I’ve been wondering when he might put together an actual cohesive record again. Hopefully sometime soon.
This is exciting to me. I love his full-blown studio work (and of course his electric guitar), but I've felt a few times lately like he kind of buried a great lyric under a little too much other stuff. For instance, I really think I prefer the live acoustic take of "I Guess I Just Feel Like" to the studio version.
So at least a decade late to this observation, but Heavier Things is excellent. It's funny, when this came out, I'd have said the production kinda sounds like a lot of other stuff. But hearing it for the first time now, I actually get a huge nostalgia trigger from something that sounds like this. I knew the hits but the one that really jumps at me is "New Deep"
I refused to get all the way through that list because “minivan rock” seemed too derogatory to me and it kept pissing me off. lol Maybe I should revisit
Haha, yeah, I remember tweeting something like "Not sure whether to feel seen or attacked by this list," and the guy who organized it messaged back and assured me the "minivan rock" name was tongue-in-cheek and the entire list was compiled with genuine love for these songs/artists.
Wrote about "Wheel" for the fourth entry in the "My Life In 35 Songs" series. My Life In 35 Songs, Track 4: “Wheel” by John Mayer
Man, I have such fond memories of when that album came out. Summer rolling in and those tunes. Great, great album. Continuum is my clear number 1, but Born and Raised is a strong second.
You know what records have some great songs? The Search for Everything and Paradise Valley. I know we downgrade them because they’re not cohesive statements but I had a ball today running through different tracks. Rosie Roll It On Home Dear Marie Paper Doll In The Blood Moving On And Getting Over Badge and Gun You’re No One Till Someone Lets You Down Still Feel Like Your Man Wildfire Helpless On The Way Home
Yeah, there's a bunch of good stuff on both of those records. I wish they held together better as albums. I re-sequenced Search and felt like that mostly saved it for me. Paradise Valley is a little closer, but makes a few weird choices that take away from it feeling like the cohesive summertime album that it deserves to be with those bookends.
Disney California Adventure plays “Queen of California” in rotation during their CA Food & Wine Festival and it always reminds me to spin that record when I get home from the park.
Been listening to his entire discography recently. Every album from Room for Squares to Born and Raised are near perfect albums. So many good jams. Everything after that is a pretty steep decline though
I’ve really come to love Paradise Valley, especially how much of a summer album it is. But yeah, that first decade plus was just really special. Wish he’d get back to being a little more prolific.
Paradise Valley is okay. Dear Marie, On The Way Home, and Waitin' On The Day are bangers. The album overall just felt a little too heavy on the southern rock, which isn't a bad genre, but I don't think Mayer quite nailed it enough for me to enjoy most of it. Overall my ranking for his albums would probably go: Where the Light Is Born and Raised Battle Studies Continuum Room for Squares Heavier Things (astronomically huge gap) The Search for Everything Paradise Valley Sob Rock