Top Ten Songs by John Mayer

1. Waiting on the World to Change (Waiting on the World to Change, 2006). The first time I heard this song on the radio, for a snap second, I thought I was listening to Marvin Gaye. Imagine my surprise, a few moments later, when I realized it was white-boy, do-gooder artist John Mayer. But perhaps I shouldn't have been so surprised. If any single characteristic has attached itself to John Mayer's career and music, it's earnestness. Mayer, a modern-day poet who accompanies his lyrics with a guitar. He's a soulful crooner who now intends to bring a political conscience to his music. Waiting on the World to Change has all the qualities of a sixties smash hit like What's Going On, but it's not without its irony. It's the strangest call to arms ever, where he gently chides his generation for waiting for their chance to change the world instead of seizing control. But the message might be a bit too subtle - and his sarcasm is undercut by what seems to be his genuine sense of helplessness. "Now we see everything that's going wrong with the world and those who lead it we just feel like we don't have the means to rise above and beat it, so we keep waiting, waiting on the world to change."

2. No Such Thing (Inside Wants Out, 1999). Mayer's career is marked by unusual choices, including his breakout first album, which lacks any kind of slick production sound. This is because Inside Wants Out is the promo album that Mayer used to promote himself, and achieve acclaim on his own without the power of a big studio behind him. This song was ultimately remade when he finally did get production support, but there's an intimacy to the original that makes it worth mentioning. Mayer relies on acoustic guitar, and catchy little ditties like No Such Thing which is a defiant anthem about chasing your own dreams no matter who might discourage you.