Peter Mayer writes songs for a small planet—songs about interconnectedness and the human journey; about the beauty and the mystery of the world. Whimsical, humorous, and profound, his music breaks the boundaries of "folk", and transcends to a realm beyond the everyday love song, to a place of wonder at the very fact of life itself.
Peter began playing the guitar and writing songs when he was in high school. He studied Theology and music in college, and then spent two years in seminary. After deciding that the priesthood wasn't for him, he took a part-time job as a church music director for 8 years, while performing at clubs and colleges, and writing and recording his music. In 1995, he quit his job and started touring full-time. Since then, Peter has gradually gained a dedicated, word-of-mouth following, selling out shows from Minnesota to Texas, New England to California. He has eight CDs to his credit, and has sold over 50,000 of them independently.
"Peter Mayer is a magician...(his) universe is full of metaphor and meaning, story and symbol — everything contains more than meets the eye."
-- Bill Reed, music editor, Colorado Springs Gazette
"His guitar work is breath-taking, his lyrics mind-spinning, his singing soul-soothing and his feet-on-the-ground optimism nothing short of healing."
--Marilyn Rea-Beyer, music director, WUMB Radio, Boston
"Peter Mayer makes it look easy – beautifully crafted songs that pose eternal questions -- his arrangements make it sound like there is certainly more than one man and his guitar in the XM Satellite Radio studios."
--Mary Sue Twohy, XM Radio
"He is unafraid of complicated topics and always strives to look beyond the easy sentiment...Peter does nothing less than address the very nature of our existence...Trust me, most songwriters can’t pull this off. Peter Mayer does."
--Dale Connelly, Morning Show Host, MinnesotaPublic Radio
"Mayer’s songs are crafted like shaker furniture, with no place for superfluous embellishments or throwaway lines... (his) world is bright and hopeful and the transcendent nature of his lyrics…explore the mysteries of life…Mayer’s fluid, clean, and tremendously intriguing guitar playing is topped with warm, rich vocals. This is music for the soul."
--Acoustic Guitar Magazine
There are at least a dozen Peter Mayer songs that I would love to learn myself, but I could never play them as well as he does."
--David Wilcox, Singer/Songwriter
"I’m a huge Peter Mayer fan, but only when I don’t feel like killing him for being so good. I love Peter’s work, though it irritates me that he plays so much better than I do. If I rocked half as hard as Peter does, I’d own the world by now."
--Janis Ian, Singer/Songwriter
"Peter delivers contemporary folk music in it's highest form: Intelligent without being bombastic--empathetic, always fresh and with wit and fantastic melodies. And his guitar playing is top tier."
--Uncle Calvin's Coffeehouse, Dallas, TX
"Mayer’s appealing guitar style (is) alternately percussive, rhythmic, melodic, or all of the above. In Mayer’s capable hands the instrument sounds like a calliope one moment, an orchestra the next and then a cleanly picked guitar ala Dave Van Ronk... Mayer is a performer at the top of his game who knows that the secret to living in a world of perplexing questions is enjoying the search for answers."
--David Kleiner, Minor Seventh Reviews
"Mayer offers up everything you could ever want from a singer/songwriter."
--Dirty Linen Magazine
"This native of Minnesota is a master storyteller."
--Folk Roots Magazine
Bio
Biography