As Jonny Lang [ tickets ] sings in "Long Time Coming," "you get what you give." That theory rang true as energy ricocheted around the Dodge Theatre in Phoenix during his searing set on Thursday (11/7).

The crowd and Lang fed off each other, Lang's love of live performance showing in each of his guitar solos. As he belted out songs in his bluesy, smoky voice, Lang just shredded his guitar, so passionately that the instrument quivered. He kept to himself, mostly, letting his music do the talking.

Lang opened his set with "Still Rainin'" and, bathed in blue light, offered a modest "How you guys doin' tonight?" Lang and his weeping guitar then went into "A Quitter Never Wins," during which he seemingly took out his frustrations from love on his axe.

Most of Lang's set was derived from his latest album, "Long Time Coming," and the audience responded favorably to his song selections.

Singer-songwriter Jason Mraz [ tickets ] was an odd fit for an opener; he brought in a mostly younger crowd, much of which left when he wrapped up his set. However, both Mraz and Lang rely on improvisational jams. Mraz's leaned more toward the jam-rock sect, while Lang’s was rooted in the blues. Mraz also served up a healthy dose of humor, while Lang's show was for serious music lovers.

Mraz's set was bookended by acoustic numbers. He began his set alone, performing his hit "Remedy" on guitar, and closed it an hour later in the same fashion with a cover of Kermit the Frog's "Rainbow Connection."

He humored the audience by giving out his percussionist's phone number via a song, and by performing a "magic trick" with a tissue. When a ticket-holder handed him a tennis shoe between songs, Mraz joked that he was autographing it "Celine Dion."

Visually, the university and high school kids who paid to see Mraz clashed with the bikers who came to see Lang. But in the end, the talented musicians won over both crowds.

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