Maps of Music

Battle Studies (2009)

Where the lyrics of Battle Studies take you, and where it was really made.

The album was recorded in three Los Angeles-area studios, but the source names the Calabasas studio only as a city-level location, so its exact building is not documented.

Key places

Recorded at Battle Studies in Calabasas (2009)

Recording site Mooselodge — The album was produced from February to August 2009 at the Battle Studies recording studio in Calabasas, California. The map point shows only the city center, not the studio building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recorded at Capitol Studios in Hollywood (2009)

Recording site Capitol Studios — Capitol Studios in Hollywood was one of three studios used for the album's production, which ran from February to August 2009 under Mayer and Steve Jordan. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recorded at The Village in West Los Angeles (2009)

Recording site Village Recorders — The Village in West Los Angeles was one of three studios used for the album's production, which ran from February to August 2009 under Mayer and Steve Jordan. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Battle Studies: fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter John Mayer
• Released November 17, 2009 by Columbia Records
• Production handled by Mayer and Steve Jordan
• Debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200
• Certified platinum by the RIAA for shipments of one million copies in the US

Background

• Followed the very successful album Continuum, which made Mayer feel intimidated about starting a new record
• Mayer did not want too much time to pass without making new music
• Track listing completed on October 1, 2009: 11 songs, 45 minutes
• Album leaked hours before a scheduled official radio leak on 103.7 Sophie in San Diego
• Battle Studies World Tour began November 5, 2009 in Sydney and ended October 1, 2010 in Manila

Recording

• Production took place from February to August 2009
• Studios used: Battle Studies recording studio in Calabasas, Capitol Studios in Hollywood, and The Village in West Los Angeles
• Later CD/DVD expanded edition added a VH1 Storytellers episode and two acoustic performances from a May 2010 trip to Japan

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• John Clayton Mayer, born October 16, 1977, in Bridgeport, Connecticut, American singer, songwriter, and guitarist.
• Attended Berklee College of Music in 1997, then left for Atlanta with guitarist Clay Cook to form the short-lived duo Lo-Fi Masters.
• Released the independent EP Inside Wants Out (1999) and was later signed by Aware Records, a Columbia Records imprint.

Career

• Debut album Room for Squares (2001) produced hits including "Your Body Is a Wonderland", which won Best Male Pop Vocal Performance at the 45th Grammy Awards.
• Heavier Things (2003) peaked atop the Billboard 200.
• Shifted toward blues and rock, forming the John Mayer Trio; Continuum (2006) won Best Pop Vocal Album at the 49th Grammy Awards.
• Withdrew from public life in 2010 after controversial interviews; later albums include Born and Raised (2012), Paradise Valley (2013), The Search for Everything (2017), and Sob Rock (2021).
• Member of Dead & Company since 2015 alongside surviving Grateful Dead members.
• Ranked number 61 on Rolling Stone's 250 Greatest Guitarists of All Time (2023).
• Sold over 20 million albums worldwide by 2014.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Battle Studies received generally positive reviews from music critics
• Metacritic average score of 64, based on 17 reviews
• Mojo praised the album's musical breadth and said the playing is superb throughout
• AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine commended Mayer's musicianship despite a reliance on texture
• The Boston Globe's Sarah Rodman wrote that Mayer kept stripping away the radio polish of his earlier work while keeping his pop sensibilities
• Hot Press's Jackie Hayden called it a classy pop album for grown-ups
• Entertainment Weekly's Leah Greenblatt described it as a carefully calibrated study in soft-pedal confessions and searching lyricism
• Sputnikmusic's Alex Silveri felt the album lacked depth but praised Mayer's handling of universal themes
• Mixed review: The Independent's Andy Gill found the lyrics ultimately tiresome
• Los Angeles Times's Randy Lewis said Mayer expresses himself more eloquently through his guitar than through his lyrics
• The Guardian's Tom Hughes said the talent was obvious but there was more cheese than charm

Records

• Debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with over 286,000 copies sold in its first week
• Second week: an additional 93,000 copies sold, falling to number 13 on the chart
• As of April 2010, sold 880,000 copies in the United States
• RIAA platinum certification on July 29, 2010
• Grammy Award nomination for Best Pop Vocal Album, lost to Lady Gaga's The Fame Monster
• 'Half of My Heart' nominated for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, lost to Bruno Mars' 'Just the Way You Are'

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Mayer posted on Twitter that the track listing was complete, with 11 songs running 45 minutes in what he called a very interesting order.
• The album leaked just hours before a planned radio leak, and Mayer allowed fans to download it if they registered their copies by ordering the album.
• Mayer said that after Continuum it became much easier to move on, since whatever he did would not be Continuum.
• The second single, 'Heartbreak Warfare', came with what was described as the first ever augmented reality video.
• 'Who Says' was the first single and was previewed on Mayer's official website on September 25, 2009.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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