Album Review : Jason Mraz ‘Love Is A Four Letter Word’

It’d be fair to say the success of pop single “I’m Yours” back in 2008 was a game changer for Jason Mraz, garnering him an international audience and mainstream success. Love Is A Four Letter Word comes some four years later, but ploughs a very similar furrow to his previous LP.

Lead single “I Won’t Give Up” is a pleasant enough ballad sung with conviction and containing simple yet pleasing lyrics. Indeed it is exemplary of the breezy mid-tempo vibe running throughout. This record is mellow to the point of being horizontal.

There is no doubting Love Is A Four Letter Word will make a nice summer soundtrack. Mraz has even been kind enough to offer up tunes with whistle parts and, in the case of “Everything Is Sound”, a  la la la  singalong chorus to belt out at the top of your lungs.

Ironically though, listening to the album from start to finish becomes heavy going as one track bleeds into another with little or no variation. It is hard to be down on such a positive collection of songs, but I can’t help but feel it would have benefited from stronger contrasts.  

Jason Mraz has progressed a lot since his debut effort Waiting For My Rocket To Come a decade ago. I am however more excited by the prospect of what the next chapter in his musical career holds than I am by the material presented here.

[3 out of 5 stars]