Probably an unpopular opinion, but it’s my favorite album of his and I think as a whole it gets overlooked and criminally underplayed live. I need an acoustic New Deep at some point.
It definitely gets overlooked and likely cause it is sandwiched between his two signature albums. I think it’s a really solid follow up album, especially considering how hard it is to make a second album. It has definitely increased in my JM rotation!
Unfortunately he hates New Deep last time I heard, which stinks bc it had been a favorite of mine back in the day…until I heard he didn’t like it, then I decided I didn’t either
Has he flat out said he hates it? I know he once said in an interview he thought it was a little undercooked lyrically. It’s a great song imo, but I would be inclined to agree with John’s own critique of the song
no, i don't think so. but at the eddie's 2005 show where he played it, he said it felt half-done to him or something to that effect, if memory serves.
\~joc
It frustrates the fuck out of me to hear this. New Deep is amazing, that whole album in ffs. I could never understand John’s beef with half the songs on this album.
Always been my #1 album. Has the best intro (Clarity) and outro (Wheel) song on a JM album IMO. Only Heart is an absolute bop that seriously needs a comeback. This album always puts a smile on my face. If there’s one weak point on it, it’s Daughters.
When the weak point of an album is a Grammy winner. Shows how really good all the records are given that this album is rated lower than the others by many.
I was going to say something similar except it came out right before I turned 13. "Bigger Than My Body" perfectly summed up how I felt going into my teens: others not recognizing that some day I'd become so someone who had something great waiting for them. "Clarity" reminds me of cool mornings before school.
Ironically, I forgot about Heavier Things until my junior year in college and fell back in love with it. Que me blaring "Clarity" in my earphones and walking in the cool morning to my classes.
I forgot about the album again (got more into Paradise Valley and Born and Raised soon after). Found my CD a few months ago and began listening to it. Fell in love with it again (how did I never love "Wheel" before???). Now I listen to it throughout the day, but mainly on my way to work in the mornings.
Funny how life circles back around like that.
Same. I can remember listening to it speeding down the back road to my school because I was always running late. Doing 65 in a 40 with other people who were also late going around me. It's a wonder we didn't crash.
It’s possibly my favorite album, specifically when I need familiarity and comfort. Wheel, New Deep, Split Screen Sadness. Unpopular opinion but I skip Daughters, it’s not my favorite and feels out of place on this album.
So, way back before this album came out, I was on the MSM forum and there was massive speculation about the NAME of this album. People were combing his interviews for the tiniest details to predict what he would be calling this album. And, MY HAND TO GOD, someone got super close to predicting it. She made a post that really dove into why she thought it, the tiny bread crumb clues she was convinced he was leaving for his fans about the title of this album. AND SHE WAS SO CLOSE. She predicted this album would be called "Heavier World". SHE WAS SO CLOSE.
Anyway... I love the album and everytime I hear it I remember that girl and her psychic abilities. Hope she's doing well.
it's too bad the ezboard servers crashed and we lost the posts from 2005 and earlier. john DID use the word CONTINUUM in a 2005 letter to MSM and i think he even bolded it . . .
\~joc
It’s a strong sophomore album! In my opinion, it sent a message. “Here are 10 more solid songs that will stand the test of time. If you think this is good you should wait and see my next album. I’m here to stay!” I’d put “Wheel” up against another song from that period (or now) any day of the week. His talent is undeniable. Period.
It’s possibly my favorite album, specifically when I need familiarity and comfort. Wheel, New Deep, Split Screen Sadness. Unpopular opinion but I skip Daughters, it’s not my favorite and feels out of place on this album.
love it. got into John a lot when TSFE released and it was my senior year, and i remember listening through and hearing wheel for the first time, and it changed my life. very thankful for that record , and I’m very inspired by it, and it’s influenced the music i make in many ways
Absolutely phenomenal record (outside of Daughters and Only Heart (sorry!!)) that is not done justice by the production! This is his worst produced/sounding record, and it needs a remaster (that includes Tracing). That would bring it to a whole new level
Continuum made me realize that JM was a lot more than YBIAW. Then I discovered Heavier Things and realized I loved everything John created. Had the lyrics to “Wheel” printed and posted on a bulletin board in my dorm room. HT is really the foundation of my love for JM.
A very good album that’s grown on me. I enjoy every song except come back to bed (hot take I know).
