Born and Raised Album Review

This synthesis of John’s signature bluesy bends and clever licks with a heavy hearted country-Americana motif creates one of the most satisfying listening experiences he’s ever crafted.

Queen of California

The hefty lean into this more folky acoustic sound is a left turn from the sort of tones to be expected from his discography up til this point. Albeit drastic, this shift is a welcome and remarkably apt one. The album begins strong with Queen of California acting as an excellent tone-setter for the journey he’s about to take you on. Queen of California opens with some really familiarly Mayer acoustic picking, followed by lyrics that outline the departure from California to a much more idyllic setting. This setting is spoken of as a sort of paradise, free of the weights and burdens of California. A space that will give him the space to create what his heart wants.

Age of Worry

From there, we transition to Age of Worry, a compelling shanty-like song instructing the listener (and writer) to embrace the phase of life that you are in, accept the passage of time, the burdens you’ve felt, and the fear that creeps up on you. It’s this almost gleeful break in the race of life to stop and assess the who, what, and when of your life, and then make the appropriate adjustments around it. John posted a TikTok a year or two about the song, expressing how the song has this dissonance between the lyrics and music where they are not in harmony with each other, until a certain point where they join together to really emphasize the core point of the song. I think that really shows the intentionality of the writing of this song, illustrating just how real it is to John and how he’s considered it.

Shadow Days

Following Age of Worry, we get Shadow Days, which again illustrates this much more introspective tone that John is approaching himself with. This song deals with the sort of demarcation between past John and present John. The core idea here is that “my Shadow Days are over now”, as John looks over his past and his regrets and embarrassment, of which he has more than a few. I think that musically and lyrically, this song is the real meat-and-potatoes of the album, with its use of more folk-Americana instrumentation and deeper critique of himself in the word choice.

This is one of my all-time favorite JM songs because I feel like it’s such a real, yet optimistic way of looking at ourselves. I think we all can relate to some aspect of feeling like our former days are filled with things we’d rather not think on, particularly for the way they portray us. This song shows that while the past may be true, it does not predict and dictate our future. We can change and move on from who we were and understand and even sympathize with the wrongs our past selves made. I think this song offers a really poignant word picture with “shadow” days, as though they are the days no longer in the light, as our present is what is in the light, and our futures will hold even more light.

Speak for Me

Continuing the theme of time, Speak for Me addresses the change of the world, showing John feeling lost about his current position in life, and reflecting with a bit of nostalgia for an earlier, better time. Lyrics such as “you can tell that something isn’t right when all your heroes are in black and white” express this sort of pessimism with the present “way of the world”.

Something Like Olivia

I’ll be honest, I think just about everyone likes this song more than I do. Something about the melody in conjunction with the lyrics just doesn’t do it for me. I don’t find that same relatable self-examination here that is present in nearly every other song on the album. It’s quite literally about liking a girl that’s taken by another man, and wishing that you had someone like her. This feels like old Mayer and it just doesn’t do it for me, y’know?

Born and Raised

Ouch. This song is a heavy hitter. Up til this point, the songs have been at least mostly upbeat, but this one intros with some more slow, pensive strumming followed quickly by a harmonica acting as a sort of lead melody. The title track of this album pictures a more melancholic John who has a much less bright-eyed look on the passage of time. John is looking at who he is, examining himself and trying to look past the signs of his age. He’s having to acknowledge the truth of who he is, not just the past of who he has been. As much as we may try to avoid or walk away from our past mistakes, there is always an aspect of them shaping us that we will have to accept and make peace with. Here, we see John in the middle of just that. He’s realizing that he’s achieved many of his goals, and not all that glitters is gold. He’s also acknowledging his own loneliness, and how stardom has played into that.

The central idea of being “Born and Raised” is that one day, he will be grown up and act like an adult, rather than remaining stuck in the immaturity of his public mistakes. He mentions that he still has hope, and still has his parents, but they don’t have each other. We can see the dark and light of his assessment here as he wonders just how good things may be, even though he is hoping for the best. There’s a lot of pensive, melancholic pain in this song, and it makes for a very soulful self-assessment.

