John Mayer may not necessarily have a way with words.

The 35-year-old artist has made headlines for blunt, if not overtly rude, comments regarding race and his sexuality. But tabloid headlines aside, he returned with a strong enough comeback to remind us of why we praised him in the first place.

Mayer’s sixth studio album, “Paradise Valley,” was released by Columbia and Sony on Aug. 20, and it cannot be labeled by one genre. He successfully mixes a variety of music styles including folk, country and blues, appealing to a wide audience.

Mayer’s success began in the early 2000s with hits including the sultry and beautiful “Your Body is a Wonderland” and a John Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance”-inspired “Waiting on the World to Change.”

Although successfully topping charts, Mayer lost a lot of respect for not keeping his dirty laundry out of the public eye.

His fall from grace included his use of the N-word in a “Playboy” interview and his inability to maintain a stable relationship with women, including Jessica Simpson and Jennifer Aniston. But despite his bad boy attitude, the artist proves on his latest album that he’s still the best at what he does.

The album art for “Paradise Valley” is sentimentally all-American, featuring Mayer in a blue shirt with an oversized blanket draped over his shoulders. He is looking pensively off in the distance, surrounded by weeds in an empty field under an overcast sky.

The opening track, “Wildfire,” is equally idealistic. Mayer sings of landscapes and the beginning of a romance. The song sounds as if it were performed live, somewhere in the South, due to the undertones of familiar conversation and the homey clank of spoons against knees. The Connecticut-born artist taps into the very heart of American southern music with an almost southern drawl and simple, yet beautiful, lyrics.

“Dear Marie,” the second track on the album, was a risky addition. One of his many exes, Taylor Swift, wrote the controversial “Dear John” in 2010 as an ode to a disastrous relationship, rumored to be about Mayer. Critics raised eyebrows at her blatant lyrics, including, “Don’t you think 19’s too young to be played with?” hinting at a big age difference like the one between Mayer and her.

While “Dear Marie” probably isn’t about Swift, the song leaves a recognizable taste of love lost, and the possibility of what could have been if fame hadn’t taken Mayer away from his first lover.

Other love songs include “Waitin’ on the Day” and “Paper Doll,” in which Mayer is disputably a talented lyricist, comparing an inconsistent woman to a paper doll and sampling from “Rock-a-bye Baby” in a more adult and jazzy style.

His strongest song on the album is “Who You Love,” featuring love interest Katy Perry. The song is haunting and melancholy, telling the age-old tale of never being able to control the one you love. The song might even give some insight into their actual relationship, which adds an element of mystery and juicy celebrity goodness. The song ends with a giggling Perry saying, “You’re the one I love.”

Another surprise artist on the album is Frank Ocean, featured on the reprised version of “Wildfire.” A classic Ocean tune, the song is short with multiple layers and depth. Ocean sings about a Parisian woman while Mayer gently harmonizes along, strumming chords. The song is long enough to make the listener want more while still telling an intricate story, slightly reminiscent of Ocean’s “Acura Integurl.”

The album closes out with the bluesy “Badge and Gun” and the Woody Guthrie-esque “On the Way Home,” which plays a part in Mayer’s task to take the listener on a musical and spiritual journey, unraveling the bits and pieces of his life, allowing his audience to see a side of him we almost forgot existed.

Published on September 3, 2013 at 12:27 am

Contact Elaina: ekcrocke@syr.edu