John Mayer Puts Out "Tom and Jerry," His First Lead Single in Five Years

John Mayer has released a new single, "Tom and Jerry," his first as a lead artist in five years. Rolling Stone reported the release, which comes out on Sob Rock Records, the label Mayer has just launched.

The song was written and produced by Mayer with Blake Slatkin, who shared the writing and the job of shaping the recording in the studio. Mayer sings and plays acoustic guitar, electric guitar, keyboards, synths and programming. The session players listed on the track are Pino Palladino on bass, Aaron Sterling on drums and percussion, Lenny Castro on percussion and Larry Goldings on organ.

Fans could sign up early through a pre-save, a link that adds a song to a listener's library so it appears on release day. Mayer posted the pre-save link on Facebook ahead of the Friday release. The same post shares one of the song's lines: "And if you ever come through, which I doubt you'll do."

The title has its own origin. Mayer has said that "Tom and Jerry" was the name he gave the first voice memo of the song idea, a quick recording made to hold a thought before it is finished. Yahoo Entertainment has also reported that Mayer has explained what the lyrics mean.

Mayer's last full-length album was Sob Rock, released in 2021. The new label takes the same name, so the album title now sits on a company that will put out his music from here on. Mayer's official website lists "Tom and Jerry" as a new single.

Single releases are a useful way for an artist to test the water between albums. For fans who have waited since 2021 for a new song under Mayer's own name, this one is the next thing to play.