The Village Sessions
Encyclopedia
The Village Sessions is an EP
released by pop artist John Mayer
on December 12, 2006. Collaborators include John Mayer Trio
members Steve Jordan
and Pino Palladino
, along with Ben Harper
, Robbie McIntosh
, and Ricky Peterson of Mayer's touring band and former producer for Prince
albums. The six-song EP contains acoustic and alternate versions of songs found on Mayer's third studio album, Continuum, and his trio's live album, Try!. Mayer co-produced the album with engineer Chad Franscoviak
.
Though the EP was released at about the same time as Mayer’s single, "Gravity
", the song itself does not appear on this EP, much like Mayer's singles "Daughters
" and "Bigger Than My Body
" were not on his live album, As/Is, despite being the current singles at the time of its release. Like the As/Is series before it, The Village Sessions was made available on iTunes
, on May 15, 2007.
store in limited quantities. The album was released on December 12, 2006, and copies had sold out on the Aware Store as of December 23, 2006. However, it is now also available on Amazon.com. In May 2007, The Village Sessions was released on iTunes with a special video featuring the making of "In Repair" as heard on Continuum. The video shows the song being recorded within one day.
On December 6, 2007, the acoustic version of "Belief" from "The Village Sessions" was nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, a category that Mayer had previously won three times.
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
released by pop artist John Mayer
John Mayer
John Clayton Mayer is an American pop rock and blues rock musician, singer-songwriter, recording artist, and music producer. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and raised in Fairfield, Connecticut, he attended Berklee College of Music in Boston. He moved to Atlanta in 1997, where he refined his...
on December 12, 2006. Collaborators include John Mayer Trio
John Mayer Trio
In February 2005, the trio played Mayer's single "Daughters" at the 47th Grammy Awards, for which Mayer went on to win the award for Best Male Vocal Performance later that night . The Trio released "Come When I Call" exclusively to iTunes...
members Steve Jordan
Steve Jordan (musician)
Steve Jordan is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, musical director and Grammy Award-winning artist, who has made a name for himself as a producer from the Bronx in New York City. A graduate of the Fiorello H...
and Pino Palladino
Pino Palladino
Pino Palladino is a Welsh bass guitarist who gained fame playing primarily rock and roll, blues rock, and rhythm and blues music, although he has been lauded for his ability to play most genres of popular music, including jazz, neo soul, and funk...
, along with Ben Harper
Ben Harper
Benjamin Chase "Ben" Harper is an American singer-songwriter and musician. Harper plays an eclectic mix of blues, folk, soul, reggae and rock music and is known for his guitar-playing skills, vocals, live performances and activism. Harper's fan base spans several continents...
, Robbie McIntosh
Robbie McIntosh
Robbie McIntosh is an English guitarist. McIntosh is well known as a session guitarist and member of The Pretenders from 1982 until 1987. In 1988 he began doing session guitar work for Paul McCartney joining his band full time until early 1994...
, and Ricky Peterson of Mayer's touring band and former producer for Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
albums. The six-song EP contains acoustic and alternate versions of songs found on Mayer's third studio album, Continuum, and his trio's live album, Try!. Mayer co-produced the album with engineer Chad Franscoviak
Chad Franscoviak
Chad Franscoviak is a sound engineer and producer based out of Los Angeles, California. He is most well known for his work on John Mayer albums...
.
Though the EP was released at about the same time as Mayer’s single, "Gravity
Gravity (John Mayer song)
"Gravity" is a song by American singer-songwriter guitarist John Mayer and is featured on three of his releases: the 2005 live album Try! by the John Mayer Trio, his 2006 studio album Continuum, and his 2008 live album Where the Light Is: John Mayer Live in Los Angeles...
", the song itself does not appear on this EP, much like Mayer's singles "Daughters
Daughters (John Mayer song)
"Daughters" is the third single from Heavier Things, the 2003 studio album from blues singer-songwriter, John Mayer. The critically acclaimed song won numerous awards, including the 2005 Grammy Award for Song of the Year at the 47th Grammy Awards....
" and "Bigger Than My Body
Bigger Than My Body
"Bigger Than My Body" is the first single released by John Mayer from his second album Heavier Things. As a B-side, the single contained a cover of Radiohead's "Kid A" and a new original song that was not included on Heavier Things, "Tracing"...
" were not on his live album, As/Is, despite being the current singles at the time of its release. Like the As/Is series before it, The Village Sessions was made available on iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
, on May 15, 2007.
Release
Originally, the EP was only available at indie record stores and at the online Aware RecordsAware Records
Aware Records is an American record label, existent to seek unsigned musical artists and expose them to the mainstream media. The label has had success with a range of artists, including John Mayer, Train, Five For Fighting, Mat Kearney and Guster....
store in limited quantities. The album was released on December 12, 2006, and copies had sold out on the Aware Store as of December 23, 2006. However, it is now also available on Amazon.com. In May 2007, The Village Sessions was released on iTunes with a special video featuring the making of "In Repair" as heard on Continuum. The video shows the song being recorded within one day.
On December 6, 2007, the acoustic version of "Belief" from "The Village Sessions" was nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, a category that Mayer had previously won three times.
Track listing
- "Waiting on the World to ChangeWaiting on the World to Change"Waiting on the World to Change" is the first single released from John Mayer's 2006 studio album, Continuum. The song enjoyed commercial success as a single and won the Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance at the 49th Grammy Awards...
" (Ben HarperBen HarperBenjamin Chase "Ben" Harper is an American singer-songwriter and musician. Harper plays an eclectic mix of blues, folk, soul, reggae and rock music and is known for his guitar-playing skills, vocals, live performances and activism. Harper's fan base spans several continents...
version) - "Belief" (acoustic version)
- "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room" (acoustic version)
- "Good Love is On the Way" (acoustic version)
- "I'm Gonna Find Another You" (acoustic version)
- "In RepairIn Repair (John Mayer song)In Repair is a song written and performed by John Mayer. It was published and released in 2006 on the album, Continuum. It features Charlie Hunter on an 8-string guitar. An acoustic version of the song was also released on Mayer's The Village Sessions EP...
" (acoustic version)