![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/richie_mayer.jpg\")
Richie Mayer is a clearly a student of classic pop. His breezy melodies are irresistible. They sound jut familiar enough to invite comparisons to The Beatles and like-minded artists, but he has enough originality to make sure his music steers clear of the slavish imitation that\u2019s often a hallmark of artists who swim in the classic pop pool.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a proud tradition of one-man-bands, and you know the giants of that approach: McCartney, Rundgren etc. The do-it-all-yourself method is far more common today than it once was, bu even grading on that curve, Mayer\u2019s work on The Inn of Temporary Happiness<\/i> is noteworthy.<\/p>\n
He rocks Sgt. Pepper style on \u201cYou Don\u2019t Get Me High Anymore,\u201d applying soaring vocal harmonies and a catchy set of riffs to the task, with bits of instrumental texture that elevate the tune beyond the basic guitar\/bass\/drums configuration. And when he uses electronic drums, it\u2019s done in an intelligent fashion.<\/p>\n
Sure, \u201cLove will Find a Way\u201d splits difference between \u201cFixing a Hole\u201d and any random Jellyfish tune, but that\u2019s a delightful place to be. \u201cHow Can I Leave When I\u2019m Already Gone\u201d veers a bit close to novelty territory, but in the context of this album, it serves to highlight his versatility.<\/p>\n
Apparently \u201cSometimes I Feel Like I\u2019m One Kiss Away\u201d dates from the \u201880s, and was recorded with a band. Its approach is quite reminiscent of Wings, or perhaps Off the Ground<\/i>-period McCartney. A tasty guitar break makes the tune even more special.<\/p>\n
\u201cWarmth of the Sun\u201d isn\u2019t a Beach Boys cover, but its arrangement is in line with the Pet Sounds<\/i> era Brian Wilson, right down to the wonderfully subtle vibraphone and ambitious vocal phrasing that decorates the track.<\/p>\n
Speaking of Pet Sounds<\/i>, Mayer includes a track that \u2013 consciously or otherwise \u2013 references it: \u201cCome Back Caroline\u201d absorbs Brian Wilson influences, processes them through Mayer\u2019s own sensibility and delivers something wholly original.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t Say Nothing\u201d is unabashed late \u201870s style power pop a la Shoes. Except for Mayer\u2019s vocals, the musical style and arrangement on \u201cThis is Your Day\u201d could pass for a lost Badfinger tune; the music sounds uncannily like that band, with George Harrison lending his trademark slide guitar to the track. Cellos and acoustic guitar picking are among the highlights of a delightful (if too brief) instrumental, \u201cKat\u2019s Guitar.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSunshine Blues\u201d is propulsive pop reminiscent of The Cars. And perhaps to underscore the point that Mayer can work credibly in a wide variety of styles, \u201cHall of Blame\u201d is an exercise in classic countrypolitan pop. \u201cShe is Why\u201d returns to the bouncy sunshine pop of Beatles a la \u201cYour Mother Should Know.\u201d A catchy lead guitar break is followed by some strawberry-flavored Mellotron flutes and some Turtle-ish vocalese.<\/p>\n
The hits keep coming. If \u2013 like me \u2013 you\u2019re a newcomer to Mayer\u2019s work, you might think that The Inn of Temporary Happiness<\/em> is a best- of set rather than his latest offering; it\u2019s simply that consistently great. \u201cIs Everybody Ready\u201d compares favorably to a better-known yet similar track: Michael Bubl\u00e9\u2019s unexpectedly pop-wonderful \u201cJust Haven\u2019t Met You Yet.\u201d<\/p>\n The title tracks is all mandolins, ukes and chamber instruments, all in service of a delightful waltzing number. And then it\u2019s back to soaring power pop for \u201cShe Taking it Too Well,\u201d with shades of Rubber Soul<\/i> crossed with a bit of XTC, Colin Moulding version. After serving up sixteen tunes of pop pleasure, Mayer ends with a tune called \u201cDon\u2019t Say Goodbye.\u201d Filtering instruments though a Leslie and adding a sweeping orchestra that recalls \u201cA Day in the Life,\u201d it\u2019s another winner. Perhaps more than any other track on the album, it rewards close, repeated listening to reveal the myriad careful details that went into its making.<\/p>\n To labor a couple of sports metaphors, Richie Mayer swings for the fences on The Inn of Temporary Happiness<\/i>, and he hits it outta the park. An ambitious record that still feels warm, friendly and \u2013 most of all \u2013 real and sincere, it\u2019s a strong contender for my Best Album of the Year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Richie Mayer is a clearly a student of classic pop. His breezy melodies are irresistible. They sound jut familiar enough to invite comparisons to The Beatles and like-minded artists, but […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21849,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49,51,62,65],"tags":[4674],"class_list":["post-21848","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-new-release","category-pop","category-rawk","category-review","tag-richie-mayer","cat-49-id","cat-51-id","cat-62-id","cat-65-id","has_thumb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21848","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21848"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21848\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22227,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21848\/revisions\/22227"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21849"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21848"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21848"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21848"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}