Enthusiasm is contagious and that's why songwriters with a genuine, obvious passion for their craft can't help but attract an audience. John Mayer has earned a legion of devoted fans in and around his adopted hometown of Atlanta, where he moved in 1998 after a stint at Boston's Berklee College of Music. His creative songwriting and warm stage presence establish him as a formidable musical force, and the smoky swagger of his voice at once evokes Sting, Dave Matthews and Jakob Dylan.

Mayer grew up in Connecticut listening to pop radio until, at age 13, he discovered blues music when a neighbor gave him a Stevie Ray Vaughan tape. Mayer picked up a guitar, and within two years he was performing at local blues bars stunning audiences with his mature playing. But he soon realized that the world of guitar virtuosity was not for him.

"There's this really distracting glory in wanting to be the best guitar player because all that really is, is copying somebody, seeing who can play 'Sky Is Crying' better than the next guy," Mayer says. "I wanted to be listenable and play tunes that other people could play but not the way I play them."

Mayer dedicated himself to developing his songwriting skills, toning down the guitar pyrotechnics in favor of memorable melodies and distinctive rhythmic textures. At 19 he enrolled at Berklee but realized in a matter of months that he was more interested in playing music than studying it. "It was a great learning experience, but not because of class," he laughs. A friend from Atlanta convinced him to head south, and Mayer soon became a regular at such Atlanta songwriters' nightspots as Eddie's Attic. In 1999 he released Inside Wants Out, an album consisting mostly of solo acoustic renditions of his energetic, earnest songs, as well as several tracks recorded with a full band.

The local press soon discovered Mayer and sang his praises. "This young man knows how to captivate a crowd with his six-string guitar and honest lyrics," wrote Atlanta CitySearch. The Atlanta Journal Constitution saw all the makings of a star as they described Mayer's qualities, "sophisticated, accessible folk rock sound dominated by striking acoustic guitar playing, video-ready looks and a sizable grass-roots following born in clubs across the South."

Mayer's passion for songwriting is immediately evident. "The very nature of standing in front of a mic with a guitar that's in tune, the millions of songs that could happen at that moment - I love that!" he says. "The best feeling that I will ever have in my life is just walking, just being, the night that I finish a song."

In March 2000 Mayer headed to Austin, Texas, to perform at the prestigious South By Southwest music conference and afterwards was courted by several record labels, eventually signing with Aware/Columbia Records. He began recording his major label debut in the fall with producer John Alagia (Dave Matthews Band, Ben Folds Five). The new album, entitled Room For Squares, is a full-band electric effort. Mayer was joined in the studio by bassist David LaBruyere, (who also accompanies him on the road), as well as drummer Nir Zidkiyahu (Genesis, Alana Davis). Mayer recently met with legendary producer Jack Joseph Puig (Eric Clapton, Weezer, The Black Crowes) at Ocean Way Studios in Los Angeles. They remixed seven songs, including the single, "No Such Thing." Also included on the re-released CD is a brand new track which was recorded with producer John Alagia entitled "3 x 5."

It's the dedication to his songs that inspires Mayer to keep writing. "When you hear a great song, you trace it back to who the singer is," he says. "When you can offer people that piece of you, that's what keeps them listening to you."

Twenty Question with John Mayer from Official Site

Twenty Questions

1. Of all of your own songs, which is your favorite and why?
3x5. That song really takes me to a very specific place. Its a little eerie, which I feel like great songs need to be sometimes. Most of my songs took me to a certain place at one point or another (and variably still do) but 3x5 always has that effect.

2. Who is your favorite band of all time and why?
The Police. Its the sound of my youth. Those delayed reggae chords in Wrapped around your Finger are chilling. The way each of the members saw themselves in the group must have been different than any band before them. What a perfect example of assimilating influence into something completely new. Ill always think about the Police when I play music.

3. What personality traits do you enjoy about people the most? Thanks! Oh, and did I mention that I love you? :)
I like people who posess great physical strength. Im a fitness nut, so I like someone who can climb a rope quickly and efficiently. If you can beat me to the ceiling on a cargo net, you can have my hand in friendship. Oh I think first on the list is sensibility. I like sensible people. People who behave with a certain amount of logic. I like an argument that stays within a scope. Not: You need to pay a little more attention to how you treat me around our friends. Yah, well your nose is too big. I cant hang with those folks.

4. Have you ever posted on your website message board?
I havent posted on my message board in a very long time. Ill check it out from time to time, but only when theres a really terrific rumor.

5. What about your career so far makes you smile?
When I think about my place in the world, musically and otherwise I feel so vital. I cant point out anything in particular that makes me smile except for having the thought that I might be making records for a while as a thriving artist. You cant buy that plot of land. You just kind of grow out of it.

6. Do you have any ideas in mind for your next album? Can you give us any hints of whats in store?
I dont want to say too much because it would probably sound like lies once the next record does come out. Part of the wonder of being an artist is shaping the next idea, and its just too malleable to ever cement as truth right now. I will safely say that there will be more electric guitar (and soloing as the folks call it) than on Room For Squares. The songs will be more jazz-groove oriented than before. (Thank you, Stephen Chopek!) Also, expect more Spanish exclamations like OLE! and MIRA! to abound.