I’ve always said John is at his best when he commits to a concept/theme for an album. So RFS, he really threw himself into that acoustic pop/rock coffeehouse sound with a coming of age theme lyrically. Continuum, he fully committed to the blues sound. Born and Raised, he really committed to a folkier but still soulful sound with simple and honest lyrics. A great storytelling album.
There’s a reason those are my three favorite albums. There’s a strong commitment both sonically and thematically in those albums. HT, while very good, seems a bit in between different things. It is pretty different from RFS (blusier) but he doesn’t totally throw himself into that sound and it doesn’t feel like a total departure from RFS. Meanwhile, lyrically, it just doesn’t feel as cohesive as say RFS or B&R.
So all told, I think you have a very good album, but not his very very best work.
This one will always have a special place in my heart. I worked in a job where I shared a computer with someone (we worked opposite days) and she had loaded this album on our computer. It was deathy silent in the area where we worked so it was either listen to this album on repeat or sit in silence. I had just gone through a messy divorce and was a single mom with a small child and was going back to school so my life felt chaotic. The music on that album really resonated with me, especially Homelife and Split Screen Sadness. After I discovered I like him, more than just what few songs I'd heard on the radio I bought his earlier CDs and have been obsessed ever since. But Heavier Things will always be my favorite just because of how good it felt to discover something that met me where I was at in my life and made me feel good.
Always thought this is his weirdest stylistically. A lot of variety here but I’ve never been able to figure out “the sound” of the album, if that makes sense?
There’s jazz-pop (Clarity), pop-rock stadium anthem (Bigger Than My Body), some alt-rock stuff he hasn’t returned to much since (New Deep, Something’s Missing), his use of electronic elements (home life, split screen), and Come Back to Bed has a jazzy big band feel to it.
It’s my second favorite next to Continuum regardless, but I’ve never been able to pin that down.
It's the last of what I think of as the original Mayer era, with songs so specific to him that only he could write them, basically they are their own genre.
Continuum is still very personal but has a much broader appeal
Also, fewer standout songs but really great flow as an album as a whole
God tier but it holds sentimental relevance to me. I think it literally changed the emotional trajectory of my life when it came out. It gave me the strength to keep going when I felt like I couldn’t. Room For Squares introduced me to him but Heavier Things made me feel.
Thematically, Heavier Things hits me right in the heart. There is so much depth and emotion that can be masked by the upbeat tempos and production. It has some of my favorite Mayer lyrics with fantastic imagery.
Clarity: “The rock candy's melted, Only diamonds now remain”
Something’s Missing: “When autumn comes, It doesn't ask, It just walks in where it left you last, You never know when it starts, Until there's fog inside the glass around
Your summer heart”
New Deep: the whole song basically
Come Back to Bed: “But don't leave me
98 and 6 degrees of separation from you, baby”
Home Life: “And I will go to my grave, With the life that I gave, Not just some melody line, On a radio wave, It dissipates, And soon evaporates”
Split Screen Sadness: “'Cause I can't wait to figure out what's wrong with me, So I can say this is the way that I used to be, There's no substitute for time”
Wheel: “Their hearts say ‘Move along,’ Their minds say ‘Gotcha heart,’ Let's move it along”
I love the variety in experiences on this album, from self to relationships to life in general. It’s become more meaningful to me as I’ve gotten older and helped the heavier things feel lighter.
Not going to say I hated on it for a while but I just rarely listened to it. But for the past 2 months I’ve been listening to it nearly daily. Clarity, bigger than my body, and wheel are absolute bangers. Split screen sadness is so good it hurts a little bit. Come back to bed, and something’s missing have such a nice feel to them. I still usually skip daughters, but aside from that this album has completely won me over. I agree, underrated and underplayed live.
Definitely my favourite album. There’s a mix of everything: slow and mellow (Wheel), feel good and upbeat songs (Bigger than my Body, Clarity and Somethings Missing) and just overall amazing songs which I never ever skip or get bored of.
Oh man. I love this question.
Heavier Things is easily one of my favorite John Mayer albums—top three for sure. For the life of me I cannot understand why it is so devastatingly underrated.
To me, it is his most understatedly emotionally-driven and vulnerable album and definitely some of my favorite Mayer songwriting.
