John Mayer - Room For Squares (2001) {MOV 180g 2011 reissue) 24-bit/96kHz Vinyl Rip & CD-compatible

Room for Squares is the debut studio album of American musician John Mayer, released September 18, 2001 on Columbia Records in the United States. Originally released independently through Aware Records on June 5, 2001, the album peaked at number 9 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart. Upon its release, Room for Squares received generally positive reviews from most music critics and earned Mayer a Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for the single "Your Body Is a Wonderland". It remains as his best-selling album to date, with sales of over 4,308,000 copies in the U.S. as of July 2009.

Background

The album's title is a reference to Hank Mobley's No Room for Squares album. All songs from the album were written by Mayer; four songs, "No Such Thing", "Why Georgia", "Neon", and "Love Song for No One", were co-written with Clay Cook. The first and third of these, along with "My Stupid Mouth" and "Back to You," originally appeared on Mayer's 1999 EP Inside Wants Out.

Through constant shows, including in the Atlanta-area Eddie's Attic, Mayer's reputation began to build, and a March 2000 appearance at the South by Southwest Music Festival brought him to the attention of "launch" label, Aware Records. After including him in the Aware Festival concerts and having his songs included on Aware compilations, in early 2001, Aware released Room for Squares as an internet-only album. During that time, Aware inked a deal with Columbia Records that gave Columbia first pick in signing Aware artists, and so in September 2001, Columbia remixed and re-released Room for Squares. As part of the major label "debut", the album's artwork was updated, and the track "3x5" was added, which didn't appear on the original as the recording wasn't yet complete at the time. The re-release included reworked studio versions of the first four songs from his indie album, Inside Wants Out. The cover art for the most recent release of Room for Squares features a periodic table design beginning from the back cover which continues to the front cover, ending at the right-side.

The album was relatively unknown at its time of release, but it became more well-known through word of mouth and John's touring. By the end of 2002, Room for Squares had spawned several radio hits, including "No Such Thing", "Your Body Is a Wonderland", and ultimately, "Why Georgia" (a radio-only single).

Reception

Professional ratings
Allmusic 4/5 stars
Blender 3/5 stars
Boston Phoenix 3/4 stars
Jam! (favorable)
Michigan Daily (B+)
PopMatters (unfavorable)
Rolling Stone 4/5 stars 2001
Rolling Stone 3.5/5 stars 2004
Slant Magazine 4/5 stars
Stylus Magazine (B)

Anthony Decurtis (with Rolling Stone) gave the album four out of five stars, calling it "irresistible". PopMatters gave an unfavorable review, saying "It doesn't offend, nor does it attempt to make itself too exciting for the most part." Robert Christgau sympathized with PopMatters' negative stance on the album, criticizing its lyrical composition (specifically, the lyric "She keeps a toothbrush at my place/As if I had the extra space" of "City Love").

By the end of 2002, Room for Squares had spawned several radio hits, including, "No Such Thing", "Your Body Is a Wonderland", and, ultimately, "Why Georgia", which was released as a CD single six weeks before the follow-up album, Heavier Things, was released in 2003.

In 2003, Mayer won a Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Your Body Is a Wonderland." In his acceptance speech he remarked, “This is very, very fast, and I promise to catch up.” He referred to himself as being sixteen, a remark that many mistook to mean that he was only sixteen years old at the time.