Continuum (album)

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Continuum
Continuum cover
Studio album by John Mayer
Released September 9, 2006 (Australia)
September 11, 2006 (Philippines)
September 12, 2006 (USA)
October 16, 2006 (UK)
Recorded 2005–2006
The Village Recorder
Los Angeles, California
Royal Studios
Memphis, Tennessee
Avatar Studios
New York City, New York
Right Track/Sound on Sound
New York City, New York[1]
Genre Blues rock
Length 50:00
Label Aware Records
Columbia Records
Sony Music
Producer(s) John Mayer
Steve Jordan
Professional reviews
John Mayer chronology
As Is
(2004)		 Continuum
(2006)		 The Village Sessions
(2006)


Alternate covers
The Local 83 exclusive cover
The Local 83 exclusive cover
The front cover for the UK version
The front cover for the UK version
Singles from Continuum
1. "Waiting on the World to Change" (August, 2006)
2. "Gravity" (February 15, 2007)

Continuum is singer-songwriter John Mayer's Grammy award winning third studio album. It was released in Australia on September 9, 2006, in the Philippines on September 11, in the United States on September 12, and in the U.K. on October 16 (Mayer's 29th birthday). It was nominated for three Grammys (Album of the Year, Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance - "Waiting on the World to Change") and won two: Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance - "Waiting on the World to Change".

“ With any trilogy, the third in the series blows it open.[2] ”
– John Mayer on Continuum.

Contents

[edit] Songs

[edit] Singles

"Waiting on the World to Change", the first single from Continuum.
"Waiting on the World to Change", the first single from Continuum.

The first single, "Waiting on the World to Change," was released on July 11, 2006. On February 22, 2007, it peaked at #14 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart and topped its original peak of #15. It has stayed on the charts for an impressive 34 weeks.[3]

To date, in the U.S., the single has sold 1,111,132 in digital downloads, and was certified Platinum by the RIAA when it crossed the 1,000,000 mark in sales. After a month of release, the single peaked at #17 on the Australian ARIA Top 40 Digital Track Chart on November 19, 2006.

On February 11, 2007, Mayer won the Grammy in the category for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Waiting on the World to Change".

The video clip for this song was directed by Philip Andelman and features Mayer walking along the East River while graffiti artists Futura, Tats Cru, and Daze graffiti messages on New York City billboards displaying messages relating to the song's content.

A limited edition EP of "Waiting on the World to Change" was released featuring the album version of "Waiting on the World to Change". The EP also includes a bonus acoustic version of the song which features Ben Harper, as well as a studio recording of "Good Love is on the Way", a live version of which was released on the album Try! by the John Mayer Trio. The Ben Harper version of "Waiting on the World to Change" and an alternative acoustic-only version of "Good Love is on the Way" is also available on Mayer's subsequent release, the EP The Village Sessions.

The cover of "Gravity", Mayer's second single from Continuum.
The cover of "Gravity", Mayer's second single from Continuum.

On February 22, 2007, Continuum's second single, "Gravity", entered the Billboard Hot 100 at #71. As of February 2007, Mayer had two singles charting on the Hot 100. It also entered Billboard's Hot 100 Digital Songs Chart at #63. It has sold 68,115 in digital downloads since its release. Mayer performed the single the week prior at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards with fellow musicians Corinne Bailey Rae and John Legend.

Prior to Mayer's announcement that "Gravity" would be the album's second single, it was believed that "Belief" would be the second single. "Belief" has enjoyed fan-based popularity, and a version of it was included on The Village Sessions. Mayer has opened the majority of the Continuum/Musical Sound tour concerts with the song. "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room" and "I Don't Trust Myself (With Loving You)" were rumoured to be the second single release also. It is still believed one of these three songs will be the third single release.

[edit] Other songs

The album features mainly new songs, though "Gravity" and "Vultures" are also available in live versions from John Mayer Trio's Try!, and "Bold as Love" which is a Jimi Hendrix cover; the first Hendrix cover that Mayer has ever recorded as a studio release (although Mayer has recorded other Hendrix songs over time in live settings such as "The Wind Cries Mary" and "Wait Until Tomorrow"). Mayer had previously released a cover of Radiohead's song "Kid A" (covering the title track from Radiohead's Kid A album) as a B-side for "Bigger Than My Body" from Heavier Things. The album also contains a collaboration between Mayer and 8-string guitarist Charlie Hunter on the tune "In Repair".

