John Mayer

The guitarist talks about influencing a new generation of pop crooners and the dream album he wants to make with Jay-Z.

- Patrick Doyle

‘I have six hours of music coming up tonight,” says John Mayer. In a little while, he’ll take the stage in Atlanta with Dead & Company – featuring Grateful Dead alum Bob Weir, Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann. After that, Mayer will play a surprise midnight club gig with Dave Chappelle, one of several pop-up shows they’ve been doing since last spring. “I’m sort of the acoustic DJ,” Mayer says. “He’ll just be like, ‘John, hit me with this or that,’ and I’m pretty good at coming up with any song if I’ve heard it a couple of times. It’s like two guys taking over some little back room at a party.” Following the Dead run, Mayer will resume his solo tour, where he’s been debuting songs from his excellent LP The Search for Everything. Mayer is breaking those shows into “chapters,” including acoustic and full-band sets, and another one with his blues trio. “Four chapters makes four fresh starts,” he says. “I get offstage feeling like I could have gone another hour.”

It’s your second summer touring with the Dead. What have you learned?

I’ve never had inclusion before. I always created one-man clubs. When I was invited into this tribe, I promise you it was the exact opposite of anything you might think along the lines of having to reconcile ego or status. It’s like a basketball team – you are doing your best to help the team win. I am a pig in shit.