Again, I'm just putting this and others all in one spot. Enjoy!
The Mayercraft Carrier 2 Collection
First of all, thank you so much to everyone who sent in reviews, photos and videos. Thanks for sharing. :-)
Mayercraft Carrier 2 ReviewReview and Photos by Rebecca Burdsal from Memphis, TN
I had no expectations going into this cruise except to have fun with my friends. I did the one last year with my friend Brenda and we had a blast. My friends and I decided to not do the One Splended Evening event and cruise around LA since I had never been there before. I got to see the Santa Monica Pier, Rodeo Dr., the Sunset Strip and Hollywood. My friend Brenda got accosted by the evil queen in Snow White on Hollywood Blvd. We also stayed on the historic Queen Mary. We boarded the Splendor about 11am and after checking out our rooms and doing the safety precautions we got our spot on the Lido deck's upper balcony for the sail away show. Seeing Mayer come out in his little short shorts with Carl and James both looking like Issac from the Love Boat was hilarious. We all really enjoyed Mayer's set on the Lido deck and hearing "Heartbreak Warfare" for the first time. I also got informed right before Mayer came on that I will be the Maid of Honor at my BFF Lauren's wedding next year! I met Lauren and my other friends because of John Mayer's music about 5 years ago. Okay moving forward, that night we went to see Erin McCarley's show. I thought she was really adorable and we all really enjoyed her set. My friend Nikki got to do the
wine tasting with her the next day. We also stayed around for Guster. I've never had the oppurtunity to see them but have heard how fun their shows were for years. I agree they are a lot of fun. Towards the end of Guster's set we went on over to the DRH show to try and get a spot. The El Morroco was packed so instead of trying to to fight to see over people we just decided to sit down and enjoy listening to David play. For those who have never listened to David Ryan Harris you must. He has great lyrics and his voice is amazing, simply amazing. I was able to see over people when Mayer came out to play with DRH because Mayer's just so damn tall.
The next day was the first full day at sea. We decided to take this oppurntunity to get a sun tan or in my case a nice sun burn. I took a picture of one of my friends sleeping on the deck, but she would kill me if I ever posted it. Later that night after dinner we decided to hang out for the James Hunter show at the El Morroco because my friend Nikki is a fan. Hunter is very much rockabilly music. If you're a Brian Setzer fan then I think you would like James Hunter very much. After Hunter we got our jackets (because it was COLD) to go out on the Lido deck for O.A.R. and then back to the El Morroco for Ryan 
Shaw. I have to say Ryan Shaw was a lot of fun. My favorite part of the evening is when he got a very talented passanger named Mimi up on stage and they tore up Janis Joplin's "Piece of My Heart". It was really really good. Afterwards my friend Lauren and I decided to check out the disco before going to bed. Some guy named John Mayer was in there making a spectacle of himself. Yeah, never heard of him. Learned some things about what can go down on international waters though.
The next day (Sunday) we ported in beautiful Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. My cabinmates and I decided to do an excursion. I think it was called the Land Boat, Beach and Shopping excursion. We boarded a small boat that was serving complementary margaritas. I totally took advantage of that many times over ;) After about 40 mins of cruising around and taking pictures of our cruise ship and the Arch we headed back to dry land. We then got on two shuttle buses that headed to a beach resort for lunch and soda. Our tour guide on the trip's name was Nacho and he is originally from West Virginia. I go all the way to Mexico to meet an American. We relaxed on the beach and got to talk to some really nice people that were also on the cruise. After the beach we were shuttled on over to the mall for shopping. I got an offer to join Sam's Club in Mexico. It's nice to know if I needed to buy anything in bulk I was covered. We also made our way over to the Hard Rock Cafe' for t-shirts as I'm a HUGE Hard Rock 
collector (I have over 60+ t-shirts from around the world). I bought my BFF back home a Bon Jovi Hard Rock tee as she's a huge fan and my dad a baseball cap. Then we made our way back to the shuttle. We drove past the famous Cabo Wabo club that Sammy Hagar owns as well as learned that Madonna, Celine Dion and Brad Pitt and other celebrities own homes in Cabo San Lucas. We got back to the ship about 2pm and decided to go up on the Lido deck for the sail away show with Matt Hires and Jessie Baylin (who came out on stage in a Mexican wrestling mask).
