Is the thought of yet another live album from the pop/songwriting prince featuring his breathy vocals and the swoons and screams of young ladies not really getting the juices flowing? Fair cop really. In fact I'm pretty sure Johnny boy agrees with you.

Realising that sticking with the pop thing would be an exercise in redundancy, Mayer has leaped into that little chestnut of a genre we like to call Blues with all the gusto of a field mouse hunched over a piece of limburger.

If you've been following his career closely over the past few years you would've noticed that the signs were quite evident. Behind the shrieks coming from the female patrons, Mayer has been demonstrating his guitar proficiency within the limits of his genre and target audience (read: his solos go long enough not to illicit cries of "Just get it over with").

As if further evidence was needed, he began guest appearances on all and sundry this year wielding his axe and vocals on anything from Rob Thomas to Kanye West. While all this fannying about smells like a quarter life crisis, deep down we should see it for what it really is: An artist actually developing his craft, very rare for a major label artist these days.

Therefore we come to Try!, the first evidence of his rebirth. Let me confirm a few things: Yes the Trio that follows John Mayer isn't a typo and yes he has decided to kick this all off with a live recording. Finally, yes you won't recognise many of the songs contained within. Don't worry, it is not as batty as it seems.

Opening with the internet only single 'Who Did You Think I Was', Mayer and Co (the fantastic Steve Jordan on drums and Pino Palladino on the bass) lay down his statement of intent where John makes you second guess his whole persona up until now. While it isn't exactly like U2 dropping 'The Fly', Mayer lets us know things are different now: "Am I the one who plays the quiet songs? Is he the one who turns the ladies on?"

Musically though, the song is very much a throwaway ditty, something to set the scene for what is to follow. With a rolling groove akin to the West Coast sounds of Incubus, 'Good Love Is On The Way' punches things up a notch with his tale of self-assuredness and positive outlook.

Elsewhere, the sound of Eric Clapton is all over 'Vultures' (check out the riff!) a searing slow burner detailing Mayer's battle with the trappings of fame. Thankfully he isn't letting the vultures get the best of him it seems: "They haven't gone this long without a kill before."

For long time fans, 'Another Kind Of Green' could easily have been a lost track from his first release Inside Wants Out. Full of the youthful exuberance that peppered that particular album, 'Another Kind Of Green' takes you back to your early twenties, if only for a few minutes.

The inclusion of two older songs ('Something's Missing' and 'Daughters' from 2003's Heavier Things) seem to be a mild distraction to all the wonderful new music being created on stage. Ironically though it is the song I like the least ('Daughters') that fares better as it is fleshed out a bit more in it's blues setting. 'Something's Missing' (a personal favourite song) brings nothing new to the table this time around and feels out of place with the rest of the album.

Finally, in a necessary homage to the past masters, credible covers of the Hendrix song 'Wait Until Tomorrow' and the Ray Charles classic 'I Got A Woman' add extra weight behind the Trio's ability to gel like some of the greats.

Now purists will argue the toss over if what Mayer is doing on this album actually constitutes Blues but really they should be grateful that he is drawing young listeners into a style they would otherwise avoid. Jamie Cullum's appropriation of Jazz is solid proof that it works.

With his new studio album due in early 2006, fans will be able to enter into it with the comfort of hearing them live already. Though with any luck, Try! will turn a few heads and bring Mayer a new legion of admirers.