In 2003, he won the Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for the 2002 single "Your Body Is a Wonderland" from the album Room for Squares.
In February 2005, he was awarded the Song of the Year Grammy for his song Daughters, which he composed while in the shower, from the album Heavier Things. In winning the award, he beat out such contenders as Alicia Keys, and Kanye West. He dedicated this award to his grandmother, Annie Hoffman, who died in May 2004. He also won Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, for which Elvis Costello, Prince and Seal were also nominated. In 2007, John won 2 Grammys, one for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, for the song "Waiting On The World To Change," and also Best Pop Vocal Album for his album Continuum.
To date, Mayer has toured with many groups, including Maroon 5, Guster, Counting Crows, The Wallflowers, Teitur, Ben Folds, and Sheryl Crow.
In 2004, Mayer worked with hip hop artist and producer Kanye West, appearing both on Go and Kanye West's Bittersweet (released in the summer of 2007 as an iTunes pre-order bonus track to the album Graduation) and received praise from rap heavyweights like Jay-Z and Nelly. When asked about his ubiquitous presence in the hip hop community, he said, "It's not music out there right now. That's why, to me, hip-hop is where rock used to be."
It was around this time that he began hinting at a change in his musical interests, announcing that he was "closing up shop on acoustic sensitivity." In 2005, he began a string of collaborations with various blues artists, including Buddy Guy, BB King, Eric Clapton and jazz artist John Scofield. He also toured with the legendary jazz pianist Herbie Hancock, which included a show at the Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tennessee.
Although Mayer has maintained a reputation for being a sensitive singer-songwriter, he is also an accomplished guitarist influenced by the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eric Clapton, Buddy Guy, Freddie King and B.B. King. In this regard, he has released an album with his band The John Mayer Trio Try!, which features a blues-rock style reminiscent of Jimi Hendrix.
In September 2006, Mayer released his third studio album, Continuum. The album, written and produced exclusively by Mayer (with the help of Steve Jordan from the John Mayer Trio) is a culmination of Mayer's growth as an artist and continues with the blues-rock style that he began to flirt with on Try!.
Also notable is John Mayer's various adaptations in style. He always maintained a blues tone, he introduced a rockier edge. However, in Continuum, he adopts a calmer genre, returning to his previous styles.
On November 17, 2009, Mayer's fourth studio album, Battle Studies, was released and debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200 album chart. The album consists of 11 tracks with a total time of 45 minutes. The first single from the album, "Who Says", was released on September 24, 2009 in advance of album, and was followed on October 19 by the single "Heartbreak Warfare" and the single "Half of My Heart" released on June 21, 2010. Despite the album's commercial success, critics were mixed with their praise; while some reviews were glowing, calling it his "most adventurous", others called the album "safe" and noted that "Mayer the singer-songwriter and Mayer the man about town sometimes seem disconnected, like they don't even belong in the same body.
Following his recovery from vocal surgery, Mayer returned to the studio. On June 18, 2013, Mayer announced from his Facebook page that his sixth album, Paradise Valley, would be released on August 13, 2013. On the same day, he released a lyric video for the new album's first single, "Paper Doll", on his YouTube page. The release date was later changed to August 20, 2013. "Who You Love" featuring Katy Perry followed as the album's third single and a music video was released on December 17, 2013 for the song. The album, which also includes a collaboration with Frank Ocean, was met with positive reviews from music critics. Mayer embarked on a tour, his first in three years, in support of Born and Raised and Paradise Valley. The American leg of the tour ran from July to December 2013 with Interscope recording artist Phillip Phillips serving as support act. The tour will visit Australia in April 2014.