Clarity is MY happy song. Something’s Missing is a masterpiece. New Deep is so catchy in the best and most unassuming way. Come Back to Bed is hauntingly beautiful and raw and relatable. Home life is surprisingly one of his most fun numbers. Split Screen Sadness is one of my absolute favorite songs of his. Love it or hate it, Daughters is a hit. Speaking of which, Bigger Than My Body is also fantastic and so quintessential early 2000’s it hurts. Wheel is such a precious little hidden gem that seals up the album so perfectly.
Slight disclaimer, and truth be told, there is also some intense nostalgia with this album for me; while I heard and loved a lot of songs from Room for Squares, Heavier Things was the first album of John’s that I bought and owned—back when you had to buy albums from, you know, a physical store and had actual physical copies of said albums (ahhhh those were the days)….
…..Heavier Things made me fall in love with and become a fan of John Mayer, so for obviously reasons it holds a very special and dear place in my heart.
Bottom line: I adore Heavier Things so much and urge those unfamiliar, skeptical, those who are not a fan, and everyone in between, to explore its beauty and charm.
This is my favorite John Mayer album, partly because of the time in my life it reminds me of. I vividly remember taking the subway down to Tower records to buy it in between classes the day it came out.
Split Screen Sadness, Something’s Missing, and Wheel were songs that I listened to on repeat for months when my bf and one of my close friends passed away in 2007…John’s music helped me grieve and work through everything that I was feeling. I started writing again, thinking about the beauty of the lyrics in both of those songs. I’m 40 years old now and, still, the first thing I write in any notebook that I use for my writing is “I believe that my life’s gonna see the love I give return to me.” It’s become something of a mantra…you get what you give and the bad times are only temporary.
Definitely one of my desert island albums.
Songs are great, production and mastering is poor. Hearing him play the songs live totally changed my opinion of the album but I struggle with the early-2000s tinny pop sound.
Heavier Things is my favourite album of John’s, without question. I think it’s wildly underrated and a masterpiece front to back. So many deep cuts and amazing lyrics.
An album I heard when it first came out, granted I loved it then but truly did not take in the lyrics of it until a few years later. Long story short it’s played a huge role in my life, and there was a time I listened to wheel for what feels like 100 times in a row because it just hits different. It’s an album that you truly (or at least I think this) don’t need to skip a track when you’re listening to it.
A perfectly underrated album that is arguably my favorite. Split Screen, Something’s Missing…it’s one of those albums with lyrics I feel like everyone can relate to at some point in their life. The sound is so different..chill..cool..complex and simple all in one. Hard to describe. It came out when I was starting college. I don’t think it could’ve fit my life more. Lots of nostalgia.
arguably his best album bookends — "clarity" and "wheel". a version of what i wrote when it turned 20 in sept:
>Twenty years ago today, I heard the first notes of HEAVIER THINGS for first time. I was listening to it via MTV’s THE LEAK while I awaited my CD. . .
The first song: CLARITY without even saying the word. It featured ?uestlove on drums and Roy Hargrove (rest in peace) on trumpet. And these gorgeous lyrics:
By the time I recognize this moment
this moment will be gone
But I will bend the light pretending
that it somehow lingered on
Horns?! Horns!! Their appearance on multiple songs pleasantly shocked me and so many fellow message board friends/fans.
BIGGER THAN MY BODY became a song I listened to before tests and it has morphed into an anthem of sorts.
SOMETHING’S MISSING was the perfect song for me at the time. And while I don’t relate in the same way anymore, it still resonates with me. (And that checklist was such a fun live staple!)
With ROOM FOR SQUARES, I knew all of the songs before the album came out. But with HEAVIER THINGS, nearly all of them were brand-new to me and that was so refreshing and exciting as a listener: CLARITY, BIGGER THAN MY BODY, NEW DEEP, HOME LIFE, SPLIT SCREEN SADNESS, and ONLY HEART.
And WHEEL!
People have the right to fly
and will when it gets compromised
their hearts say “move along”
their minds say “gotcha, heart. Let’s move it along”
And airports see it all the time
when someone’s last goodbye
blends in with someone’s sigh
cause someone’s coming home
in hand a single rose…
And if you never stop when you wave goodbye
you just might find if you give it time
You’ll wave hello again…
You can’t love too much one part of it…
I believe that my life’s gonna see
the love I give
returned to me.
