John Mayer has once again rifled through his back catalog of electric guitars to help pop R&B mega star Alessia Cara record a new track, (Isn't It) Obvious – which features an especially groundbreaking guitar solo.
Mayer announced his latest guest collaboration in a lengthy post on Instagram, which shared glimpses of some behind-the-scenes studio action of him piecing together both the song’s statement solo and the accompanying rhythm guitars.
For the job, Mayer decided to temporarily ditch his PRS Silver Sky signature and reach for something a bit more unusual. First up, Mayer can be seen playing his beloved Custom Shop Charvel San Dimas to track the statement piece lead effort.
Ever the experimentalist when it comes to noodling over pop and R&B tracks, Mayer can be seen riffing on the spot in the search for a suitable solo idea, leading him – with the encouragement of Alessia herself – down some avenues he says he’s never been before.
“What I didn’t see coming, however, was how open-minded she’d be when it came to a guitar solo,” Mayer says of his latest collaboration. “Guitars on pop songs usually get approached pretty conservatively, but Alessia sat across from me and gave me so much creative freedom that I ended up playing things I never have before.”
The result, Mayer says, “is a really striking musical moment” that showcases a new edge to his playing. That ‘edge’ arrives in the form of an all-in-one string of bend/taps that seemingly pays homage to the technical feats of Larry Carlton’s solo on Steely Dan's Kid Charlemagne.
The technique – which involves bending up a whole note, then tapping a few frets above – isn’t new to Mayer, but to rip out so many in a row in one take must surely be something of a record. Cory Wong sums it up nicely, commenting on the post, “bro did we get 5 carlton charlemagne taps in one take?!”
The fruits of his labor are clearly evident in the final product: kicking off at the 2:25 mark in the song, the solo sees Mayer effortlessly execute the bend-heavy – and whammy bar-laden – passage he so painstakingly crafted.
While Mayer’s first-of-its-kind solo is no doubt the highlight of the collaboration, his choice of guitars are also worthy of headlines. The Charvel he used to track the solo is his custom San Dimas model, which is reportedly inspired by a skateboard deck he owned as a youngster.
It was joined by perhaps an even more notable instrument: an ESP, of all things, which seems to hail from the progressive guitar firm’s ultra-limited Exhibition series.
Specifically, the wildly configured Tele-shaped six-string looks to be the EX21-06 ‘Throbber’, which had been created as part of ESP’s Exhibition Series. It was a one-of-a-kind instrument, originally available exclusively through Chuck Levin’s Washington Music Center.
It features some suitably mind-boggling specs, including a pink resin buckeye burl drop top, sandblasted mahogany neck, and a black and white ebony fingerboard. By the looks of it, the Throbber was used for some rhythmic accompaniments.
“Give the song a listen,” Mayer concludes in his post, “and enjoy the videos of what I really sound like when I’m trying to “land a new trick.” Thanks Alessia for the push to go further. You’re a true artist.”
Alessia Cara's new track is the latest addition to the long list of John Mayer guest appearances.
