John Mayer, born October 15, 1977, is the fourth in my
series on “Blue Phenoms Born in the 70s.” He was raised in Fairfield
Connecticut with an English teacher for a mother and a high school principal
for a father. When he saw Marty McFly play the guitar in the movie Back to the Future, he became fascinated
with the instrument and ended up taking lessons from a local guitar shop owner.
It didn’t take long before the instrument consumed him.
After two years
of practice, while still in high school, he started playing at blues bars and
other venues in the area. But when he was seventeen, he was stricken with a
cardiac arrhythmia and was hospitalized briefly. The tense situation birthed
the songwriter in him and he penned his first song when he was discharged. Unfortunately,
the realization of his mortality led to his suffering from panic attacks and he
lived in fear of being committed to a mental institution. To this day, he has
to carefully manage his phobias.
He considered
skipping high school to pursue music, but the flak from his parents stopped him
from doing so and he entered Berklee College of Music in Boston at the age of
19. But at the urging of Clay Cook, a friend, classmate, and Atlanta native, he
left Berklee after two semesters and moved to Atlanta where he honed his skills
as a guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He rose to fame as a pop star, but in 2005,
his first love, the blues, took hold and Mayer formed the John Mayer Trio with
bassist Pino Palladino, one of the greatest session bassists in the business, and
drummer Steve Jordan, a man with one of the most incredible senses of rhythm in
the musical world. The trio played a combination of blues and rock music and in
October 2005, opened for the Rolling Stones during a sold-out club tour of their
own. That November, they released the Grammy nominated live album Try.
He’s a young
kid who’s had a bit of growing up to do before he could become a man.
His
controversial interviews to Playboy and Rolling Stone about
Jessica Simpson and Jennifer Aniston brought considerable condemnation about an
immature boy who was nothing short of a stereotypical frat guy bragging about
his conquests. As a result, Mayer withdrew from public life. He later explained
on the Ellen Degeneres show "I lost my head for a little while and I did a
couple of dumb interviews and it kind of woke me up. It was a very strange time
and it sort of rocketed me into adulthood. It was a violent crash into being an
adult. For a couple of years, it was just figuring it all out, and I'm glad I
actually stayed out of the spotlight.” The jury’s still out on whether or not
he’s figured it out, but one thing is for sure: he’s a heck of a guitarist.
Something like Olivia: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izkqPdVAdL4
Queen of California: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chLFi2cFxzo&feature=relmfu
In your atmosphere: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnJocsVYy-o&feature=related
Stop this train: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1V4yNW3WeE&feature=related
Out of my mind: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQkO3SGB3So&feature=related
Who did you think I was: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ahbb9rzMDg
I got a woman: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RckfbOm84Qc
Every day I have the blues: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSpMYBErJ6w&feature=related
Austin City Limits concert: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjLXwyj6k5s&feature=related
Saturday I mentioned that one of my favorite wineries was Le
Roc des Anges, owned by Marjorie Gallet. Her husband Stephane is a wizard of
enology and is the one who has concocted tonight’s ambrosia, namely their 2011 Segna
Cor, a blend of Grenache, Carignan, and Syrah. Its color is dark ruby red with
an aroma of black raspberry and wild flowers while the palate is loaded with
dark berries, spices, and dark chocolate. It’s a rich, sweet wine with
fine-grained tannins and a lingering finish. I must confess, this is my
favorite wine in the world and at $25.00 a bottle, it’s spectacular, perfect
for the music of one of today’s great blues guitarists.
Cheers!
