Mayer Hawthorne grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan, just outside of Detroit, and vividly remembers, as a child, driving with his father and tuning the car radio in to the rich soul and jazz history the region provided.
[audio:mayerhawthorne_justaint.mp3]
“Most of the best music ever made came out of Detroit,” claims the singer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist, who counts Isaac Hayes, Leroy Hutson, Mike Terry, and Barry White among his influences, but draws the most inspiration from the music of Smokey Robinson, Curtis Mayfield, and the legendary songwriting and production trio of Lamont Dozier, Brian Holland, and Eddie Holland Jr.
The “retro” tag is added to almost any contemporary work that sounds like it was originally recorded between 1966 and 1974, and Hawthorne, among the newest contributors to the genre, is aware of how trends come and go. After being introduced to Stones Throw label head Peanut Butter Wolf by mutual friend Noelle Scaggs of the Rebirth, even his current boss was skeptical. “He showed me two songs and I didn’t understand what I was listening to,” Wolf recalls. “I asked him if they were old songs that he did re-edits of – I couldn’t believe they were new songs and that he played all the instruments.”
Mayer Hawthorne / Maybe So, Maybe No
httpv://https://youtube.com/watch?v=mpfcydeSGeo
And after meeting in person, it was even harder for Wolf to believe that Hawthorne was also the lead vocalist. Few expect such heartfelt sentiment to come from a 29-year-old white kid from Ann Arbor, but he has caught the ear of his family at Stones Throw, as well as BBC Radio 1 host Gilles Peterson and producer/DJ Mark Ronson. Expectations are high for the admitted vinyl junkie who never planned on taking his crooning public. Hawthorne’s hanging-by-a-string falsetto and breakbeat production on his first recorded effort, the tender “Just Ain’t Gonna Work Out,” are simultaneously Smokey and J Dilla – equal parts “The Tracks of My Tears” and “Fall in Love.” “It’s soul,” he explains, “But it’s new.”
Mayer Hawthorne / Just Ain’t Gonna Work Out
httpv://https://youtube.com/watch?v=pBKx8PyE5qQ
Hawthorne has produced and played instruments for much of his life, but never intended to become a singer. He isn’t formally trained, and never sang in the church choir or in any of the bands he was in before founding the County (formerly the County Commissioners). But here he is, new school soul sensation, who has taken the Motown assembly-line production model and eliminated nearly every element but himself and a few hired hands. “I think Mayer is the only artist in the history of the label that I’ve signed after hearing only two songs,” says Peanut Butter Wolf. “Sometimes, you just know it’s the right thing to do.”
And for those willing to believe anything is possible, be grateful to have Mayer Hawthorne on the scene. It’s not just throwback music anymore – this revival is all about progression.
Digital in Berlins Artist Feature, Novermber 11 2008.
Mayer Hawthorne (Stones Throw) LIVE | Saturday, November 21 | Bohannon Club / Dircksenstr. 40, 10178 Berlin/Mitte
http://www.stonesthrow.com | http://www.myspace.com/mayerhawthorne | http://www.bohannon.de
Mayer Hawthorne TOUR-DATES:
09 Okt 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – The Parish at House of Blues
225 Decatur Street, New Orleans, Louisiana 70130 –
10 Okt 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Red 7
611 E 7th St, Austin, Texas 78701 –
13 Okt 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – The Rock w/ Ghostface Killah
136 N. Park Avenue, Tucson, Arizona 85795 –
w/ Ghostface Killah
14 Okt 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – The Clubhouse w/ Ghostface Killah
1320 E. Broadway Road, Tempe, Arizona 85282 –
w/ Ghostface Killah
15 Okt 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Canes w/ Ghostface Killah
3105 Ocean Front Walk, San Diego, California 92109 –
w/ Ghostface Killah
24 Okt 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – King Tuts
272 St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, G2 5RL – £8
25 Okt 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Hi-Fi Club
2 Central Rd, Leeds, LS1 6DE – FREE
26 Okt 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Metropolis
135-137 Cheltenham Road, Bristol, BS6 5RR – £7
27 Okt 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Queen of Hoxton
1 Curtain Road, The City, London, EC2A 3JX –
www.thequeenofhoxton.co.uk
29 Okt 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Queen of Hoxton
1 Curtain Road, The City, London, EC2A 3JX – SOLD OUT
www.thequeenofhoxton.co.uk
30 Okt 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Roisin Dubh
Dominick Street, Galway, – 14 Euros
www.roisindubh.net
31 Okt 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Crawdaddy
Harcourt St, Dublin, – 20.50 Euros
04 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Circolo Degli Artisti
Via Casilina Vecchia, 42, Rome (Lazio), 00182 –
www.circoloartisti.it
05 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Cavalli & Stalloni
, Vercelli, – FREE
06 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Het Depot
Martelaerenplein 12, Leuven, 3000 –
www.hetdepot.be
07 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Make Up Club
Ketelvest 51B, Gent, 9000 – 11.50 Euros
www.make-up-club.be/
08 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Rotown
, Rotterdam, –
09 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Paradiso
Weteringschans 6, Amsterdam, 1017 SG – 12 Euros
www.paradiso.nl
10 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – La Bellevilloise
21, Rue Boyer, Paris, 75020 –
www.labellevilloise.com
11 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Poste a Galene
103, Rue Ferrari, Marseille, 13005 –
http://www.leposteagalene.com/
12 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Mascotte
Theaterstrasse 10, Zurich, 8001 –
www.mascotte.ch
13 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Kaserne
Klybeckstrasse 1, Basel, 4057 – CHF 23
www.kaserne-basel.ch
14 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Le Romandie
Place Riponne 12, Lausanne, 1005 – CHF 15/17
http://www.leromandie.ch/
16 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Prinzenbar
, Hamburg, –
17 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – E-Werk
Fuchsenwiese 1, Erlangen, 91054 – 11.50 Euros
http://www.e-werk.de/
19 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Kapu
Kapuzinerstraße 36, Linz, 4020 –
http://www.kapu.or.at/
20 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Roxy
Operngasse 24, Vienna, 1040 –
21 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Bohannon
Dircksenstr. 40, , Berlin 10178 – 12/13 Euros
http://www.bohannon.de/
22 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Apolo 2
, Barcelona, –
24 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Charada
C/ Bola 13, Madrid, 28013 –
25 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Salsa Acapulco
, Gijon, –
26 Nov 2009, 21:00 09:00 PM – Psylocibenea
, Hondarribia, –
