Inspired by Stevie Ray Vaughan and feted by Clapton, John Mayer is one of the most gifted guitarists of the modern era. He also knows how to the play the fame game - from crafting pop hits and collaborating with fellow A-listers to teasing his new album via TikTok. This is his story: the making of a guitar superstar...

Words Grant Moon

In March 2021, when John Mayer used TikTok to preview a snippet of Last Train Home -the flagship single from his new album Sob Rock -it was a typically smart move. Since the prehistoric age of MySpace, Mayer has always embraced social media. He’s a shrewd guy who knows the game, and in his two decades of stardom he’s accrued 5.2 million followers on Instagram, 1.4 million on Twitter and 1.2 million on TikTok. Clearly, his global fanbase stretches far beyond the guitar community. But dig down – past the memefriendly videos of his dogs swimming in his pool, the pastel-shaded, 80s-vibe promo shots for Sob Rock, and the numerous photos of celeb friends such as Ed Sheeran, Herbie Hancock and Barbra Streisand – and you’ll find some videos in which he offers sage advice on the art of guitar.

Some tips are immediately practical: don’t start your solo too high or you’ll have nowhere to go; to play great blues guitar listen to the phrasing of great blues singers. Others take more skill to implement – such as choosing notes within your solo that imply the chord changes behind it – while his most advanced musical philosophy has echoed down the ages through countless other great guitarists: “Practise thinking from the idea first,” he advises, “instead of what the guitar offers you.” To be a true musician, then, think beyond your scale boxes and your muscle memory – hear the melody in your head first and play that. All the while tap your foot in time and imagine the chord progression, the band, behind you. That’s what Mayer does, and things have worked out nicely for him.

His 2001 debut album Room For Squares went five times platinum in the US and earned him the first of his seven Grammys to date. It also introduced the world to an unusual talent, someone who straddles the camps of commercial pop and also blues/rock music like no other modern star. With his pop savvy, his smooth, pillow-talk vocal style and Johnny Depp-level movie star looks, Mayer didn’t just dip a toe in the mainstream, he cannonballed straight into it.

This modern-day guitar virtuoso/vocalist/ songwriter has three US Billboard No.1 albums under his belt, can fill arenas across the world, and is also regularly invited to cameo with some of modern music’s most recognisable stars: Sheeran, Jay-Z, Alicia Keys; he’s even dated some of them, notably Taylor Swift and Katy Perry. And he’s not afraid to shower irony-free praise on Justin Bieber for his melodic gifts, or on Dua Lipa for her rhythmic hooks. But while he has an eye on the poppier realm, it’s telling that Mayer was also speed-dial buddies with Apple’s Steve Jobs – because this talented, handsome, successful guy is also a bit of a nerd.