After dinner I decided to check out the ship alone for awhile because I had already seen Justin Nosuka and O.A.R. and that's where my friends were going. I gambled in the Casino because I love slot machines even if I don't win. I spent 10 minutes playing the same $1 bill. Then I went on over to catch the Martin Sexton show at the El Morraco. Martin Sexton was really enjoyable. It was nice to sit back and relax while listening to his music. After Martin Sexton's set I decided to get down further for the back to back James Smith and DRH shows. I sat on the front row 
and decided I didn't really want to be front row for a comedy show (done that before). So I sat on the second row. I got to talk to a really nice girl named Erin and her friends. She let me know what to expect from James Smith this year. Mayer introduced James Smith. Some of the jokes I kind of remember from last year but most of the set was material I haven't heard. My friend Lauren said she hadn't laughed so hard in a long time. After James set Mayer came out and did his own. I know the Perez stuff made it to the internet. I'm not going to go on about it other than Mayer was being Mayer. I will say he addressed the media crap and made a joke about the book thing. It was nice to see him having a great time and being himself. He also did a bit of an open mike night. 
I have to say I was really really tempted to go up on stage because I've always wanted to do stand up. I had I been drinking that evening I totally would have and made an ass of myself. Some people bombed and some were funny. John got his brother Carl to tell us a little story that involved a Hormel cheese platter. What innocense I had left is now completely gone after Carl's set. So what happened in the El Morroco will stay in the El Morroco ;)
Before the DRH show I found my friends and sat with them over to the side. Carl walked past me and I asked him about the Oscar Pool he use to do. I believe in '06 and then in '07 were the years I did it. I've been wondering if he was still doing that because it was always fun to have money riding on the winners. Hell, I make a list of who I think is going to win anyway might as well have some money riding on it. He said he hasn't done it in awhile. He then said he might do it again if he gives "a shit". Hopefully he will because it was fun. Again DRH was awesome and Mayer got up on stage for a bit. After the DRH set we went to the club and then to bed.
The next day was our last the ship and that boat was rocking like a &*%$#@ %^&*!@. Side to side to the point I felt like a drunk woman running into people even though I was stone cold sober. I couldn't get breakfast without feeling I was going to fall on somebody. After breakfast my friends got a table for the string of Lido deck shows that afternoon. I decided to hunt down my other friends there who were going to the Q&A. If you were on the Mayercraft last year you got to go to a Q&A with John. I went to see if there was a line forming and decided to stay. Sixthman let us in early and I ended up sitting a row behind where I sat the previous year for the Q&A. I talked to a really nice lady while waiting for it to start. The Sixthman people were taking question submissions. For the hell of it I submitted the same question as I did last year not thinking it would get picked. I 
wasn't even going to do one. Dammit my question got picked and so did the lady I sat next to and my friend Brenda. I think the smiley face on my question did it :) So we all had to head to the back and come up one by one. I was kind of nervous to have to say anything in a room full of people but it was lot of fun to be apart of that whole experience. I asked him about who he would like to perform with that he hasn't since he's performed with the greats such as Eric Clapton. If I had money riding on his answer I would have won. I had an idea that he would say someone up and coming or who hasn't been discovered yet. I really liked that answer because it's what I would have expected. My friend Brenda asked about his management team. She went to the Q&A with Mayer's management people and said it was really interesting to hear how people get into the various parts of managing bands. The nice lady I sat with asked him about his foundation. I loved his answer. Just like many people that are reading this, I've had people in my own family serve in the military as well as friends who have family in Iraq. My dad, who is now in his 80s, served in WWII. So to hear Mayer talk about wanting to help the troops returning home from war was just so good to hear. I wanted to rush the stage and give him a hug for that. My dad and I had a coversation prior to me leaving about how much more there needs to be done for them and how different it is now coming home now from when my dad left the military in the late 40's. When Mayer said some of them told him they can't sit with their back next to a window, I've heard many military people say that. I hope that John will let us fans get involved in his efforts to help the returning troops out because I really want to. After the Q&A Mayer decided to sign autographs. My friends Brenda and Mary don't know how I got to that stage so fast and neither do I but before I knew it I had his signature and I got a chance to thank him for wanting to help the troops. As always, such a sweet heart. I can't repeat enough how much more I think of him as a person after what he said. That's how to use your celebrity... to help others. We weren't allowed to use a flash so all my shots from the Q&A are on the fuzzy side.
Since it was cold that day I bought the yellow Mayercraft Carrier sweatshirt and wore it out on the Lido Deck. Lauren, Brenda and I decided to explore the ship. The decor was pretty tacky. It's like pepto bismol and a tiger got into a fight on this ship and were splattered everywhere. That night we went to dinner again and then on to the Mayer show. The show was a blast! I know he was out there for awhile but the show seemed to go by way too quickly. This was the first rock concert that I've been to that actually literally rocked back and forth the whole damn night. I loved the random name shout outs. He shouts out "Nicole" and my friend Nikki was excited and then my friend Brenda started yelling "Becky" (my nick name) and not two second later he gives a "Rebecca" shout out. That works too. Later that night he gave Debbie a really cool shout out for all the taping she does for the Mayer community. That was cool of him. As much as I love Mayer's original music I flipped out when he went into "Digging In the Dirt" by Peter Gabriel. That brought me back to senior year in high school playing that tape in my '91 Mustang LX. It's off of Gabriel's album "US" if anyone cares to pick it up.
After the show we went to party at the disco. Mayer breezed right past us going to the DJ booth. I have to say I really enjoy Mayer as a DJ probably because I'm only a year older than he is and knew 95% of the music he was playing. It helps being familar with the music. I loved that he played the Bobby Brown song from the Ghostbusters 2 soundtrack and "the Humpty Dance" by Digital Underground as well as Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone", Lady Gaga and even Britney Spear's "Womanizer" and Kelly Clarkson "Since You've Been 
Gone". Though the Toto was kind of random but whatever it was still fun. It's also mandatory now to play Kanye West "Stonger" when I'm at a dance club and he so did that without me having to go up there and bug him about it. He played "Start Me Up" and "Miss You" (which he sang some of) by my favorite band in the whole frecking world the Rolling Stones. My friend Stephanie (a HUGE Stones fan) will get a kick out of that. We also sang along with Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" not once but twice in the span of 10 minutes. I out stayed all my friends because I was really enjoying his selection of music b
ut when he said this is the last song I bolted because by that time my back was killing me and I knew I would be dead to the world if I didn't get any sleep. We did the dancing all night last year too and I was so tired. I figure what the hell I can sleep on the plane.The first Mayercraft was fun but this one needs a new word for fun. It topped it and then it crushed it. I had a lot of fun with people who have been a big part of my life over the last 5 years. We had so much fun that we're all going to do our best to go yet again next year. I have to thank Sixthman and John Mayer for making this an experience my friends and I will never forget.
The following photos were taken by Brittney, including one of her with David Ryan Harris and one with Bob Reynolds:
The Mayercraft Carrier 2
Review and Photos by Jennifer Brindley
Alrighty. I have some time now so I thought I'd tell you guys about the cruise and share some photos! I do have to make a few points:
1. Next year I'm SO there. The moment I find out that it's been planned, even if the ship is going to Iraq, I'm buying tickets.
2. John Mayer is really, really cool, and really, really tall. Apparently he's 6'3", which I did not know until I came home and looked it up. (I'm a bad fan.) After seeing him walk right in front of me in the underbelly of the ship, I really had to know the numbers on his height.
3. I won't have any interest in going on any kind of cruise other than one involving music the way this one did.
4. I felt sublimely happy at the end of the last full day on the cruise. Sublimely, weightlessly, euphorically happy. It was the best vacation I've ever been on.