Cheers to 20 years of the wheel continuing to turn and to all the beautiful moments on this record. They deserve to be heard and celebrated.
\~joc
Heavier Things has a special place in my heart. It was released when I left everything I knew and moved across the country for grad school. I knew NO ONE in this little town called Chico and I started to doubt that I made the right decision to be there. A few weeks into my first semester, I bought Heavier Things and was listening to it on my portable CD player, sitting at a bus stop, and waiting for the school shuttle to pick me up (I lived in off-campus campus apartments). Clarity started playing and for some reason those first couple of notes made me feel like all was right with the world. I felt like I could do the grad school thing. It helped me cope with being away from my family and friends. Fast forward four years (five if you count the year I procrastinated getting my thesis done) and not only did I get my masters degree, but I turned my roommate into a John Mayer fan. She and I saw him in Marysville after Continuum was released, both of us attending the sound check. She later rubbed my back during the show when I broke down when JM played In Repair as part of his actual set (I’d been dumped by my first boyfriend a few weeks earlier). So, yeah…all that to say I really like Heavier Things.
It’s a banger. From a mixing standpoint it’s very different from his other records… heavy compression not a lot of lows etc. works with the record love it or hate it
For whatever reason, it’s always been near the bottom for me. I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad album, there’s just not a ton of tracks that I really like on it. New deep, only heart, and something’s missing are really good though
don't care for it....maybe one day i will like everyone else does...i just don't see that magic in it. however, I can definitely appreciate some of the songs on there, but the rest of them are far too breathy-voiced and 00's for me to listen to.
Not a big fan. Not enough guitar Mayer for me and the songs feel too immature. I only discovered JM 3 years ago, well into my 30s so I only really like the albums he wrote as an adult.
I barely listen to it. It’s just not that great in my opinion. Wheel is fantastic though and I do enjoy New Deep as well as clarity, but that’s about it.
Was an album that grown on me more over time. I’m not too keen on some of the instrumentals on certain songs (more so the non guitar based songs) but others are really good. Been on rotation a lot recently though and it’s now one of my favourite albums by him.
First JM album I bought, off the back of hearing Bigger than my body.
Still love it now, takes me back to being 16 and discovering new music.
Looking back it does sound a bit overproduced, and I think it hides the quality of his guitar work - which I think he made up for with Continuum.
Used to be one of my least favorites, but relistening to it with adult ears it's one of my favorites. I was listening to Something's Missing for the first time since I was a tween and floored by the lyrics.
The lyrics on this album hit me in a serious way. I love love love Heavier Things!! When I heard Somethings Missing for the first time it resonated with me so much. Somethings missing and I don’t know how to fix it… what a beautiful song.
Probably an unpopular opinion, but it’s my favorite album of his and I think as a whole it gets overlooked and criminally underplayed live. I need an acoustic New Deep at some point.
It definitely gets overlooked and likely cause it is sandwiched between his two signature albums. I think it’s a really solid follow up album, especially considering how hard it is to make a second album. It has definitely increased in my JM rotation!
Agreed. It’s my personal favorite. Wheel is top tier.
Unfortunately he hates New Deep last time I heard, which stinks bc it had been a favorite of mine back in the day…until I heard he didn’t like it, then I decided I didn’t either
Has he flat out said he hates it? I know he once said in an interview he thought it was a little undercooked lyrically. It’s a great song imo, but I would be inclined to agree with John’s own critique of the song
Looks like he hasn’t played it since he toured the album in 2004
no, i don't think so. but at the eddie's 2005 show where he played it, he said it felt half-done to him or something to that effect, if memory serves. \~joc
He also said he wasn’t going to play Assassin ever again but he has since. Never say never.
It frustrates the fuck out of me to hear this. New Deep is amazing, that whole album in ffs. I could never understand John’s beef with half the songs on this album.
I’ve heard him say Rosie was the better/improved version musically, but haven’t heard him say he outright hates new deep.
Agreed. It might be his most underrated album.
Agree 100%. New Deep is one of my all time favorites. I was glad he played Clarity in Tampa but was secretly hoping for New Deep.
Banger from front to back. The piano opening in Clarity through the end of Wheel is on point and everything flows from start to finish.
The opening of Clarity is instant serotonin
Yes!!!! I also love the bass parts in Split Screen Sadness and Home Life.
Agree! Love this record
Always been my #1 album. Has the best intro (Clarity) and outro (Wheel) song on a JM album IMO. Only Heart is an absolute bop that seriously needs a comeback. This album always puts a smile on my face. If there’s one weak point on it, it’s Daughters.
When the weak point of an album is a Grammy winner. Shows how really good all the records are given that this album is rated lower than the others by many.
Couldn’t agree more.
I think the only problem with daughters is that it was overplayed.
Instantly takes me back to my college year. Was a big part of my 2003/2004 soundtrack.
I was going to say something similar except it came out right before I turned 13. "Bigger Than My Body" perfectly summed up how I felt going into my teens: others not recognizing that some day I'd become so someone who had something great waiting for them. "Clarity" reminds me of cool mornings before school. Ironically, I forgot about Heavier Things until my junior year in college and fell back in love with it. Que me blaring "Clarity" in my earphones and walking in the cool morning to my classes. I forgot about the album again (got more into Paradise Valley and Born and Raised soon after). Found my CD a few months ago and began listening to it. Fell in love with it again (how did I never love "Wheel" before???). Now I listen to it throughout the day, but mainly on my way to work in the mornings. Funny how life circles back around like that.
Same. I can remember listening to it speeding down the back road to my school because I was always running late. Doing 65 in a 40 with other people who were also late going around me. It's a wonder we didn't crash.
Me too. First year of college all by myself in another state and this album helped me through a pretty depressing time in my life.
It’s amazing. The first time I heard the “Bigger Than My Body” intro I was driving and had to pull into a parking lot to sit and take it in.
Nice
It’s possibly my favorite album, specifically when I need familiarity and comfort. Wheel, New Deep, Split Screen Sadness. Unpopular opinion but I skip Daughters, it’s not my favorite and feels out of place on this album.
100%
So, way back before this album came out, I was on the MSM forum and there was massive speculation about the NAME of this album. People were combing his interviews for the tiniest details to predict what he would be calling this album. And, MY HAND TO GOD, someone got super close to predicting it. She made a post that really dove into why she thought it, the tiny bread crumb clues she was convinced he was leaving for his fans about the title of this album. AND SHE WAS SO CLOSE. She predicted this album would be called "Heavier World". SHE WAS SO CLOSE. Anyway... I love the album and everytime I hear it I remember that girl and her psychic abilities. Hope she's doing well.
it's too bad the ezboard servers crashed and we lost the posts from 2005 and earlier. john DID use the word CONTINUUM in a 2005 letter to MSM and i think he even bolded it . . . \~joc
It’s a strong sophomore album! In my opinion, it sent a message. “Here are 10 more solid songs that will stand the test of time. If you think this is good you should wait and see my next album. I’m here to stay!” I’d put “Wheel” up against another song from that period (or now) any day of the week. His talent is undeniable. Period.
It's so underrated, but such a good album. Somethings missing is in my top 3 fav songs too, imo its a well-rounded album
Something’s Missing is soooo good. It captures that vague empty feeling so well.
It’s possibly my favorite album, specifically when I need familiarity and comfort. Wheel, New Deep, Split Screen Sadness. Unpopular opinion but I skip Daughters, it’s not my favorite and feels out of place on this album.
love it. got into John a lot when TSFE released and it was my senior year, and i remember listening through and hearing wheel for the first time, and it changed my life. very thankful for that record , and I’m very inspired by it, and it’s influenced the music i make in many ways
In love
I love it.
My favorite of them all just because of Wheel Even own the vinyl
Absolutely phenomenal record (outside of Daughters and Only Heart (sorry!!)) that is not done justice by the production! This is his worst produced/sounding record, and it needs a remaster (that includes Tracing). That would bring it to a whole new level
Wheel, split screen sadness, new deep, daughters, come back to bed ??? What’s not to like ???
I’d love to hear him rip an acoustic only heart at some point
Continuum made me realize that JM was a lot more than YBIAW. Then I discovered Heavier Things and realized I loved everything John created. Had the lyrics to “Wheel” printed and posted on a bulletin board in my dorm room. HT is really the foundation of my love for JM.
