Caw-Caw Music

John Mayer’s career is quite hard to follow for outsiders. A passer-by would certainly have been confused with 2995′s Try! An album that places the former Dave Matthews clone live on stage with the John Mayer Trio in an explosion of classic blues. Particularly confusing would be the fact that the album is actually very good and not just the typical bored diversion of a cookie cutter lightweight pop star but as a blues album in its own right. For long time fans, however, this shift had been telegraphed by the numerous performances of Mayer alongside blues and jazz legends such as Buddy Guy, B.B. King, and Herbie Hancock. In a completely fascinating turn of events, the John Mayer Trio would not become the idle diversion thought of by detractors but rather the direction of Mayer’s musical development taking fans used to buying rock tickets to a fantastic blues show.

A year later, however, John Mayer releases something has surprised even the most loyal fans. Continuum is a studio effort born of the collaboration of Mayer along with his trio partners Pino Palladino (bassist) and Steve Jordan (drummer) and incorporating trumpeter Roy Hargrove and guitarist Ben Harper as guest musicians. The album was produced by both Mayer and Steve Jordan and is by far the most polished and well crafted production that the artist bears to date. This accomplishment extends far beyond his personal tally of achievements and positions him as one of the most relevant artists of his generation.

The Tracks

The albums carries two of the tracks from the Try! live album, the whinny Vultures and the ballad Gravity which is another tip of the hat confirming that Mayer’s blues explorations were more than a simple pastime. The new tracks ramp up the ante and punch directly through some of the more pressing issues of a generation raised under the glitter of TRL stars and CNN news reports that found itself under the all too real phantom of a war of principles (or Beliefs as the song by the same name puts it.) The album presents a host of pressing topics, both social and political as well as romantic and sexual, always through a very personal and intimate dialogue with the audience. The first singleWaiting on the World to Change is probably the closest thing to a protest anthem against the war that this generation has seen (or heard.) It’s time to save your money folks so pass on those Aerosmith tickets for now, because this is an album you’ll want to listen to live.

Album Track list:

1. Waiting on the World to Change
2. I Don’t Trust Myself (With Loving You)
3. Belief
4. Gravity
5. The Heart of Life
6. Vultures
7. Stop This Train
8. Slow Dancing in a Burning Room
9. Bold as Love
10. Dreaming with a Broken heart
11. In Repair
12. I’m Gonna Find Another You

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