At the time of release, almost all of the songs had been performed live at least once, whether in a full band setting or acoustic at the Hotel Cafe shows from the prior winter. In a blog entry by Mayer, he confirmed that he was excited by the opportunity on his forthcoming tour to showcase these songs to a larger audience.

Subsequently, the album was made available for listen on Clear Channel Music website and for pre-purchase on iTunes, still prior to the album's public release. The iTunes pre-release also includes exclusive bonus track "Can't Take That Plane".

On Wednesday, August 23, the entire Continuum album was played on Los Angeles radio station STAR 98.7, with the segment hosted by Mayer himself. Mayer initially announced that this would occur on his website.[4] He repeated the event for different media outlets several more times before the album's September release, such as "Sneak Peek" through Clear Channel Music, and performed three songs live for Sessions@AOL.[5]

[edit] Awards and recognition

[edit] Grammy nominations and wins

On December 7, 2006, Continuum was nominated for two Grammys. Including these, Mayer earned five nominations, in total – one nomination for Best Rock Album for Try! with the John Mayer Trio and another for Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance for "Route 66" from the Cars motion picture soundtrack. The album's lead single "Waiting on the World to Change" was also nominated and won in the category for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. Continuum also won the Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Album.

[edit] Continuum nominations

  • Album of the Year
  • Best Pop Vocal Album (Won)
  • Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Waiting on the World to Change" (Won)

[edit] Awards won

  • Grammy: Best Pop Vocal Album, 49th Grammy Awards (2007).
  • Grammy: Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Waiting on the World to Change", 49th Grammy Awards (2007).

[edit] Rolling Stone accolade

Rolling Stone magazine has elected Continuum as the 11th best album of 2006 in its February 2007 issue.[6]

[edit] "Continuum" as a title

The decision to name his third album "Continuum" was one that Mayer made at least a year before the album was released. In his column in the September 2005 issue of Esquire, he wrote "I've never experienced anything like the recording process involved in making Continuum, my third-album-to-be.[7]" There is also evidence to suggest that the idea for the title was developing even before that. In his column in the April 2005 issue of Esquire, Mayer wrote, "I'm obsessed with time lately, constantly crunching the numbers to get some sense of where I stand in the continuum."[8] He also mentioned the title even earlier, in February 2004 while in the studio with Kanye West recording the song "Bittersweet."[9]

[edit] Cover art

Originally, it was widely believed that there would be multiple cover artworks available. The basic CD is white with off-white letters that slides into a slipcase of a deep gray with lettering in light gray and blue/green. During the pre-order, it appeared as though there would be a different variation of said artwork on a special edition version, and it turned out that the "special packaging" was a shiny silver bag which held inside of it the CD and the pre-order bonuses. All artworks were designed by Mayer along with Smog Design, Inc.

The UK version of Continuum features a photograph of Mayer on the cover. This cover is also used for promotional releases, such as when Mayer performed live on Australian television program Rove Live, the alternate cover was presented for television by the show's host Rove McManus.

[edit] Track listing

The cover of the "Waiting on the World to Change" limited edition EP.
The cover of the "Waiting on the World to Change" limited edition EP.
# Song name Length Song information Composer(s)
1. "Waiting on the World to Change" 3:20 First single John Mayer
2. "I Don't Trust Myself (With Loving You)" 4:52 John Mayer
3. "Belief" 4:02 Features Ben Harper on guitar John Mayer
4. "Gravity" 4:05 Second single.[10]
Live version available on Try!		 John Mayer
5. "The Heart of Life" 3:18 John Mayer
6. "Vultures" 4:10 Live version available on Try! John Mayer, Steve Jordan & Pino Palladino
7. "Stop This Train" 4:45 Features James Valentine (of Maroon 5) on guitar John Mayer
8. "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room" 4:02 Featured live in a 2006 episode of CSI John Mayer
9. "Bold as Love" 4:18 Cover Jimi Hendrix
10. "Dreaming With a Broken Heart" 4:05 John Mayer
11. "In Repair" 6:07 Features Charlie Hunter on 8-string guitar Charlie Hunter & John Mayer
12. "I'm Gonna Find Another You" 2:43 Horn arrangements by Willie Mitchell John Mayer

[edit] Charts and certifications

Continuum debuted on the U.S. Billboard 200 Albums Chart at #2 with 300,186 copies sold.[11]

To date, the album has sold over 1.5 million copies in the U.S. and is Mayer's third consecutive platinum selling studio album.