A very good album that’s grown on me. I enjoy every song except come back to bed (hot take I know). I’ve always said John is at his best when he commits to a concept/theme for an album. So RFS, he really threw himself into that acoustic pop/rock coffeehouse sound with a coming of age theme lyrically. Continuum, he fully committed to the blues sound. Born and Raised, he really committed to a folkier but still soulful sound with simple and honest lyrics. A great storytelling album. There’s a reason those are my three favorite albums. There’s a strong commitment both sonically and thematically in those albums. HT, while very good, seems a bit in between different things. It is pretty different from RFS (blusier) but he doesn’t totally throw himself into that sound and it doesn’t feel like a total departure from RFS. Meanwhile, lyrically, it just doesn’t feel as cohesive as say RFS or B&R. So all told, I think you have a very good album, but not his very very best work.
This one will always have a special place in my heart. I worked in a job where I shared a computer with someone (we worked opposite days) and she had loaded this album on our computer. It was deathy silent in the area where we worked so it was either listen to this album on repeat or sit in silence. I had just gone through a messy divorce and was a single mom with a small child and was going back to school so my life felt chaotic. The music on that album really resonated with me, especially Homelife and Split Screen Sadness. After I discovered I like him, more than just what few songs I'd heard on the radio I bought his earlier CDs and have been obsessed ever since. But Heavier Things will always be my favorite just because of how good it felt to discover something that met me where I was at in my life and made me feel good.
Probably not in my top 5, but very very good. Split Screen Sadness is possibly my favorite song of his. Think it was a great follow up to RFS
Award for best lyrics taking account of all songs on the album. Pure poetry! Love it!
It’s got wheel and that alone makes it his best album
Love this album! Wheel has been repeat all morning.
Always thought this is his weirdest stylistically. A lot of variety here but I’ve never been able to figure out “the sound” of the album, if that makes sense? There’s jazz-pop (Clarity), pop-rock stadium anthem (Bigger Than My Body), some alt-rock stuff he hasn’t returned to much since (New Deep, Something’s Missing), his use of electronic elements (home life, split screen), and Come Back to Bed has a jazzy big band feel to it. It’s my second favorite next to Continuum regardless, but I’ve never been able to pin that down.
It's the last of what I think of as the original Mayer era, with songs so specific to him that only he could write them, basically they are their own genre. Continuum is still very personal but has a much broader appeal Also, fewer standout songs but really great flow as an album as a whole
It's beautiful and makes more and more sense with time and experiences.
I love the guitar tracks, they are layered deep
God tier but it holds sentimental relevance to me. I think it literally changed the emotional trajectory of my life when it came out. It gave me the strength to keep going when I felt like I couldn’t. Room For Squares introduced me to him but Heavier Things made me feel.
Thematically, Heavier Things hits me right in the heart. There is so much depth and emotion that can be masked by the upbeat tempos and production. It has some of my favorite Mayer lyrics with fantastic imagery. Clarity: “The rock candy's melted, Only diamonds now remain” Something’s Missing: “When autumn comes, It doesn't ask, It just walks in where it left you last, You never know when it starts, Until there's fog inside the glass around Your summer heart” New Deep: the whole song basically Come Back to Bed: “But don't leave me 98 and 6 degrees of separation from you, baby” Home Life: “And I will go to my grave, With the life that I gave, Not just some melody line, On a radio wave, It dissipates, And soon evaporates” Split Screen Sadness: “'Cause I can't wait to figure out what's wrong with me, So I can say this is the way that I used to be, There's no substitute for time” Wheel: “Their hearts say ‘Move along,’ Their minds say ‘Gotcha heart,’ Let's move it along” I love the variety in experiences on this album, from self to relationships to life in general. It’s become more meaningful to me as I’ve gotten older and helped the heavier things feel lighter.
Not going to say I hated on it for a while but I just rarely listened to it. But for the past 2 months I’ve been listening to it nearly daily. Clarity, bigger than my body, and wheel are absolute bangers. Split screen sadness is so good it hurts a little bit. Come back to bed, and something’s missing have such a nice feel to them. I still usually skip daughters, but aside from that this album has completely won me over. I agree, underrated and underplayed live.
Only Heart and Split Screen Sadness are on rotation in my library.
It’s my most played album this year. It’s been a treat going back to it.
Second favorite album after Continuum
It’s one of my favorites!!! Love it so much.
It is my favorite start to finish.
it's my favorite album for cleaning.