No Such Thing
John Mayer Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Condescendingly
Take a seat
Take your life
Plot it out in black and white
Well I never lived the dreams of the prom kings
And the drama queens
I'd like to think the best of me
Up my sleeve
They love to tell you
Stay inside the lines
But something's better
On the other side
I want to run through the halls of my high school
I want to scream at the
Top of my lungs
I just found out there's no such thing as the real world
Just a lie you've got to rise above
So the good boys and girls take the so called right track
Faded white hats
Grabbing credits and
Maybe transfers
They read all the books but they can't find the answers
And all of our parents
They're getting older
I wonder if they've wished for anything better
While in their memories
Tiny tragedies
They love to tell you
Stay inside the lines
But something's better
On the other side
I want to run through the halls of my high school
I want to scream at the
Top of my lungs
I just found out there's no such thing as the real world
Just a lie you've got to rise above
I am invincible
I am invincible
I am invincible
As long as I'm alive
I want to run through the halls of my high school
I want to scream at the
Top of my lungs
I just found out there's no such thing as the real world
Just a lie you've got to rise above
I just can't wait til my ten year reunion
I'm gonna bust down the double doors
And when I stand on these tables before you
You will know what all this time was for
The lyrics of John Mayer's song "No Such Thing" paint a picture of the pressures and expectations that come with growing up and transitioning into adulthood. In the first verse, the singer is told to take a seat and plot out their life in black and white, implying that there is only one right way to live. However, the singer resists this message, acknowledging that they have never been a part of the popular crowd or lived up to the expectations of high school drama. They are hopeful that the best version of themselves is still hiding, waiting to be revealed.
The chorus of the song expresses a desire to break free from these expectations, run through the halls of high school, and scream at the top of their lungs. The singer has discovered that the "real world" is a lie and that they must rise above it. They reject the idea of staying inside the lines and following the so-called right track.
The second verse describes the pressure put on young people to follow a certain path, to find answers in books or to please their parents. However, the singer questions whether these expectations are truly fulfilling and wonders if there is something more. The bridge of the song ("I am invincible") serves as a reminder that the singer is capable of rising above the pressures and expectations placed upon them, no matter how difficult it may seem.
Line by Line Meaning
Welcome to the real world", she said to me
A condescending remark was made to me about facing the harsh reality of the world
Take a seat
Be comfortable and brace yourself for what is to come
Take your life
Take full control of your life and own it
Plot it out in black and white
Be clear and concrete about your goals and aspirations
Well I never lived the dreams of the prom kings
I never lived up to the traditional notions of success and achievement
And the drama queens
Similarly, I never aspired to be someone who prioritizes and thrives on chaos and drama
I'd like to think the best of me
I believe that there is still potential and goodness in me
Is still hiding
That potential is yet to be uncovered or realized
They love to tell you Stay inside the lines
People often want you to conform and follow established norms and expectations
But something's better On the other side
There can be something more fulfilling and meaningful outside of those norms
I want to run through the halls of my high school
I want to relive the moments and memories of my past
I want to scream at the Top of my lungs
I want to express myself loudly and without inhibition
I just found out there's no such thing as the real world
I realized that the idealized version of the world we are taught to believe in doesn't actually exist
Just a lie you've got to rise above
It is a fallacy that we must overcome in order to succeed in life
So the good boys and girls take the so called right track
Society expects us to follow the conventional path to success
Faded white hats
The symbols of traditional success, such as graduation caps, are losing their meaning
Grabbing credits and Maybe transfers
People focus on grades and academic achievements without realizing their true significance
They read all the books but they can't find the answers
People study and learn about the established ideas of the world, but still struggle to comprehend it
And all of our parents They're getting older
Our parental figures are aging and have their own struggles and desires
I wonder if they've wished for anything better
I question if they hope for something more meaningful or worthwhile out of life
While in their memories Tiny tragedies
Even as they have experienced small misfortunes in their lives
I am invincible
I feel that nothing can stop me
As long as I'm alive
I am resilient and will persevere
I just can't wait til my ten year reunion
I am excited for the opportunity to reconnect with old classmates
I'm gonna bust down the double doors
I will make an impressive and memorable entrance
And when I stand on these tables before you
I will proudly express myself and my achievements
You will know what all this time was for
You will see the value and significance of my experiences and journey thus far
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, REACH MUSIC PUBLISHING
Written by: Douglas Clay Cook, John Clayton Mayer
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind