Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A must-have for anybody, December 27, 2004
It's really hard to find a good album from a young artist these days. If you don't know what you're looking for, you can find a lot of popular crap. You never have to worry about that with Mraz.
Live at Java Joe's is a real treasure. Mraz is a brilliant songwriter and you can really relate to him on this album. He's not (yet) my favorite artist of all time, but he's certainly the best live performer out there. No, his sets don't sound like his studio recordings-they're worlds better. On Java Joe's, you get that flavor without audience interference. I don't know how he got such a perfect recording, but he did.
Mraz's talent shines through on old favorites like "You and I Both." The live version is energized and free, unlike the studio recording. "Sleep All Day" with the "At Last" intro is absolutely brilliant. By far, my favorite track on this album is "0% Interest," but that's just because I have a personal bias toward that song. His guitar playing is brilliant as always, and his talent and love for vocal jazz music also graces this CD.
It doesn't matter if you're an old Mraz fan or if you only know him by his radio hits; you've got to own this album.
Best lyric: "There's something in the way you laugh that makes me feel like a child." (After an Afternoon)
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
It deserves a million stars!, June 11, 2005
...but i'll settle for giving it a 5 seeing that's as high as they'll let me..
This is the best, the very best, album that you could ever hope for. Jason Mraz fans are not complete without this album. It could so easily convert a John Mayer fan into one of me, Jason's. That has a nice ring to it. I definitely do not mind being a Mrs. Mraz. In fact, i dream of it every night before his voice lulls me to sleep.. Don't get me wrong, please. He is NOT dull and is not prone to getting yawns in turn of the songs he belt out. He could really wake you right up. It depends on the songs, and this album has a song for every occassion, every mood.
Here's the thing about Jason's vocals: it is so smooth, oh-so-like butter, it melts into you, and it stays. His vocal range is astoundingly large and it will take u to the highest place in heaven and swoop you down gently in a matter of seconds.
His live performances are not even flawed with any mistakes be it in his vocals or the music; it's energetic, it's cheeky, it's witty, it's beautiful, it's perfect. His words are not always so serious; he's a really funny joker that can get you giggling into the night and out, and that really shows in this album, yet in between the lines there's a depth that you could delve into.
Everything is so precise, natural, breath-taking. The best part is that it does not sound manufactured at all. It makes you feel like he is in the flesh, next to you, with a guitar in hand; you are the only one he is singing to and the only one he's ever sung to.
You all know that most singers sound amazing on their studio productions.. What defines them as a real singer, a true performer, is their ability to rock it out live, too. Jason Mraz's live performances does not live up to the studio productions: they surpass them by miles. His music is not meant to be meddled with and have its originality and creativity stripped away in the process of recording and altering; so i am so glad this album came out to do him justice.
For those of you who have long felt a longing ache for more of Jason after Waiting For My Rocket To Come, this is your Remedy. This album is the very best of him in a disc. You know what they say about boys with big vocal cords.. yes, and a big voice too. Listening to Jason Mraz is like having sex.
Nay, better.
Sabrina Aziz <3
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
For Mraz junkies, July 19, 2005
I am going to say straight out that I am a true Mraz junkie, so I just didn't feel my library of his gems was complete without this particular recording. Wow, I was so right about that. Java Joes is where it all started out for Jason Mraz. Recorded in 2001 at Java Joes, a coffeehouse in California, this live acoustic CD features Jason on guitar and Toca Rivera on percussion. I love the intimacy of this recording. The banter that goes on between songs makes me feel like I am right there and that he is singing to me. I especially enjoy this version of "Sleep All Day" (my favorite song) where he starts off by singing the classic "At Last" and then smoothly moves on into "Sleep All Day."
If you are a Mraz fan, I consider this an imperative part of your collection. For those of you just delving into Mraz, get Waiting For My Rocket to Come and Tonight Not Again-Live at Eagles Ballroom first. These two discs, but especially the Eagles Ballroom one, will give you a good idea of just how amazingly talented and versatile this guy is. I bet you will soon be ordering Java Joes after that!
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Interact With Your Music: Discover, listen to, and buy new music, all from the pages of SPIN's digital edition, free to Amazon customers.
~ Jason Mraz
~ Jason Mraz
~ Jason Mraz
~ Jack Johnson
by Jason Mraz 