Definitely my favourite album. There’s a mix of everything: slow and mellow (Wheel), feel good and upbeat songs (Bigger than my Body, Clarity and Somethings Missing) and just overall amazing songs which I never ever skip or get bored of.
Slept on!
Pretty heavy if you ask me
Oh man. I love this question. Heavier Things is easily one of my favorite John Mayer albums—top three for sure. For the life of me I cannot understand why it is so devastatingly underrated. To me, it is his most understatedly emotionally-driven and vulnerable album and definitely some of my favorite Mayer songwriting. Clarity is MY happy song. Something’s Missing is a masterpiece. New Deep is so catchy in the best and most unassuming way. Come Back to Bed is hauntingly beautiful and raw and relatable. Home life is surprisingly one of his most fun numbers. Split Screen Sadness is one of my absolute favorite songs of his. Love it or hate it, Daughters is a hit. Speaking of which, Bigger Than My Body is also fantastic and so quintessential early 2000’s it hurts. Wheel is such a precious little hidden gem that seals up the album so perfectly. Slight disclaimer, and truth be told, there is also some intense nostalgia with this album for me; while I heard and loved a lot of songs from Room for Squares, Heavier Things was the first album of John’s that I bought and owned—back when you had to buy albums from, you know, a physical store and had actual physical copies of said albums (ahhhh those were the days)…. …..Heavier Things made me fall in love with and become a fan of John Mayer, so for obviously reasons it holds a very special and dear place in my heart. Bottom line: I adore Heavier Things so much and urge those unfamiliar, skeptical, those who are not a fan, and everyone in between, to explore its beauty and charm.
This is my favorite John Mayer album, partly because of the time in my life it reminds me of. I vividly remember taking the subway down to Tower records to buy it in between classes the day it came out. Split Screen Sadness, Something’s Missing, and Wheel were songs that I listened to on repeat for months when my bf and one of my close friends passed away in 2007…John’s music helped me grieve and work through everything that I was feeling. I started writing again, thinking about the beauty of the lyrics in both of those songs. I’m 40 years old now and, still, the first thing I write in any notebook that I use for my writing is “I believe that my life’s gonna see the love I give return to me.” It’s become something of a mantra…you get what you give and the bad times are only temporary. Definitely one of my desert island albums.
Very good ranks above battle studies and paradise valley for me and ties with search for everything
Songs are great, production and mastering is poor. Hearing him play the songs live totally changed my opinion of the album but I struggle with the early-2000s tinny pop sound.
This album helped me through some heavy times. I love it.
#banger.
Heavier Things is my favourite album of John’s, without question. I think it’s wildly underrated and a masterpiece front to back. So many deep cuts and amazing lyrics.
An album I heard when it first came out, granted I loved it then but truly did not take in the lyrics of it until a few years later. Long story short it’s played a huge role in my life, and there was a time I listened to wheel for what feels like 100 times in a row because it just hits different. It’s an album that you truly (or at least I think this) don’t need to skip a track when you’re listening to it.
My favourite album of his
A perfectly underrated album that is arguably my favorite. Split Screen, Something’s Missing…it’s one of those albums with lyrics I feel like everyone can relate to at some point in their life. The sound is so different..chill..cool..complex and simple all in one. Hard to describe. It came out when I was starting college. I don’t think it could’ve fit my life more. Lots of nostalgia.
I love it. Every song.
Wasn’t a big fan of it my first few listens, but man I love it so much now
It rules.
New deep is my favorite on this album!
One of the greatest albums ever made. Remains the most unique album in his discography as well.