5. I swear that John Mayer and Chris Thile look straight at me a few times during each show. I now have proof.
Have I shown you the ship yet? This thing was AMAZING:
The room stewards left really cute towel animals:
Daniel took this one of me while we were doing our lifejacket drill:
My seething jealousy capturing him shaking hands with some people:
Serenaded by "La Bamba" in Cabo:
In Cabo, we had drinks with Ryan Shaw and his guitarist Johnny Ash. I took this one of Ryan just chillin' out:
Cabo:
My view out the balcony when we docked:
John Mayer DJ'd in the "Disco" after his 2nd show. It was a HUGE clusterfuck in there. But, we fought it so I could attempt getting a photo.
John Mayer Breaks Out New Songs, Comedy Act on Mayercraft Cruise Carrier 2“I feel like the kid in that YouTube video coming back from the dentist,” John Mayer joked midway through his second headlining show aboard the Mayercraft Cruise Carrier 2, referring to the stoned viral-video sensation. “You know at one point on this boat you all went, ‘Is this going to last forever?’ ”
But the voyage came to an end hours later, after the 2,800 on board enjoyed four days of nonstop music (sets from 15 artists), booze, pizza, wine tastings, hangover yoga sessions and a flip cup tournament. Organized by Atlanta-based Sixthman — the brains behind the singer-songwriter-filled Rock Boat, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Simple Man Cruise and the upcoming Elvis Cruise — the second annual Mayercraft Carrier was the bigger, badder, kink-free version of 2008’s inaugural voyage. The Carnival Splendor, the cruise company’s largest and newest vessel, provided Mayer with plenty of room to frolic with his fans (sans neon-green Borat mankini) or retreat to privacy when he wasn’t jamming or busting out his stand-up comedy act.
As the boat left the Port of San Pedro headed towards Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, on Friday, March 27th, Mayer donned an itty-bitty sailor’s outfit and took to the Lido deck stage with his brother Carl and comedian James Smith to welcome all aboard. “The ocean was created in 1923 after humans demanded a place to swim,” Mayer deadpanned before telling everyone, “Enjoy yourself and be nice to your livers.”
Mayer MCed at the ship’s disco on Friday night and invaded the DJ booth Sunday and Monday nights to play his favorite tracks (including cuts by Girl Talk, Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Prince and Tom Petty) into the wee hours. Mayer also joined David Ryan Harris, a singer-songwriter who has played in Mayer’s band for the last few years, onstage and took part in a Q&A session with returning passengers where he candidly addressed queries about his new album (hopefully out this year) and shared details of his new passion: helping returning war vets transition into civilian life. But perhaps the most-buzzed about moment was Mayer’s unscheduled Sunday night comedy act. The sometime stand-up had the crowd in stitches with his own short routine (check out clips on YouTube), before inviting crowd members onstage to face-off with impersonations.
Then there was the music: Mayer’s Friday afternoon acoustic set sprinkled in old favorites (”My Stupid Mouth,” “Sucker”) with live set standards (”Good Love Is On the Way,” “Belief”) and the debut of “Heartbreak Warfare,” a tune whose lyrics (”Red wine and ambien / you’re talking shit again / it’s heartbreak warfare”) made it hard to avoid thoughts of the rocker’s recent tabloid romance.
Each passenger attended one of two headlining shows in the ship’s Spectacular Spectacular lounge. Mayer’s playing felt refreshed since he’s been off tour since last summer, and his seven-piece band injected a new energy into the arrangements — Monday’s “Vultures” got more funky with an amped-up bass and vocal scats, while Saturday’s 16-minute rendition of “Wheel” took the poetic song to new, self-proclaimed “spacey” levels. Mayer also indulged fan requests at Saturday’s show, breaking out favorite “3X5″ and incorporating the Talking Heads’ “Burning Down the House” as an intro to oldie “Love Soon,” while he turned the middle of Monday’s set into an impromptu Q&A with fans.
The music kicked off Thursday night with One Splendid Evening, an event benefitting VH1’s Save the Music Foundation, which included acoustic performances by O.A.R., Guster and Erin McCarley as well as sets from Gavin Rossdale, Sara Bareilles and a duet between Jordin Sparks and Mayer. Mayer did a short set of his own material, which included the debut of “Half of My Heart,” a new tune with a more folky sound. Then he switched to axman mode as Sparks joined him for her singles “Tattoo” and “One Step at a Time” before turning Mayer’s already soulful “I’m Gonna Find Another You” into a stand-out bluesy number.
