Just came across this article on the web.  It's a review by Lithium Magazine, reported by Darren Eagles, of the Feb. 9 show at Massey Hall in Toronto.

A few photos included also.

Enjoy!

http://www.lithiummagazine.com/john-mellencamp-massey-hall-toronto-february-9th-2011

1. Longest Days
2. I'm not running anymore
3. Your life is now
4. Minutes to memories
5. A Brand new song

[love]

Yes, i was there on the 9th also and loved the comment about having the mic and nicely asking people not to yell out!  Tastefully done and didn't seem to upset anyone.  Yes, he did get to Jack and Diane and I love the new arrangement.  I was also happy to see a few good oldies resurrected like "Real Life".  Another highlight was the lovely duet between Troye and Miriam.  Very soulful and lonely.

John and the band performed to perfection again last night.  Can't say enough about the sound mixer and especially the bass and drum mix, fantastic!! 

My highlight had to be during my favourite song "Longest Days".  A man in the upper balcony called out during a break in the lyrics and John couldn't contain himself and kept laughing each time he went to start the next verse.  Even funnier was when he actually did start and sang "cast your eyes up to heaven" he quickly did his James Dean look right and up, directly at the spot where the cat call had come from.  Pure improvisation and a sense of humour on the spot!!  Cracked me up!

I haven't seen it mentioned here but something has to be said for the amazing job the Markus' did on the film that opens the show.  There are so many behind the scenes gems and it captures a lot of the essence of touring and what goes into make an album.  Kudos!!  Too bad for the people who chose to have a few beers down in the bar instead of seeing the movie; their loss.

 

i was at the show last nite also...but i have to say his opening nite in bloomington was (for me)a nicer performance from start to end..his approach to re-invent himself was right on..but i guess he went back to his rockways.

How did he go back to his rock ways? The setlist last night was almost identical to the show in Bloomington that kicked off the tour, with two or three exceptions. It's essentially the same show.

I have to agree. While I wasn't in Bloomington, last night was a far departure from the "rockin' " John I have known and seen for over 28 years.  Last night was a refreshing change from the old ways with a lot of new material, re-invented old stuff and over 2/3's of it less "rock" and more mellow.  From the set lists reported on this site things seem to be the same for the most part from show to show.

sorry superold fan but website newbie - are the setlists posted somewhere easy to find on this website that i am spazzing out and not finding?

thx!

Try going under "Tour Talk" and select a show/city. Most people who posted comments about the show have included a set list within the body of their show comment.  I know there was one from Ottawa posted after the show last Sunday Feb. 6th. (2nd post in the subject "ottawa show", posted by Ember)  That will get you started and there are set lists from the previous two U.S. dates and also the fall leg of the tour.

I was there too awsome show, best I've seen him and I seen him 5 times. Massy Hall is a fab venue to see any artist in and I know John would have enjoyed the history of the place as well as the intimacy. Great show Fab music and a fun evening.

Yes, and some of the band members thought it quite ironic and were joking that they all owned the famous Neil Young LP that was recorded there many years ago.  Guess it all comes full circle.  The hall has been blessed by many over it's 110+ plus years.

Well he came and he conquered!  This venue, Massey Hall, has seen some greats grace it's stage since it opened in the 1890's and last night will just be added to that list of great appearances.  John and his amazing band wowed the crowd with a well thought out blend of new and old.  The lighting, fantastic sound mix and song choices couldn't have been better.

I won't spoil it for those of you going tonight by giving anything away but let me tell you, you are in for one hell of a show!!

Here is an article that is running in the Toronto Sun this morning.

http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/music/2011/02/10/17219696.html

I'm sure John and the band will make it in on their flight but the equipment is a different matter given that it's probably coming by truck.  Hopefully they left early.  I'll keep my fingers crossed that it all gets there safely and on time!!

Yes, it would appear part of the code is missing from the website link.  Maybe "littlebastard" can post it again?

WOW, would I love to attend the jazzfest!  On my birthday, no less.  Great town, never visited, and fantastic line-up.  Maybe I'll inherit some money to fly myself down as a birthday gift. 

Can you be at my place by 5:30 to make dinner?   

A&E is not showing a re-broadcast date at this time.  They do have some archived episodes but it looks like they are a few months old, you may have to wait a bit to see it off their website.

The day after it aired there were no postings of it on youtube.com, that might have changed take a look.

Thank you for this insightful and lengthy article.  Really gives you some insight into the man and the talent.  Also loved the photos, very nice!!  Will watch the clips later but wanted to add my notes and thanks.

Lucky for you that you were on Santa's "good"  list.

While I unfortunately don't own the boxed set I did have a chance to examine it at length last summer after a JM concert in Ontario.  The artwork and design are amazing and you can see that a lot of thought went into that process as well as the song selections.  Reading the song lists was like a walk down memory lane for me that covered over 28 years.  Brought back a lot of snapshots from my life and there were a lot of "oh yeahs"  at some of the tunes I had forgotten about.