7. Taping is a hobby of mine that I LOVE. how do you feel about the tapers and the tapes they pull from your shows?
I think its the highest compliment that someone wants to keep my shows for posterity. Theres a certain mentality that tapers share with musicians, wanting to share that space where anything can happen together. I like the idea that the shows I play night after night are different enough from one another that some people dont want to miss one. What a way to say to an artist I want to live inside your music.

8. Just wondering who you are listening to? What's in your CD player, and who are some other artists like yourself that you would recommend?
Im really into Norah Joness CD Come Away With Me. I like the CD as well as liking the idea of her. A girl who doesnt subscribe to the lollipop-licking singing style? Cool. Its in my own best interest that she be heard by as many people as possible because her being in the music scene right now is really necessary. Shell be opening some shows for me soon, and Im thrilled. Some records you must own if you dont want a beatin

1.) Grace, Jeff Buckley
2.) The American, Martin Sexton
3.) Poses, Rufus Wainwright
4.) Parachutes, Coldplay
5.) Whatever and Ever Amen, Ben Folds Five

9. In the song "neon 12:47am" on the "inside wants out cd" it sounds as if john is saying something, what is he saying and why did he put the song on the cd if he never plays it? (of course it definately demonstrates his guitar ability).
The spoken word line is Buzzing Just like Neon and it was meant to sound as if it was being dialed in on a radio. As for it never being played live, It falls dead-center between it being really cool to have a song that only lives on the back part of a record and it not being good enough to play live.

10. What question do you get really tired of hearing over and over again?
How did you end up in Atlanta? - Its a fair enough question, but the answer is always so linear. I like a question that I can answer differently each day. How did you end up in Atlanta? is a lot like How did you break your arm? The answer is always the same, and it just becomes a matter of repetition.

11. What are you most afraid of?
Im not afraid of very much, but going clinically insane is a scary thought. You probably wouldnt even know you went crazy until the chemistry in your brain righted itself and you were in an orange jumpsuit. They say if you worry about going crazy then youre not, but I think that just makes you a concerned nut-job.

12. How does it feel to be in Rolling Stone?
It doesnt feel like a big deal. Not because being in Rolling Stone isnt a big deal, which one lobe of my brain knows is very much the case. But theres this very strange phenomenon that as I paint over these accomplishments with my experience, the very fact that its happening to me kind of reduces it to being a bite-sized version of the real big time. That may be my own defense mechanism to prevent me from getting a big head/blown mind, or I could just be sleeping too close to the TV.

13. What advice would you have to give to someone who is trying to make it in the music business?
This is one question I wish I had more answers to. My fear is that by having enjoyed some amount of success, people will begin thinking every move Ive ever made was the right one. The fact is, Im not quite sure how much of my experiences are transposable to other people. I think the one concrete piece of advice I can give out of all this is to have a complete and unflinching vision of who you are and who you want to become. There are so many decisions that you have to make every day that if you dont have a constant grip on who you are as an artist youll lose your way.
To speak more pragmatically about it, a big part of making it as a musician is to stop making excuses and start making music. If you dont finish a single song because you think your stuff isnt good enough, youre not a songwriter. Youre not even a bad songwriter, which is better than being a bad excuse maker. Dont wait for anyone else to give you a deal, a dollar, a break, a phone number anything. Art is one of the only fields in which you can employ yourself today right now without asking anyone first. Build your universe yourself before you ask anyone else for permission.

14. I am interested in John's favorite food(s). I think that says a lot about a person.
I love sushi. Cant get enough of it. Its a very social food. Whats this leg hanging out here? Whats the happy ending maki? Makes for good conversation. My first answer was going to be veal, but that whole broken-legged baby cow image is not what I want to be associated with. But can I get a witness that its delicious?

15. What are your favorite places to visit and why?
I love Los Angeles which is strange to hear myself say now because there was a time that I couldnt really take it. Im starting to understand it now. L.A. is like that obnoxious friend who raids your pantry and fakes lifting when hes forced to help you move a piece of furniture. You start out talking trash about him and then you realize its actually quite endearing, so you start buying more junk food at the grocery store to accommodate for his being all free-and-easy with your stuff because you find it comforting after a while. I love the way California affects me as a musician and writer.

I also love Boston, which also really affects me as a musician (and just as a guy.) I start thinking Im a math-whiz-turned-janitor-turned-math-whiz-again. That citys got heart. Whenever Im in Boston and Im exposed to that collegiate life again, I start wanting to trade places with people.

16. John, what, in your opinion, is the best movie quote of all movie quotes?
Its our time down here. Up there its their time. Down here its Our time. And thats all over once we ride up on Troys bucket. Young Sean Austin, Goonies, Circa 1985.

17. What is your favorite love song of all time?
Lover you Should Have Come Over Jeff Buckley, Grace. It turns my body inside out so that all my nerves are on the outside of my skin. And it feels like its too much sometimes.

18. What is your take on personal religion? Do you have one?
I firmly believe everyone in the world should have their personal religion. I know I have one thats personal to me. Its called Murphism and my Gods name is Don Murphy. Don lives in Somerville, Massachusetts and He wont return my phone calls. But thats just me. I think the world would fare better if everyone had their personal religion like I have mine. It sure would be hard to fight a war when its every man for himself. In Don I trust!

19. Is that all?
Thats all.

20. Really?
Really.

21. So well hear from you again soon?
Definitely. Thanks, you guys.