Nostalgia and brilliant hooks meet up in John Mayer’s Last Train Home release
I imagine it went like this…
John Mayer and some of his buddies were sitting around and someone posed the question:
(Friend) What would it sound like if Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, and Toto were all in a band together back in the 80’s?
(John Mayer) And Johnny Depp was the lead singer…
John goes home and writes the most genuine 80’s rock ballad while simultaneously making it contemporary.
And that’s it. That’s my synopsis. No, it’s not groundbreaking. However, I’m going to provide you with examples of how I came to this conclusion.
To be sure, there is absolutely no evidence that it went down like this, but man, it sure does make me laugh to imagine it!
John expresses Higher Love
Steve Winwood wrote a song that topped the charts and incorporated Chaka Khan’s incredible vocals. That song was “Higher Love”. Now, it should also be noted that Steve was friends with Eric Clapton.
I want to bring your attention to the rhythm electric guitar parts. Particularly during the lyrics “things look so bad everywhere.”
What you hear is an ultra-clean electric rhythm part that is borderline sterile (but in a good way). I like this rhythm part because it’s highly complimentary but doesn’t step on any other instrument.
It’s well-mixed, but not only that, it doesn’t have a ton of reverb, delay, or chorus. It’s audible, not forgettable, and not distracting.
John Mayer achieves the same effect with his clean rhythm guitar parts in Last Train Home and it works for me.
I also want to point out that in Higher Love, Chaka Khan delivers amazing vocals culminating in an all out sonic display of perfection at the end.
John has Maren Morris singing in Last Train Home and following a similar pattern here.
She rounds out the song with a wonderful harmonic part that ties the entire song together. Yet another point of similarity between these two fantastic tracks.
Mayer shows his love for Africa (Toto)
Listen to the intro of Africa by Toto, and you’ll hear the basic rhythmic structure that opens Last Train Home.
The instruments used are nearly identical: congas and drum set. However, John’s congas player changes up the rhythm just a bit and the mix doesn’t have the congas high enough to always hear exactly what is happening.
The original Africa beat uses 16th notes on the “e” of beat 1 which gives it that exotic tribal feel. In Last Train home, you can only hear that happening on the “e” of beat 3.
If you’re interested in picking up what’s going on there, I encourage you to check out John and his band’s performance of the song on Jimmy Kimmel here:
Mayer, Clapton and Forever
John’s guitar tone In Last Train Home can be almost singularly traced back to Eric Clapton.
I’ll make one caveat to that: this is my analysis. It doesn’t mean John set out to mimic Eric, though I do believe that John has routinely given Clapton credit for many of his ideas, licks, and tone.
What I’m saying is that in my analysis, there are two songs to which you can point and identify John’s tone.
Considering John’s comments on Clapton’s riffs and his views on them, it’s safe to say Clapton handily influenced John Mayer.
The first is Forever Man and the second is Pretending. Both of these songs are by Eric Clapton.
John strikes a delicate balance between grit/growl and clarity. There’s saturation there, to be sure.
However, it doesn’t overtake the mix. It doesn’t get “hairy”. It acts more as a hair gel that is spongey and connects all the rhythmic and harmonic parts of the song.
The other parts “sound” sterile in the sense that they are great parts that don’t overly complicate or “color” the song. They are the foundation.
John’s lead guitar licks and guitar tone are all personality, and that’s the “glue” that brings it all together.
Mayer’s vocals act similarly, though not to the degree of the lead guitar parts.
Listen to the tone of the lead guitar licks and solos on Pretending and Forever Man. You’ll definitely hear what I’m talking about.
Nostalgia On 10
I am squarely a millennial, but I’m on the older side I suppose. I sincerely remember music like this on the radio as a young child. It left such an impression that when I hear music like John’s album Sob Rock, it takes me back to a care-free time in my life.
I’m sure that not everyone will have the same reaction, but nostalgia isn’t the only thing John is offering here.
In Last Train Home, the hook is so tight and inviting that you can’t help but hum it. Additionally, the beauty of this ear worm is that it is so viscerally rhythmic. One can almost feel it.
So if you haven’t yet, go check out John Mayer’s album “Sob Rock” and make sure Last Train Home is first up in the que and get ready for some tight licks and great harmonies.
If you enjoyed this article, check out some of our other offerings discussing all things music, education, and current events in the Music Studies section of the Musilesson website such as this article about new public domain music for 2021.