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| John Mayer's 'Battle Studies World Tour' Extends to Summer John Mayer's fourth album, Battle Studies, debuted at #1 in November 2009 and launched a world tour that has sold out arenas across the country and earned the musician some of the best performance reviews of his career. Summer dates for The Battle Studies World Tour, produced by Live Nation, have now been announced to kick off on July 16th in Charlotte, North Carolina. Special guests will include Train, The Avett Brothers and Owl City. Tickets for Mayer's hometown of Hartford, CT will go on sale on April 16, while dates in select markets go on sale beginning April 17th at LiveNation.com. Citi card members will also have access to presale tickets beginning Wednesday, April 14th at 10am local time through Citi's Private Pass Program. For complete presale details visit www.citiprivatepass.com. Since kicking off in February, the Battle Studies World Tour has repeatedly ranked among the Top Five on Billboard Magazine's weekly Hot Tour list. Mayer's current single, "Heartbreak Warfare" is his seventh Top Five radio hit, with the song reaching over 385 million people in the past three months. He has also earned a steady stream of performance accolades: Mr. Mayer is an astonishing blues guitarist, both in his technical gifts and in his ability to make those gifts appear accessible. ? New York Times "It was an impressive display of his sharp guitar playing, appealing sing-alongs and personable wit, and the audience responded generously." ? RollingStone.com "?for two hours, he thrilled fans with high-energy vocals, superb and innovative guitar playing, and light-hearted banter." - The Oklahoman "He certainly has the scary-good guitar chops to try anything, whether it's the smooth and effortless, funky vibe of 'Vultures' or the edgy rock build-up of 'Assassin' or the smoky blues-bar interlude on his cover of 'Ain't No Sunshine.'" - Grand Rapids Press "Mayer was in good spirits, seemingly self-possessed by the music, grooving to his own guitar playing, enjoying the sound of his fellow musicians and singing like the words mattered to him." - Minneapolis Star Tribune "? there's no question that the guy can play guitar. It's not for nothing that such revered ax men as B.B. King and Eric Clapton have given Mayer their imprimatur." - Philadelphia Inquirer "Performing for more than 12, 000 fans with a killer seven-piece band, Mayer has surely grown into his stage persona. He's equal parts quirky and smooth, earnest and confident. And he has a hearty body of work to draw from." - Dallas Morning News Battle Studies was released in November 2009 on Columbia Records and debuted at #1. It is his fourth studio album from the seven-time Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter/guitar player/producer and incorporates the warmth, melodies and simplicity of 70's and 80's California rock and pop. Battle Studies is a confessional, relaxed and liberated album recorded in a private home in California where Mayer lived and worked over the course of six months before wrapping at the famed Capitol Studios in Los Angeles. The album was co-produced by John Mayer and Steve Jordan. ABOUT JOHN MAYER - The consistency with which John Mayer combines word craft and melody has earned him rarefied status in popular culture as a respected songwriter and musician. Since his acclaimed debut in 2001 with Room For Squares, each release has earned John Mayer additional accolades. Through 2003's Heavier Things, his work with John Mayer Trio in 2005, CONTINUUM's 2006 release and now Battle Studies, John Mayer has established himself as a musician and collaborator who exceeds genre boundaries. The guitarist, vocalist and songwriter has earned seven Grammy Awards and sold nearly 12.5 million albums worldwide. In May 2007, Time Magazine placed John Mayer on their Time 100 list of the most influential contemporary thinkers, leaders, artists and entertainers. For two consecutive years, Rolling Stone Magazine featured John Mayer on the cover of their annual "Guitar" issue - first with February 2007's "The New Guitar Gods" round-up and then in May 2008's "Living Guitar Legends" issue featuring Mayer with peers and icons alike. Pairings with a range of artists are a defining trait of the musician whose collaborative streak is well-known. From rock to blues, hip-hop to jazz to country, Mayer has performed and/or recorded with Eric Clapton, B.B. King, Buddy Guy, T-Bone Burnett, Herbie Hancock, Dixie Chicks, Jay Z, Alicia Keys and Taylor Swift. In 2005, Mayer famously toured and recorded with power players Pino Palladino and Steve Jordan as John Mayer Trio, whose live album TRY! featured searing blues and rock. As on Continuum, John Mayer again took the helm as the co-producer of Battle Studies, his fourth studio album, released on November 17, 2009 and debuted at #1. ABOUT TRAIN ? Grammy Award-winning band Train is rolling back into the music scene with the recent release of their new Columbia Records' album, Save Me, San Francisco. Their current hit single, "Hey, Soul Sister, " has reached #1 on the overall iTunes chart, has been certified RIAA Double Platinum (selling more than 2 million copies), and soared up the Billboard charts, peaking at #6 on the HOT 100 chart and #1 on the Adult Top 40 Chart. Save Me, San Francisco is the multi-platinum-selling band's fifth studio album and channels Train's early days, revisiting the roots rock sound that has made the band such a tour de force. USA Today raves that Save Me, San Francisco finds the band, "returning to its mid-'90s roots, when its hook-laden country-tinged tunes hit adult-contemporary audiences in their sweet spot." ABOUT OWL CITY - Owl City has become an international phenomenon over the past year with the release of his now platinum album Ocean Eyes (Universal Republic July 2009), #1 single "Fireflies" (now triple platinum) and several sold out headlining tours of the US, Europe, UK and Asia. Adam Young started his career as Owl City in June of 2007 when he began making music in the basement of his parent's house in Owatonna, Minnesota ? a small town with roughly twenty-two thousand inhabitants. Nearly three years later, thanks to more than 18 million profile views and more then 90 million plays on MySpace, this young man has become more than just an internet sensation. "Fireflies" is now an international hit having made it to the #1 spot in 22 countries and Owl City's latest single "Vanilla Twilight" seems to be on the same trajectory ? having already gone gold and climbing the charts world wide. In addition, he's won the critics over with features out now in the New York Times, Rolling Stone, People, Entertainment Weekly, and USA Today, among many others. ABOUT THE AVETT BROTHERS There is no harmony like brotherly harmony. Something indelible in the weave of voices and play of sensibilities is stamped into the fraternal DNA and also stems from a lifetime of shared experiences. You can clearly hear fraternal magic at work in the songs of Scott and Seth Avett, better known as the Avett Brothers, as well. That magic is abundantly evident on I and Love and You, the Avett Brothers' big-label debut. Its 13 songs are delivered in a style that defies pigeonholing but might be described as a rootsy amalgam of folk, country, bluegrass, rock and pop ? even a jab of punk-style dynamics here and there. Drawn by the naked honesty of their songs and the rousing intensity of their live shows, legendary producer and talent scout Rick Rubin signed the Avett Brothers ? consisting of siblings Scott and Seth, plus bassist Bob Crawford - to his American Recordings label in 2008. In harnessing the tools available to them in the service of the strongest set of songs they've written so far, the Avett Brothers have surpassed themselves on I and Love and You. There's really no great secret or magic formula for what they've achieved here. It comes down to honoring inspiration with an awful lot of hard work. "The brothers have an incredibly strong work ethic," affirms Rick Rubin, "and they continually worked at honing their craft. Hearing brothers who have sung their whole lives together ? singing the truth ? was a revelation each new day." write your comments about the article :: © 2010 Jazz News :: home page |