Anybody who was initially confused by singer/songwriter John Mayer’s foray into blues with 2005′s Try! John Mayer Trio Live in Concert could only have been further confounded upon listening to the album and coming to the realization that it was actually good. And not just kinda good, especially for guy who had been largely labeled as a Dave Matthews clone, but really, truthfully, organically good as a blues album in its own right. However, for longtime fans who had been keeping tabs on Mayer, the turn might not have been so unexpected. Soon after the release of his 2003 sophomore album, the laid-back, assuredly melodic Heavier Things, Mayer began appearing on albums by such iconic blues and jazz artists as Buddy Guy, B.B. King, and Herbie Hancock. And not just singing, but playing guitar next to musicians legendary on the instrument. In short, he was seeking out these artists in an attempt to delve into the roots of the blues, a music he obviously has a deep affection for. Rather than his blues trio being a one-off side project completely disconnected to his past work, it is clear now that it was the next step in his musical development. And truthfully, while Try! certainly showcases Mayer’s deft improvisational blues chops, it’s more of a blues/soul album in the tradition of such electric blues legends as Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan, and features songs by Mayer that perfectly marry his melodic songcraft and his blues-slinger inclinations. In fact, what seemed at the time a nod to his largely female fan base (the inclusion of “Daughters” and “Something’s Missing” off Heavier Things) was actually a hint that he was bridging his sound for his listeners, showing them where he was going.
That said, nothing he did up until the excellent, expansive Try! could have prepared you for the monumental creative leap forward that is Mayer’s 2006 studio effort, Continuum. Working with his blues trio/rhythm section of bassist Pino Palladino and drummer Steve Jordan, along with guest spots by trumpeter Roy Hargrove and guitarist Ben Harper, Mayer brings all of his recent musical explorations and increasing talents as a singer/songwriter to bear on Continuum. Produced solely by Mayer and Jordan, the album is a devastatingly accomplished, fully realized effort that in every way exceeds expectations and positions Mayer as one of the most relevant artists of his generation. Adding weight to the notion that Mayer’s blues trio is more than just a creative indulgence, he has carried over two tracks from the live album in “Vultures” and the deeply metaphorical soul ballad “Gravity.” These are gut-wrenchingly poignant songs that give voice to a generation of kids raised on TRL teen stars and CNN soundbites who’ve found themselves all grown up and fighting a war of “beliefs.” Grappling with a handful of topics — social and political, romantic and sexual, pointedly personal and yet always universal in scope — Mayer’s Continuum here earns a legitimate comparison to Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On. Nobody — not a single one of Mayer’s contemporaries — has come up with anything resembling a worthwhile antiwar anthem that is as good and speaks for their generation as much as his “Waiting on the World to Change” — and he goes and hangs the whole album on it as the first single.
It’s a bold statement of purpose that is carried throughout the album, not just in sentiment, but also tone. Continuum is a gorgeously produced, brilliantly stripped-to-basics album that incorporates blues, soft funk, R&B, folk, and pop in a sound that is totally owned by Mayer. It’s no stretch when trying to describe the sound of Continuum to color it in the light of work by such legends as Sting, Eric Clapton, Sade, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Steve Winwood. In fact, the sustained adult contemporary tone of the album could easily have become turgid, boring, or dated but never does, and brings to mind such classic late-’80s albums as Sting’s Nothing Like the Sun, Clapton’s Journeyman, and Vaughan’s In Step. At every turn, Continuum finds Mayer to be a mature, thoughtful, and gifted musician who fully grasps his place not just in the record industry, but in life. – Matt Collar