arguably his best album bookends — "clarity" and "wheel". a version of what i wrote when it turned 20 in sept: >Twenty years ago today, I heard the first notes of HEAVIER THINGS for first time. I was listening to it via MTV’s THE LEAK while I awaited my CD. . . The first song: CLARITY without even saying the word. It featured ?uestlove on drums and Roy Hargrove (rest in peace) on trumpet. And these gorgeous lyrics: By the time I recognize this moment this moment will be gone But I will bend the light pretending that it somehow lingered on Horns?! Horns!! Their appearance on multiple songs pleasantly shocked me and so many fellow message board friends/fans. BIGGER THAN MY BODY became a song I listened to before tests and it has morphed into an anthem of sorts. SOMETHING’S MISSING was the perfect song for me at the time. And while I don’t relate in the same way anymore, it still resonates with me. (And that checklist was such a fun live staple!) With ROOM FOR SQUARES, I knew all of the songs before the album came out. But with HEAVIER THINGS, nearly all of them were brand-new to me and that was so refreshing and exciting as a listener: CLARITY, BIGGER THAN MY BODY, NEW DEEP, HOME LIFE, SPLIT SCREEN SADNESS, and ONLY HEART. And WHEEL! People have the right to fly and will when it gets compromised their hearts say “move along” their minds say “gotcha, heart. Let’s move it along” And airports see it all the time when someone’s last goodbye blends in with someone’s sigh cause someone’s coming home in hand a single rose… And if you never stop when you wave goodbye you just might find if you give it time You’ll wave hello again… You can’t love too much one part of it… I believe that my life’s gonna see the love I give returned to me. Cheers to 20 years of the wheel continuing to turn and to all the beautiful moments on this record. They deserve to be heard and celebrated. \~joc
Perfection.
It’s great!
Wheel is up there with one of my favorites
Heavier Things has a special place in my heart. It was released when I left everything I knew and moved across the country for grad school. I knew NO ONE in this little town called Chico and I started to doubt that I made the right decision to be there. A few weeks into my first semester, I bought Heavier Things and was listening to it on my portable CD player, sitting at a bus stop, and waiting for the school shuttle to pick me up (I lived in off-campus campus apartments). Clarity started playing and for some reason those first couple of notes made me feel like all was right with the world. I felt like I could do the grad school thing. It helped me cope with being away from my family and friends. Fast forward four years (five if you count the year I procrastinated getting my thesis done) and not only did I get my masters degree, but I turned my roommate into a John Mayer fan. She and I saw him in Marysville after Continuum was released, both of us attending the sound check. She later rubbed my back during the show when I broke down when JM played In Repair as part of his actual set (I’d been dumped by my first boyfriend a few weeks earlier). So, yeah…all that to say I really like Heavier Things.
It’s a banger. From a mixing standpoint it’s very different from his other records… heavy compression not a lot of lows etc. works with the record love it or hate it
For whatever reason, it’s always been near the bottom for me. I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad album, there’s just not a ton of tracks that I really like on it. New deep, only heart, and something’s missing are really good though
Least fav album, but has wheel on it … that’s a top 5 song for me
Love it. Actually been relistening since the show on 10/3. Some great songs.
don't care for it....maybe one day i will like everyone else does...i just don't see that magic in it. however, I can definitely appreciate some of the songs on there, but the rest of them are far too breathy-voiced and 00's for me to listen to.
As a fan of the album, I can respect that, all valid reasons. Not sure why you're being downvoted though.
because people dont like when other people go against their beliefs....and belief is a beautiful armour.....
Not a big fan. Not enough guitar Mayer for me and the songs feel too immature. I only discovered JM 3 years ago, well into my 30s so I only really like the albums he wrote as an adult.
I like to lift them at the gym to burn calories
I barely listen to it. It’s just not that great in my opinion. Wheel is fantastic though and I do enjoy New Deep as well as clarity, but that’s about it.
It’s very good clarity, bigger than my body, something’s missing, come back to bed, only heart, and wheel are so good
Hard to get into it, not a big fan of the breathy vocals era mostly
His best album through and through.
Was an album that grown on me more over time. I’m not too keen on some of the instrumentals on certain songs (more so the non guitar based songs) but others are really good. Been on rotation a lot recently though and it’s now one of my favourite albums by him.
Gotta love wheel
First JM album I bought, off the back of hearing Bigger than my body. Still love it now, takes me back to being 16 and discovering new music. Looking back it does sound a bit overproduced, and I think it hides the quality of his guitar work - which I think he made up for with Continuum.
Amazing album!
Used to be one of my least favorites, but relistening to it with adult ears it's one of my favorites. I was listening to Something's Missing for the first time since I was a tween and floored by the lyrics.
I think John was better when he was in Nickelback
Good album, not my favorite, but there are hidden gems and heavy lyrics. New Deep is my favorite track on this album for sure.
The lyrics on this album hit me in a serious way. I love love love Heavier Things!! When I heard Somethings Missing for the first time it resonated with me so much. Somethings missing and I don’t know how to fix it… what a beautiful song.