All posts

2008

10/24/2008 (Updated 7/23/2023)

Recap of Berklee seminar

Converting Information to Inspiration

"The number one thing you have to do before you set out on any other goal or any other course is to define your expectations—on the outset of every single project, record, tour. Everyone in this room wants to make it but I question how you would recognize making it. What is making it? What do you want to be? Who here wants a record deal? What does a record deal look like? Do you want to sell a million copies, two million copies?"

10/12/2008

Q&A Session with Fans

Mayercraft Carrier Cruise Event

And in the case of "Bold as Love," it stands as Hendrix's really kind of beautiful, kind of angelic work.

concert poster.

8/2/2008 (Updated 12/7/2021)

Live in Houston, TX 2008

Speech during performance of "Wheel"

I bought this guitar with the money that I made working at the gas station.

2008 (Updated 1/2/2022)

Lecture at Berklee (2008)

Livingston Taylor's Stage Performance class

Rihanna could win in any decade any time.

2007

10/27/2007

Blog post on Paramore

Comments on an acoustic performance of Paramore's Misery Business.

The great orange hope, I call her.

7/23/2007 (Updated 7/29/2023)

Interview from WPLJ Acoustic Cafe

Live at WPLJ Acoustic Cafe with Race Taylor

I'm putting a strict two ballad rule on my next record.

4/8/2007 (Updated 12/7/2021)

Column in Esquire magazine April 2007

The Science of a Hit Song: Minor 6-4-1-5

Music theorists will tell you that the wavelengths of each chord fit together mathematically. But I just think people know a hit tune when they hear it.

3/25/2007 (Updated 1/14/2023)

Con-Chad-Ulations!

John Mayer's Original Blog

Nobody deserves a Grammy(tm) on their mantle more than Chad. When I asked him what mantle he's going to keep it on, he answered "the one below the Earth's crust, right before all that hot magma." That Chad, always thinking globally.

3/5/2007 (Updated 1/18/2023)

Column in Esquire magazine

"The Resident Rock Star"

Heavier Things: B minus. Am I the only one who finds this record creepy to make out to?

2007 tour poster.

2/2/2007 (Updated 12/7/2021)

Live in Memphis, TN 2007

Stage banter at the FedExForum

You double back to the things you were originally ashamed of and realize, not only were they not even that bad, but in a way that nobody would ever let you see, they were actually kind of cool.

1/24/2007 (Updated 1/14/2023)

10 Answers For Andrew Miller

John Mayer's Original Blog

There's a song on Heavier Things called "New Deep". Looking back on it, I think I thought I knew what I meant but the idea is a bit undercooked.

2007 (Updated 12/6/2021)

Article in Esquire magazine

The Pen, the Sword, and the Song

Bruce Springsteen was labeled anticop after releasing "American Skin (41 Shots)," but the song is so good that I bet he'd still get off with a warning and a picture if he were pulled over in New York.

2006

Continuum album cover

2006 (Updated 10/15/2023)

Interview with Mihir Joshi

For eMusicPost.com

"Continuum." For whatever reason the word is kind of untouched by a lot of people. It’s not a word you hear all the time, but it’s a word that has a lot of meaning in it.

7/26/2006 (Updated 1/14/2023)

"Waiting" Video Shoot

John Mayer's Original Blog

Expect some pretty exciting stuff to be going down in this one. Even I'll be excited to see it... New York City is a pretty breathtaking place, you know.

7/5/2006 (Updated 1/13/2023)

Continuum Track Listing

John Mayer's Original Blog

Have at it, humps!!

7/3/2006 (Updated 1/13/2023)

"The Reverb-Less Rig" Blog Post

John Mayer's Original Blog

Here's what I've been playing at home, a Dumble Overdrive Special 100w head on a Dumble 12" enclosure with EV speaker. Chimey.

2005

12/17/2005 (Updated 2/7/2023)

Article in Rolling Stone

"Q&A: John Mayer"

If you are cool enough, if there’s a fifteen-year-old who’s hip enough to decide that he wants to be like Freddie King, and he’s going to go buy a cherry red 335 electric guitar, he’s already like Freddie King.

12/1/2005 (Updated 12/6/2021)

Column in Esquire magazine

An open letter to D'Angelo

I'm writing to ask you to put out a follow-up to one of the few records to change my life forever, Voodoo.

10/12/2005 (Updated 3/5/2022)

Interview in Berklee alumni magazine

"Running with the Big Dogs John Mayer, '98"

I had gone to Berklee’s summer session and learned a lot from Tomo. I had watched him play and saw how he did his funky right-hand slapping stuff like bass players do. I went home and worked on that and incorporated some of it into my style.

mystupidmouth.com banner image.

6/15/2005 (Updated 12/7/2021)

Interview with My Stupid Mouth forum (2005)

Conducted by founder Richard Young

When you love something so much your biggest fear is waking up one morning and not loving it anymore. That's always been the biggest fear. You know you really love something when your biggest fear is, "what if I stopped?"

john mayer playing guitar in a studio.

5/29/2005 (Updated 7/29/2023)

In Repair: One Song, One Day

Documentary about writing "In Repair"

Cause you never know. You just never know, that's the beauty of the recording studio!

2004

9/17/2004 (Updated 7/23/2023)

Article from Berklee College Magazine 2004

John Mayer Returns to Berklee

Sometimes I finish writing something and then think, ‘That's not what I wanted.' But that's the song that came out; it's what I made. It has been my biggest challenge to realize that is me no matter how hard I try to bend it.

As/Is cover art.

8/3/2004 (Updated 12/8/2021)

Live in Cleveland, OH 2004

Stage banter in Cleveland

I know we're having a good time because that was five songs and my jeans are completely wet.

John with guitar.

