo artist. It gained recognition as a feminist anthem, an award-winning video and a worldwide hit. It has been covered on either an album or in live concert by over...
" (Robert HazardRobert HazardRobert Hazard Robert Hazard Robert Hazard (born Robert Rimato, (August 21, 1948 – August 5, 2008), was a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, musician, probably best known for composing and recording the song "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun", which Cyndi Lauper covered, turning the song into a...
) - "Let's Hear It for the Boy" (Tom Snow, Dean PitchfordDean PitchfordDean Pitchford is an American songwriter, screenwriter, director, actor, and novelist. His work has earned him an Oscar and a Golden Globe Award, as well as nominations for three additional Oscars, two more Golden Globes, seven Grammy Awards and two Tony Awards.-Early life:Pitchford was born in...
)
- "Comfortable" (Cook, Mayer) – 7:37
- "NeonNeon (song)"Neon" is a song performed by John Mayer and written by Mayer and his former songwriting partner Clay Cook. The two wrote the song while they were known as LoFi Masters...
" (Cook, Mayer) – 10:22- Features a drum soloDrum soloA drum solo is an instrumental solo played on a drum kit. A drum solo may be set or improvised, and of any length, up to being the main performance....
and a bass guitar solo
- Features a drum solo
DVD version
- Introduction
- "3x5" – 8:05
- "No Such Thing" (Cook, Mayer) – 4:46
- "Back to You" – 4:36
- "City Love" – 5:11
- "Something's Missing" – 6:47
- "Man on the Side" Medley – 8:46
- "Lenny" (Vaughan)
- "Man on the Side" (Cook, Mayer)
- "Message in a Bottle" (Sting) – 5:06
- Features "JógaJóga"Jóga" is a song by Björk, and the first single from her 1997 album Homogenic. It features a mix of classical string instruments with heavy electronic beats which is present in the whole album.-Background:...
" as an interlude (BjörkBjörkBjörk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
)
- Features "Jóga
- "Love Song for No One" (Cook, Mayer) – 3:35
- "Why Georgia" – 8:24
- "Your Body Is a Wonderland" – 6:05
- "My Stupid Mouth" – 5:02
- "Covered in Rain" – 10:25
- "83" Medley – 7:29
- "83" (Mayer)
- "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" (Hazard)
- "Let's Hear It For The Boy" (T. Snow, D. Pitchford)
- "Comfortable" (Cook, Mayer) – 7:37
- "Neon" (Cook, Mayer) – 10:22
- Features a drum solo and a bass guitar solo
- Credits
Personnel
- John Mayer – vocals, guitars, keyboards
- Michael Chaves – keyboards, guitars, backing vocals
- David LaBruyereDavid LaBruyereDavid "DeLa" LaBruyere is a musician, songwriter and producer, most notably known as the former longtime bass guitarist for John Mayer. He has also been a member of Vigilantes of Love and worked with Michelle Malone.-External links:*...
– bass guitars - Stephen Chopek – drums, percussion
Differences between the DVD and CD releases
- The song "JógaJóga"Jóga" is a song by Björk, and the first single from her 1997 album Homogenic. It features a mix of classical string instruments with heavy electronic beats which is present in the whole album.-Background:...
" (originally by experimental musical artist BjörkBjörkBjörk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
) does not appear on the CD release due to copyright troubles; however, it does appear on the DVD. - Between many songs, the CD contains some brief comments by Mayer. On the DVD, these comments tend to be longer, including a few long monologues referred to by Mayer himself as "John's Story Time" (on the DVD commentary).
- Extended introductory explanations to songs (such as "City Love & Covered in Rain").