For a while I kind of ignored John Mayer. I kinda figured he fell into the same category of artists as The Fray, Maroon 5, and Jason Mraz; that is, the "Non-Threatening Guys Who Kinda Play Guitar But Are Really Famous With The Ladies Because Of Their Looks And Cheezy Lyrics" category. (Note to the female readership: Excuse the preceding sentence as a shallow comment that probably is fueled more than anything by jealousy and an attempt to appear manly. I'm not a sexist jerk.) I don't know, something doesn't feel right to me about purchasing a CD whose hit track is titled "Your Body Is A Wonderland."But that was the ignorant me. Turns out, my spontaneous purchase of John Mayer Trio's live cut, Try!, has proved to be one of the most pleasant surprises in my music-listening career. What actually sold me on my decision to buy it was the discovery that it included a cover of a Jimi Hendrix song, "Wait Until Tomorrow". That and the fact that it was live, which, as an avid Dave Matthews Band fan, always has the potential to earn major Josh points.
The reality is that I've probably run through this album, all eleven songs, probably damn near 30 or 40 times, either at the office, the car, or the crib. It's just so listen-able, and guitarist Mayer, bassist Pino Palladino, and drummer Steve Jordan just never go stale.
The first three tracks put any doubts I had regarding Mayer's talent with the guitar to rest. "Who Did You Think I Was", "Good Love Is On The Way", and the aforementioned Jimi cover are all lively tracks that feature a pretty good amount of jamming. Then he slows it down a bit with what is my favorite track, "Gravity", with an easy, slow-walking pace, eloquent solos, and emotional lyrics ("Gravity is working against me / And gravity wants to bring me down / ... / Oh gravity, stay the hell away from me / gravity has taken better men than me / Just keep me where the light is"). "Out Of My Mind" is purely a blues ballad that you might hear walking down Beale Street, and you get a touch of R&B in "Vultures" and a nod to the late great Ray Charles, "I Got A Woman".
There's really something for everyone on Try!, and its variety is part of what makes it so great. The texture of the music is excellent, too. The sound produced by these three musicians always seems to be just right; it's never overwhelming and over-the-top, but you never feel like something's missing, either. (No pun intended...see track number 9) The emotion with which Mayer sings and plays is always so expressive, as well. All of which are reasons that you don't get tired of listening to it.
Kudos, Mr. Mayer. Maybe now I'll give The Fray a chance.
Grade: A
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