Formerly a DJ and beatmaker, Mayer Hawthorne crafted a comfortable niche for himself when he began his singing career. Hawthorne quickly built a solid resume with his blue-eyed soul vibes. For this week’s Second Listen Sunday, I wanted to highlight his 2016 EP Party Of One. Featuring only three songs (the last three are instrumentals), it’s a joyous listen.
The album begins smoothly with the ’80s-styled R&B-infused “Someone Like You.” Hawthorne croons about the search for companionship and the desire to find someone special to share life’s experiences with. The singer expresses his longing to find the right person to make their relationship work while acknowledging that they can’t guarantee it will work out. The song is a plea to have someone share all the different places they have seen. This includes the good times they have had and the bad times they have gone through. It is a heartfelt message of hope and longing for true partnership and love.
Up next is “A New Love,” the song that will take you back to the days of doo-wop. In this song, Hawthorne embarks on a musical journey about letting go of an old love and discovering a fresh one. Authentically, Hawthorne sings about how everywhere the singer looks, he sees reminders of their past relationship, yet despite this, he knows he must move on.
The song conveys desperation, loneliness, and introspection as he searches for a way to discover another love and let the previous one go. Ultimately, he knows it is time to bid his old love goodbye and find another to fill the void. The song’s hook serves as an anthem, reiterating that he must discover new love to move on with his life. The dance floor-ready “Time For Love” closes the EP.
A soulful, catchy love song and a celebration of the power of love, it had me tapping my toes. The lyrics explore the idea of spending time with the one you love. Expressing the joy and thrill of being with and showing affection to the person you love. The song takes this joyful narrative to another level as it celebrates the power of connection in the night, with the chorus proclaiming that “nighttime’s the right time for love.” The song’s upbeat rhythm and vibrant production evoke feelings of romantic, passionate love, and the lyrics remind us that time spent with the one we cherish is always precious.
Hawthorne’s musical ability allows him to transport listeners on a captivating journey through various musical eras, creating an EP far from mere throwaway material. In the simplest of terms, it stands out as a collection of original, high-quality music.
Final Grade: A-
Party of One is available on all streaming platforms.
There are some albums you revisit because of nostalgia, and then there are albums you return to because they remind you just how high the standard used to be. Anita Baker’s Rapture falls into that second category. Released in 1986, the album did more than make Baker a star. It helped define what sophisticated, grown R&B could sound like without losing any soul, sensuality, or personality.
Gwen Stefani had already established herself as a significant force with No Doubt when she released her debut solo album, *Love. Angel. Music. Baby* in 2004. This week, while my iPod was on shuffle, one of my favorite songs from that project, “The Real Thing,” came on. Although the original version has an upbeat new-wave feel, the Slow Jam Mix takes it to another level and is the perfect choice for this week’s Slow Jam Saturday.
Unless you’re a music purist, mentioning Randy Jackson from the famous family is likely to elicit a joke. However, any serious Jackson fan knows that Randy had musical achievements long before the punchlines. Before he was old enough to buy a drink, he had already co-written “Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)” and “Lovely One” with Michael Jackson.