\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div> \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJAKE MULKA for Rolling Stone<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n \n\tDespite the success of his tour, Bryan has hit some rough patches recently. He went through a very ugly and very public breakup<\/a> with podcaster and influencer Brianna \u201cChickenfry\u201d LaPaglia, who accused Bryan of emotional abuse and said he had asked her to sign an NDA. That led to a pair of diss tracks from LaPaglia\u2019s boss, Barstool founder and podcast cohost (and Michigan football superfan) Dave Portnoy, aimed at Bryan; Bryan\u2019s response was to burn a Bartsool flag before hitting it with a golf club. More recently, Bryan\u2019s feud with fellow country singer Gavin Adcock came to a head when Bryan was captured on video<\/a> scaling a fence to confront Adcock at Oklahoma\u2019s Born & Raised Festival earlier this month. Saturday was his first show since the Adcock confrontation, and if the controversy was on his mind Saturday night, Bryan didn\u2019t show it \u2014 nor did he address it from the stage.\u00a0<\/p>\n \t\tRelated Content<\/p>\n<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n \n\tBryan got some help from a huge name. At 47, John Mayer is far removed from his days as a blues-pop heartthrob, but he\u2019s still in his prime. While he hasn\u2019t released a solo record since 2021\u2019s Sob Rock<\/em>,<\/a> he\u2019s kept plenty busy defining an increasingly impressive legacy. Mayer has been a part of Dead & Company for a decade now, and the band spent parts of the past two years in residence at the Sphere in Las Vegas before celebrating the Dead\u2019s 60th<\/sup> anniversary with a series of shows in Golden Gate Park last month.<\/p>\n \n\tThe night was about Bryan \u2014 Mayer himself said, \u201cZach is the guy right now, carrying the torch \u201d \u2014 and the tone of Mayer\u2019s set seemed to recognize that. Mayer steered away from the megahits of his youth in favor of a career sampler that included a soulful rendition of 2006\u2019s \u201cGravity\u201d and the breezy \u201cWho Says,\u201d during which Mayer substituted \u201cAnn Arbor\u201d for \u201cAustin\u201d in the chorus. From his more recent catalog, the delicate and disillusioned \u201cI Guess I just Feel Like\u201d from Sob Rock showed how much Mayer has matured since he launched onto the scene with 2001\u2019s Room for Squares<\/em>.<\/p>\n \n\tMayer\u2019s time with Dead & Company has left a mark on his guitar playing. While he\u2019s always been a virtuoso, these days Mayer seems less interested in blues-rock shredding and showing off as he does in finding out where Jerry Garcia\u2019s more fluid and laid-back improvisational style might take him.\u00a0<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\tMayer turned in a stellar set<\/span><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJAKE MULKA for Rolling Stone<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n \n\tFor Bryan, Mayer is apparently a direct link to Garcia, and Bryan invited Mayer onstage for a cover of \u201cFriend of the Devil.\u201d When Bryan missed a line, a look of embarrassment shot across his face as he turned to Mayer and said, \u201cI told John I wouldn\u2019t mess this up, and here we are.\u201d Mayer didn\u2019t seem to mind, though, and he didn\u2019t miss a beat as he perfectly channeled a Garcia guitar solo. Mayer wasn\u2019t Bryan\u2019s only guest: He also brought out the War and Treaty<\/a> to sing \u201cHey Driver,\u201d a duet from Bryan\u2019s 2023 self-titled album. Their appearance was extra special, as the husband-and-wife duo of Michael Trotter Jr. and Tanya Trotter originated in nearby Albion, MI.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n
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