Let's get this out of the way. John Mayer can be a bit of a dbag in real life. But hopefully he has learned from some of the stuff he says and will start to think a little bit before speaking. But I've always heard "I like his music, I just can't stand him." So let's talk about his music.
Of all the albums in this countdown, I have spent the least amount of time with this one. I downloaded it during my relapse of downloading music when I went to South Dakota and I could not stop listening to it. (I do believe in paying for music; music that's worth it. When I get the funds, I plan on buying this cd on vinyl). The events that led me to download it: A friend telling me how great his latest album was so I began to listen to him a little bit. Then I put him in one of my pandora playlists and a song called "Vultures" off this cd came on. I was hooked. So when I got the chance to download it and have it for myself, I jumped on it.
The cd starts off with "Waiting On The World to Change," so I usually start playing at track 2. I don't hate the song, but just like Viva La Vida, I think I'm just a little tired of it. But giving the entire cd a chance and I was surprised. From his radio singles I always thought of John Mayer as adult friendly material that my mom could listen to as well as me and that his songs were just radio ready hits. While that could be true, I wasn't prepared to be taken on a musical journey that showed signs of blues and slow jams.
Immediately with the second track, "I Don't Trust Myself (With Loving You)" the blues feeling kicks in for me. This is also shown on "Dreaming" and the already mentioned "Vultures." "Heart of Life" and "Dreaming With A Broken Heart" are feel good songs that occasionally I just lay down and relax to. "Bold as Love" is a much better than expected tribute to Jimi Hendrix, one of my favorite artists.
The two stand out tracks to me are "Stop This Train" and "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room." The first shows his ability as a storyteller and the second is a song that I have made a vow that I will slow dance to someone with someday. A boy can dream can't he?
And speaking of dreaming, I'm about to lay down and put this cd on (starting with track 2). Enjoy some songs for yourself:
