John Mayer has released his 6th studio album and if you close your eyes and forgot the troubles that have filled this young man’s personal life, he’s still as good as he ever has been.
Comprising of 11 songs that do what last years seemingly rushed Born and Raised fail to do, Paradise Valley has songs that remind listeners that music is best when written straight from the heart, he continues to remind people why he was once called the “Modern day Bob Dylan”.
‘Dear Marie’ is a song where Mayer appears to be poking fun at his own fame in an open letter to his childhood sweetheart Marie; “Remember me I’m the boy you used to love when you were just 15, I wonder what you think when you see me in magazines” he also confesses to looking for her online, “from time to time I go looking for your photograph online”. The song, and indeed the album as a whole gives the music industry something that in a time of manufactured pop music being churned out by the Simon Cowell music machine, and that is honest and heartfelt lyrics with a simple beat.
This album is a fantastic return from Mayer, who underwent voice threatening surgery on his throat and following a year of controversy involving his personal life, some even believing Paper Doll being a thinly veiled dig at Taylor Swift, this album strips away the fancy thrills of a lot of modern music and what we’re left with is Mayers raw talent.
I honestly could talk about how easy this album is to listen to, but the English language has limited superlatives. I highly recommend this for Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash fans and also for music fans in general, Mayer has found the perfect balance here.
4 stars.
Produced by Columbia Records, USA.