3/26/2004 (Updated 12/9/2021)

Live in St. Paul, MN 2004

Speech during performance of "Bigger Than My Body"

Everybody once in a while has to be extremely, blank. No matter what the blank is. You know what I mean?

John on stage with spotlight.

3/23/2004 (Updated 12/8/2021)

Live in East Lansing, MI 2004

Speech during performance of "Home Life"

I like where this is going. I like what we're building here tonight. I just had one of those stressful days. Just one of those days where you think to yourself, am I an asshole? Or am I really just smarter than everybody else? You know what I mean? Cause plenty of assholes really do think they're smarter than everyone else, and they aren't. That's the problem. Emotionally, there's no real identification as to whether you're right or not. There's a lot of assholes running around like, proud as punch. I had one of those days where I was like, I don't believe anyone is as smart as I am today.

2003

Austin City Limits poster.

11/16/2003 (Updated 12/8/2021)

Live in Austin, TX 2003

Frank Erwin Center

A witty reference to a Sleep Number is a risky proposition, because most people don't get a Sleep Number joke.

10/3/2003 (Updated 12/8/2021)

Interview with CNN's The Music Room

John Mayer at ease with 'Heavier Things'

All you have to do is listen to "Clarity," and you will learn so much about me in the struggle for comfort.

9/25/2003 (Updated 12/7/2021)

ABC Primetime Interview

From ABC Primetime special hosted by Cynthia McFadden

The outsider who gets a job pumping gas and stays home to work on his music. Wouldn’t it be nice if that was the guy who had the number one record? Welcome to wonderland.

9/9/2003

Interview with Rick Dees

From The Rick Dees radio show

Just say “dude” every once in a while and don’t worry about it.

Heavier Things album cover.

9/9/2003 (Updated 12/8/2021)

Documentary about Heavier Things

"Ten More Songs" Documentary

What I like now is I always wanted to be an electric guitar. And in a lot of ways this is my first love letter to the electric guitar.

7/26/2003

Live in Dallas, TX 2003

Smirnoff Music Center

I figured with the feeling that we're kind of getting from the crowd tonight, we should play our new single for the first time ever.

4/3/2003 (Updated 1/7/2022)

Article in Rolling Stone (2003)

John Mayer Talks Sting, Gwen Stefani, and the Best Lyric of All Time

I took every Bonnie Raitt album out of there, and bought Hall and Oates’ greatest hits CD. That shit changed my life.

2002

7/24/2002

Live in Cleveland, OH 2002

Concert at Tower City Amphitheatre

You add it all up, and you go, am I missin' something? Cause I can't figure out why I'm not feeling great right now.

4/16/2002

Live at KTCZ-FM

Interview and performance from Minneapolis

I don't even want to play other instruments. I just want to play guitar, and I want to make records.

John Mayer playing guitar.

1/25/2002 (Updated 12/8/2021)

Interview with Chris McKay

Interview preceding "No Such Thing" video shoot

For a lot of people, Dave Matthews is literally all they listen to.

Room For Squares album cover.

2002 (Updated 12/8/2021)

Interview about Room For Squares

Context unknown

When you factor it all out, and tally it all up, I would say overall "St. Patrick's Day" is probably my favorite song off the record.

2001

mystupidmouth.com banner image.

9/21/2001 (Updated 2/3/2024)

Interview with My Stupid Mouth forum (2001)

Conducted by founder Richard Young

The biggest obstacle musically is not being cheesy and not being cliche. It's always hard, especially now. Every song on Room For Squares is different from another song. I'm still struggling to find songs that are not like any other ones.

John in documentary.

9/18/2001 (Updated 12/7/2021)

Video montage from Room For Squares release

An Intimate Session with John Mayer

"3x5" is a better song than my ability to write a song.

Acoustic Cafe.

6/25/2001 (Updated 1/14/2023)

Interview at Acoustic Cafe

From live performance at Acoustic Cafe in Bridgeport, CT

I was totally inspired by like Dave Matthew’s Band at the time. They were the only group, for me, that were completely innovating advanced concepts in hookery.

Cover of Room For Squares album.

2001 (Updated 1/12/2023)

Room For Squares documentary

This Will All Make Perfect Sense Someday

Room For Squares was my, "all right, here we go, here's where we see if I have it or not." And I was as interested as anyone else was to find out if I had it.

Room For Squares album cover.

5/5/2001 (Updated 2/6/2023)

Documentary on Room For Squares

"Inside the Square" Documentary

The record was recorded from I think October to December, or January, with John Alagia, who I always knew I wanted to produce my record.

3/31/2001

Live in San Francisco, CA 2001

Intro from live performance of "City Love"

This is a song off the new record coming out in April, and it's about falling in love in New York City.

3/21/2001

Live in Boulder, CO 2001

Speech during performance of "Not Myself"

And this song is for the people who would take me to the airport.

1/26/2001

Live in Norfolk, VA 2001

Intro from live performance of "83"

This is a song about being twenty-three and wanting to be six.

CD with Love Song For No One.

1/1/2001 (Updated 12/8/2021)

"Love Song For No One" Live Intro

Spoken onstage before acoustic performance

She's out there, he's out there, they're just learning what to contrast you against.

2000

2/25/2000

Live in Decatur, GA 2000

Concert at Eddie's Attic

This is a song that I want everybody to get. Like, I want to box it and give it to you.

2000

Live intro to "Great Indoors"

Acoustic performance

This is a song a little bit about that. About being stuck inside and getting a little too used to it.

1999

Exterior of Eddie's Attic venue.

6/1/1999 (Updated 12/17/2022)

Live in Atlanta, GA 1999

Concert at Eddie's Attic

She was a little too old for me, she said. I need you guys to buy my records and all that stuff so I can shove it in her face one day.