If I Ever Get Around To Living

The title of this song is pretty self explanatory, but the idea being discussed here is what it’ll be like when John is finally able to live his life. The irony here is that John has been living his life, but his dissatisfaction with his lifestyle makes him ponder what it’ll be like to live a life that does satisfy him. He ponders if this is all just a dream he’s having as a child, leaving him time to grow and make a life he wants, despite arguably having done that and finding it empty. John talks to himself as though he is still a child in a sense, with work to do, needing to wise up, and grow up.

There’s this really great strumming that steps to the background in the song, which I wasn’t able to really appreciate until hearing it live. Little details like this are a big part of what makes me admire him as a musician. It’s so clever in how it underscores this anxiety that fills in some open spaces of this slower song.

Love Is A Verb

Great lyrics here, love is in fact an action that you perform, a feeling you express, something that isn’t just static, and not any of the things he says it isn’t. The rhythm of this song is honestly pretty annoying to me, so I have a hard time listening to it, but I can appreciate the lyrics a lot. Anyways, moving on.

Walt Grace’s Submarine Test, January 1967

Wowowowowow this song is so good. The resonator, the brass intro, the lyrics, the rhythm, the everything. I’ve had the pleasure of hearing this song live twice, and it’s pure magic. This song tells the fictional tale of a man who is exhausted with his life and needs to move on and get out of where he is. The reason I love this song is how well it expresses the very Mayer-y sentiment of taking your life into your own hands and stepping out of the madness that is consuming you. The story explains how Walt Grace builds a submarine and embarks on a journey to just get out of the world he’s living in. On the journey, he finds peace and his efforts are rewarded with a safe arrival. This song just works. It’s a charming tale that is actually going to be turned into a movie (!!!) and there’s no wonder why. John has stated himself that he always pictured it as a Wes Anderson style of movie, and I think it fits well. What a charming and encouraging lil bop.

Whiskey, Whiskey, Whiskey

What this song lacks in deep lyrical meaning, it makes up for with really pleasant and well-constructed vocals and musical performance. This core idea here is John’s negative feelings about his drinking habits in the process of recording this album in New York. He expresses how his choices were his own, but he never feels like he has been the man he should have been. The lazy, fading vocal line of “It's just a phase, but I still might have a ways to go” foretells the direction John is going from here.

A Face to Call Home

This is perhaps the most charming song on the record, and is certainly the most romantic. From the first line of “I am an architect of days that haven’t happened yet” (banger line btw), the theme of John looking to the potential of the small beginnings of his blossoming love for someone new. This song is filled with sweet and heartfelt lyrics that describe the way the two are working together on this place of peace they find in each other. John begins to look at this love with the idea of settling down, and this is perhaps best shown through the bridge with “Maybe I could stay a while, I’m talking like all of the time”. This is classic Mayer, but done so well. I love this song.

Born and Raised (Reprise)

John says he’s grown up now and aging and that’s okay. It’s an alright song, but not the most musically satisfying closer to the album.

Born and Raised may not be the most popular record in John Mayer’s catalog, but it is the most significant.

B&R comes into the discography at a pretty unique point, and acts as a real turning point for John’s music, perhaps more so than Continuum. By this point in his life/career, John had made a pretty messy name for himself, with allegations of being a womanizer based off his high-profile celebrity relationships, some stupid and racist comments he made in an interview in 2010, and a party lifestyle that contrasted the sort of “soft feely boi” image his music projected. He also discovered granuloma on his vocal cords, which severely limited his ability to speak and sing, before and during his medical treatment for them.

These factors created a perfect storm for John to distance himself from the LA living he had accustomed himself to and retreat to Montana where he would reassess himself and work on his next project. This perfect storm very well may have not only saved his career, but elevated it beyond what he could have previously achieved. This album sets the tone for what I consider “New Mayer”, which is more real, introspective, philosophical, and outright enjoyable.

Personal Rating

This album gets a 9.5/10 from me, and secures itself in my top 5 albums of all time. To me, this is comfort music. I have listened to this record dozens of times and probably will for hundreds more. I heard this for the first time at a time in my life where I really needed to hear it. The messages about it not being too late to change, acknowledging who you were and divorcing that from who you are, still being attentive to how your past changes your future, it all rings so true for me as it did when I first heard it. It’s never too late to change your future and be who you need to be.

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