John Mayer: Dave's little brother?

The Bard · #1 03-01-2003, 12:43 PM

I saw John Mayer for the first time on the Grammies. I was shocked! I have never seen an artist so successfully and completely imitate another artist. He even has mastered some of Dave's facial expressions. I actually realized that I had heard that song he played before, and I thought it was Dave (and subsequently decided I was NOT going to check out Dave's new album). Why in the world would this guy want to steal someone else's exact sound? I like bands/artists who are original, and this guy has got to be the least original artist I have heard in a long time. He needs to get his own style and stop copying Dave Matthews.

randallnm · #2 03-01-2003, 01:08 PM

I tend to disagree. Both Dave Matthews and John Mayer studied songwriting at Berklee, and their styles incorporate many "arthritis chords." There are similarities, but I would say that Mayer is doing his own thing quite well. I also think he is a much more accomplished guitarist. I do like Dave Matthews better, but you have to give John Mayer some credit. He has some killer acoustic chops that Dave would kill for.

rsimper · #3 03-01-2003, 01:49 PM

I think the content of their songwriting is alot different...maybe this is a function of age, but Dave has written about seizing the day, being happy, and now dying...John writes about puppy love mostly...

John is a better technical guitar player, I think...

Randall- Dave never studied at Berklee...thats a myth...John did, but only briefly, so its probably incorrect to attribute either of their styles to their educational grounding...

John cant help that he sounds like Dave, though.

They are both acoustic artists, they both write and play good music, they sound alike, and they have a similar fan base...beyond that, the similarities are harder to find to my eyes.

jmintzer · #4 03-01-2003, 03:07 PM

I've read that Mayer's guitar hero is SRV. That is who he aspires to, not DMB. They say that everyone looks like someone else. I guess that we all sound like someone else, too!

James

martin82 · #5 03-01-2003, 03:30 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by The Bard
I saw John Mayer for the first time on the Grammies. I was shocked! I have never seen an artist so successfully and completely imitate another artist. He even has mastered some of Dave's facial expressions. I actually realized that I had heard that song he played before, and I thought it was Dave (and subsequently decided I was NOT going to check out Dave's new album). Why in the world would this guy want to steal someone else's exact sound? I like bands/artists who are original, and this guy has got to be the least original artist I have heard in a long time. He needs to get his own style and stop copying Dave Matthews.

I don't know how you could possibly believe that John Mayer sounds like Dave Matthews. And I think technically, he is a better player than DM. As for the song, I think it is a pretty good one.

chtaylo2 · #6 03-01-2003, 03:34 PM

I've never gotten the comparisons to Dave Matthews. So he makes some funny faces...so do alot of guitarist. Lyrically they're very different. Also, Mayer's guitar style is not similar to Dave's at all. Mayer is much more proficient at guitar than Dave, althought Dave has a unique style.

-Chris

The Bard · #7 03-01-2003, 03:49 PM

Well, I must admit that I have only heard the one song (that I know of) by Mayer, but in almost every way it was just like a Dave Matthews song. His vocal tone, phrasing, song structure, melodic structure, and song style were all nearly identical to Dave. He did a little solo part that was unlike Dave, but other than that he followed Dave's style to a 't'.

chtaylo2 · #8 03-01-2003, 09:02 PM

Well, I don't remember John Mayer mentioning monkeys, drinking or dancing in that song. So in that way, it's quite different from Dave Matthews.

-Chris

proy · #9 03-01-2003, 09:08 PM

I'm a John Mayer fan but not a Dave Matthews fan.

I think the similarities are mostly superficial.

randallnm · #10 03-01-2003, 11:08 PM

I kind of like the fact that Dave writes about monkeys, billies, and satellites.....the one thing I don't know if I could get past with Mayer is his "puppy love" lyrics. Regarding guiatar style and technique, however, he is a superb player. And thanks, Ryan, for pointing out that Dave never studied at Berklee...I think that was just one of those things I overheard somewhere out in cyberspace. Later,
Nick

Pipsqueak · #11 03-02-2003, 01:10 AM

I'm a big fan of both. We'll see what happens with Mayer in the future.

Overall, I think they are quite different.

alapbj · #12 03-02-2003, 01:19 AM

I think its fair to say that any acoustic guitarist is going to face the "same sound" comparison. After all, it's up to the listener to appreciate the differences.

chtaylo2 · #13 03-02-2003, 07:47 AM

Really the only Mayer song I can think of that could be characterized as having "puppy love" lyrics would be Your Body is a Wonderland. But that song isn't really meant to be a love song anyway. His lyrics are more relational though. But he must be doing something right if Elton John is a fan of his writing.

-Chris

JamBermuda · #14 03-02-2003, 12:52 PM

As it's been said already, acts like DM and JM sound similar because their tunes are based on acoustic guitar. I think we're looking at the product of the shift towards acoustic "unplugged" music of the early 90's.

David Gray, Dave Matthews, John Mayer, Coldplay...and lots of others...have returned acoustic guitar to the mainstream.

As for his face pulling (JM)...grotesque? amusing?...yes....copying Dave?.....no....

JM is doing his own thing, and doing it well....his is technically a better player than DM, IMO...but they both have some tremoudous talent.

My two and sixpence

MeAndMy314ce · #15 03-02-2003, 02:13 PM

As a huge fan of Dave and a fan of Mayer even before this recent popularity explosion, I often get asked from my friends about their simliarites. I think John Mayer and his recent succes are a direct result of Dave. Dave opened the door for acoustic artists. Therefore every new acoustic artist that comes along is going to be compared to him. They do have the same style but, i don't think anymore than country artists have the same style, or pop groups, or rock bands, or any genre for that matter. I think it is great to have new artists put a new spin on a sound and style that I so thoroughly enjoy. They are both way too talented to have to copy anyone and although there are definite similarites, what they each offer is unique and their own.