With no lead single in Australia, Continuum debuted on the ARIA Albums Chart at #12,[12]his lowest debut in Australia to date (Room for Squares debuted at #5 and Heavier Things at #4). Continuum was the 98th best selling album for 2006 on the ARIA Albums Chart. It is also certified gold by ARIA for sales of 35,000 copies.

In Canada, the album debuted at #2 on the official Albums Chart and is certified gold for sales of 50,000 copies. According to Nielsen SoundScan, Continuum was the 4th best selling digital album for 2006 in Canada.

To date, the album has sold over 2 million copies worldwide.[citation needed]

Chart (2006) Providers Peak
position		 Certification Sales
Billboard 200 Albums Chart (U.S.) Billboard 2[11] Platinum 1,552,830[11]
Billboard Comprehensive Albums (U.S.) Billboard 2[13]    
Billboard Digital Albums (U.S.) Billboard 1[14]    
Billboard Internet Albums (U.S.) Billboard 3[15]    
Billboard Top Rock Albums (U.S.) Billboard 1[16]    
Australian Albums Chart ARIA 12[17] Gold 35,000+
Canadian Albums Chart Nielsen SoundScan 2[18] Gold 50,000+
UK Albums Chart BBC 58[19]
New Zealand Albums Chart RIANZ 9[20] Gold 7,500+
Philippines Pop Albums Chart PRIMA n/a    
Denmark Top 40 Albums Chart IFPI Danmark & ACNielsen 24    
Netherlands Top 100 Albums Chart GfK Mega Charts 12    
United World Chart (Worldwide sales) Media traffic 2[21] Platinum 2,000,000+

[edit] References

  1. ^ John Mayer and Steve Jordan discuss the writing and recording process.
  2. ^ John Mayer Biography. John Mayer Official Website. Retrieved on 2006-07-30.
  3. ^ The Hot 100. Billboard Magazine.
  4. ^ Mayer, John (2006-08-04). Continuum First Listen. John Mayer Official Blog. Retrieved on 2006-08-06.
  5. ^ John Mayer World Premiere of Continuum. Star 98.7 FM. Retrieved on 2006-08-25.
  6. ^ No byline (2007). "The Top 50 Albums of 2006" Rolling Stone (accessed March 16, 2007)
  7. ^ Mayer writes in his Esquire Column that he intends to name his third album "Continuum".
  8. ^ No byline (2005). "Mayer hints at the album title" Esquire.com (prior to the title's announcement) (accessed March 16, 2007)
  9. ^ http://youtube.com/watch?v=n_z-shZL1KU
  10. ^ Mayer, John (2006). "New Single" JohnMayer.com. Retrieved on 1 December 2006
  11. ^ a b c The Billboard 200. Billboard Magazine.
  12. ^ ARIA Album Charts. Retrieved on 2006-09-25.
  13. ^ Billboard.com Top Comprehensive Albums 2006-09-21
  14. ^ Billboard.com Top Digital Albums 2006-09-21
  15. ^ Billboard.com Top Internet Albums 2006-09-21
  16. ^ Billboard.com Top R&B/Hip-HopAlbums 2006-09-21
  17. ^
  18. ^
  19. ^ Yahoo Charts
  20. ^
  21. ^ [1]

[edit] See also

[edit] External links


Category       John Mayer       Discography
v • d • e
EPs: Inside Wants Out | The Village Sessions
Studio Albums: Room for Squares | Heavier Things | Continuum
Live Albums: Any Given Thursday | As Is
Singles: "No Such Thing" | "Your Body Is a Wonderland" | "Why Georgia" | "Bigger Than My Body" | "Clarity" | "Daughters" | "Waiting on the World to Change" | "Gravity"
John Mayer Trio: John Mayer Trio | Try! | "Who Did You Think I Was" | "Live at Yahoo! Music" | Pino Palladino | Steve Jordan
Publishing: Sony BMG | Columbia Records | Aware Records
Official Sites: JohnMayer.com | John Mayer MySpace | JohnMayerTrio.com | Aware Records
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