The lyrics

It’s not a silly little moment
It’s not the storm before the calm
This is the deep and dying breath of
This love that we’ve been working on

Can’t seem to hold you like I want to
So I can feel you in my arms
Nobody’s gonna come and save you
We pulled too many false alarms

We’re going down
And you can see it too
We’re going down
And I know that we’re doomed
My dear, we’re slow dancing in a burning room

I was the one you always dreamed of
You were the one I tried to draw
How dare you say it’s nothing to me
Baby, you’re the only light I ever saw

I make the most of all the sadness
You be a bitch because you can
You try to hit me just to hurt me
Just to leave me feeling dirty
Cause you can’t understand

We’re going down
And you can see it too
We’re going down
And you know that we’re doomed

Don’t you think we should know by now?
Don’t you think we should have learned somehow? 

My dear, we’re slow dancing in a burning room.

—”Slow Dancing in a Burning Room”, John Mayer

The Interpretation

The song is written, obviously, from a male’s perspective in a relationship. He has realized that their relationship is failing, but has accepted it, and is at peace with it in his mind. You could surmise that it was written after a fight, or even an epiphany by the male about their doomed relationship. Either way it may be, it is clear that something has occurred that has made the man realize their relationship simply isn’t working. In the first stanza he states that this is the “deep and dying breath of / this love that we’ve been working on.” (3-4)

This, however isn’t from lack of trying. In the second stanza he states that he “can’t seem to hold [her] like [he] [wants] to / so [he] can feel [her] in [his] arms” (5-6) I would also surmise that their relationship has been turbulent for a while, as he also feels that “nobody’s gonna come and save [her] / [they've] pulled too many false alarms.” (7-8) Their relationship has been failing for quite some time, and caused them both pain, however they’ve not given up, in turn causing them even more hardship. Their friends who they would go to for advice have seemingly turned their backs on them, as the couple has blindly held on, resisting the advice of their friends, consequently making things worse for themselves. Their friends see this, and are no longer willing to comfort them as they feel their situation is the couple’s situation is their own fault.

The couple’s reasons for hanging on are partially revealed in the fourth stanza. He states that he was “the one [she] always dreamed of.”  (14), while she was the “one [he] tried to draw.” (15) When she begins to get the feeling that he’s giving up on their relationship, she grows angry, accusing him of thinking the relationship was “nothing to [him]” (16) He defends by saying, “How dare you say [that] [...] / Baby, you’re the only light I ever saw.” (16, 17)

The anger and sadness that takes over their relationship bothers him, but he “makes the most of [it]” (18) She reacts to his decision by “[being] a bitch because [she] can” (19) and “[trying] to hit [him] just to hurt [him] / Just to leave [him] feeling dirty / Because [she] can’t understand” (20-22) But still they persist. They want so badly for the relationship to flourish, but it simply isn’t working out.

The burning room represents their relationship, which is crumbling around them. Rather than escaping it, however, they are willfully staying in it, “slow dancing” as it crumbles around them. They simply cannot be together, but love each other—hopelessly, even blindly—too much to not be together.

I have to admit: I was originally a very harsh critic of John Mayer. I disliked his music for the same reason I initially disliked James Blunt’s music: high-singing men singing soft songs just wasn’t attractive to me. I would attribute most of his fans to obviously be teenage girls wooed over by his good looks, charm, and the fact he could play an instrument. Because of this, his album Heavier Things never caught more than a glance from me at the music store.

A good amount of time passed without me hearing any John Mayer, other than the over-played pop hit Your Body is a Wonderland that basically every young girl in the world with ears fell in love with. Apparently, Mayer was very busy in this time. While watching an episode of the popular FOX show House I happened to hear Mayer’s Gravity, off the then recently released Continuum album. This song caught my attention because it was absolutely nothing like my ‘idea’ of John Mayer. In fact, I didn’t even realize it was him until I looked up the song.

I discovered his then new album Continuum was nothing like the John Mayer before. He had re-invented himself. Gone were the acoustic pop rock songs, replaced now with bluesy, songs with deeper meanings and more soulful vocals. Mayer was growing in both music and himself.

Alongside his solo ventures he had formed another band called the John Mayer Trio, which played exclusively blues music. It took me a little while to realize they were actually quite good. In the Trio’s songs Mayer shows a mastery of the guitar hinted at, but not completely shown, in his solo works. The Trio does a number of cover songs such as Ray Charles’ I Got a Woman, several songs from Mayer’s solo work, as well as some songs original to the Trio. One such song, Who Did You Think I Was?, explores Mayer’s new mindset, challenging the world’s idea of who he is. As Mayer states in the lyrics:

I’m a shifter of the shape I’m in
Who did you think I was?
[...]
Am I the one who plays the quiet songs
Is he the one who turns the ladies on?
Will I keep shining till my light is gone?
Who did you think I was?

On December 8th, 2007, all the personalities of John Mayer were displayed back-to-back in one dynamic, 2-hour concert at the Nokia Theatre in L.A. The concert was filmed in high definition and has been released on DVD, Blu-Ray, and 2-Disk Audio CD form under the name Where the Light Is. On the Where the Light Is trailer, John Mayer states:

“That’s the thing with people knowing anything about you before you meet them. Is that you have to work just to get people back to knowing nothing about you. So, it would take me an hour at this point, to ease someone’s mind into knowing nothing about me.”

Mayer more than does this in the 2-hour concert featuring an acoustic set, a set with the Trio, followed immediately by a full-band set. The concert is absolutely amazing, showing the different musical stylings of Mayer as he tirelessly transitions from one to the next.

John Mayer is a bright musician with an uncertain future—but he prefers it that way. Wherever he decides to take his musical career, he’s shown his ability to excel in whatever sound he desires.

If you haven’t already, you should definitely check out the Where the Light Is concert DVD or Blu-Ray disk. Very good stuff.