The crowd skewed younger than last year’s (likely due to the college-age fanbases of O.A.R. and Guster) and many took to the upper decks for some Cali sun (or, in the case of one inspired couple, photos to document their wedding aboard the ship). Guster turned the end of their Monday night headlining set into a free-for-all jam session for all the bands on board, inviting amusing renditions of “Margaritaville” and “Don’t Fear the Reaper.”
And while the ship has barely docked, a third edition of the Mayercraft Cruise Carrier is already in the works — although Mayer’s joke about heading to Alaska is indeed just a joke.
Source: Rolling Stone
Inside the MayerCraft 2
Meg Jarrell may not have hung out with John Mayer during her time aboard the Mayercraft II—but she certainly heard stories about him. The singer-songwriter laid low for most of the trip, but stopped by for performances by some of the other artists and made frequent appearances at the ship’s small onboard disco.
Friends of Jarrell’s said Mayer took to the turntables at the club Saturday night. The singer partied until almost 7 a.m., joking with his brother Carl who said that because they were in international waters: “You can have sex with John Mayer and still be a virgin!” Jarrell, who was also on Mayercraft I last year, says Mayer’s well-known around the ship for being a ladies man. “John flirts with everybody,” she says. “Come on—the getup with the sailor shorts? He’s hilarious.”
Fans on the cruise decorated their doors with tributes to Mayer. (One even featured the guitarist in the infamous, neon-green Borat mankini he wore last year.) The five-day voyage, which took off from Los Angeles for Cabo San Lucas on Friday, was packed with about 3,000 guests.
So what about that new song Mayer debuted onboard, “Heartbreak Warfare,” that’s reportedly about Jennifer Aniston? Mayer told cruisers in a Q&A that while he knew people would chalk up the lyrics to a certain relationship, that’s not really what it’s about. While he opened up during the onboard conversation, giving his signature long and rambling answers, he made a point to pre-screen all the questions so nothing too personal would slip by. “Everybody wrote down what they wanted to ask and his staffers picked questions,” Jarrell says. “They specifically said you had to ask the questions you wrote down.
While Mayer did a lot of hiding, he made a point to reach out to some young fans during the Q&A, who were sitting in the front row with their parents. “You should be in bed!” he joked, before handing them some of his guitar picks.
Source: Radar Online
Some photos taken by Judy & Erik from Los Angeles, CA:
The following photos were taken from Marianne from San Diego, CA:
Here are some photos taken by Carter. The funniest pics were probably from the "Heroes and Villians" night when she and her husband Mike dressed up as Padme and Anakin from Star Wars and got pics with Carl Mayer! (The great one is with Mike impaling him with his light saber.)
Here are some photos taken by Scott Lee - including some cool ones of the comedy night and a DRH show:
Thanks to Laila from the beautiful San Diego for sharing the following videos:
Bob Reynolds Solo "Sweetest Berry" & DRH Jam on Electric Ladyland
John joins DRH on stage for a cover of Albert King's "The Hunter" El Morocco Lounge MCC2 3/27/09 Featuring John Mayer, Bob Reynolds, Brad Mason, Robbie McIntosh, JJ Johnson, Michael Chaves, Sean Hurley & David Ryan Harris
2nd DRH Show in El Morocco Lounge David Ryan Harris ft John Mayer performing "Sweetest Berry"
Some other random videos:
Welcome:
John & Jordin Sparks collaborate on "I'm Gonna Find Another You" at One Splendid Eve:
The Sign at Show 1:
Heartbreak Warfare at Show 1:
Neon at Show 1:
Wheel at Show 2:
Guster & O.A.R. - Blister in the Sun:
Matt Hires - Honey:
Justin Nozuka - Ain't Sunshine:
Cambria Detken sings Collide for John:
John Mayer DJing at the Mayercraft Disco:
John Mayer in the disco:
Blues stuff at Soundcheck Party:
Stand Up Comedy:
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