Check it Out: The John Mellencamp S&D

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I just picked up his best-of set and damn near every song is fantastic (I don't like "R.O.C.K. in the USA much). Two things occur to me when I listen to it. One, Mellencamp is a top-notch pop songwriter. And two, I wonder if people outside the U.S. dig what he has going. He seems the type of artist who might not travel well. So what Mellencamp makes you say "Check it out"? And what gets the ol' "paper and fire" treatment?

― Mark, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

This is the kind of posting that makes me glad to read ILM for a change. I don't even respond to most questions anymore; while every man's opinion is valid, and perhaps educational, I find myself disagreeing with the posters here more than I agee. I also realize that at the wizened age of 33, I'm probably a lot older than many of the posters, and have a different sense of history.

I don't listen to John Mellencamp much, but do have a few of his albums, all of which are pretty solid and can be had for a couple bucks in any bargain bin. Thanks for your question Mark, I'll clear the floor for everyone who wants to laugh at you now.

― Sean, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I'm 30, Sean. Age got nuttin' to do with it. ;-)

― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Search: "Pink Houses", "Hurts So Good", "The Authority Song", "Cherry Bomb" (is that what it's called?). The early stuff is underrated, the more recent stuff I haven't heard too much. The guy's a sucker for cheap nostalgia cliches ("that's when...holdin' hands meant somethin, baby"), but he's from Indiana so it's hard to blame him for that. A Mellencamp best-of would probably be fantastic. His first single came out on the Indiana punk label Gulcher records, also home to the awesome Dow Jones and the Industrials, and I think the Gizmos too ("Seig Heil mofos, it's Amerika first").

Destroy: "R.O.C.K in the USA", and "Jack and Diane" is just tooo silly.

― Kris, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

classic: early (flop) album title "Nothing Matters and What If It Did", starting a glam band in Indiana, being a workin' man's Bruce Springsteen, Jack n' Diane (especially because of its power chords in that Eric B & Rakim remix), recording a collaboration with John Prine with the lyric "you went to a party with Jackie Onassis/if you're so smart why don't you wear glasses".

dud: insisting on being called "Mellencamp" with a perfectly d-u-m-b name like "Cougar", having a pedophile keyboardist, writing a bad song called "Cherry Bomb" when there was already a perfectly d-u-m-b song called "Cherry Bomb", becoming a painter.

neither c nor d, but I think I remember reading that he smoked 4 packs of cigarettes a day before he had a heart attack in his 40's.

― fritz, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Search: "I Need a Lover" Destroy: "Pop Singer", his dancing

I like "R.O.C.K. in the USA" a lot.

Has anyone ever heard his Mainman record? Is it any good?

― Arthur, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I'm from Indiana, and it's sort of an "everybody knows someone who knows ol' Johnny Cougar" situation. I guess I never gave him a chance. I can, however, contribute that "Jack & Diane" should be destroyed. Bad.

I saw him on "Sessions at West 54th" and he gave a wonderful, thrilling performance of a more contemporary, not-Jack & Diane song. I'd like to know what he's done lately.

― Keiko, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

"Lonely Ol' Night" is one of the gratest driving-at-night songs ever recorded.

― Tracer Hand, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

"The working man's Bruce Springsteen" - isn't that, um, Bruce Springsteen? I wasn't aware he was for the upper class twits these days, we are all borgeouise now...

Oh, I hate John Mellencamp for the record. He was better when he called himself John Cougar Mellencamp for no reason.

― Ally, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

"Hurts So Good" is a karaoke favorite around here. He's less turgid than Springsteen - there's more meat on those bones. He's meaner. Or maybe I'm just soft on him because he's from Indiana.

― Kerry, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Search: the classic rock station when on the interstate; the "seek" button when "R.O.C.K. in the USA" comes on.

― Josh, Thursday, 23 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

"R.O.C.K." was the first "do-you-remember-when" song that placed James Brown in the pantheon, which is accepted as common sense now. For that, classic.

Also, what is it with Indiana? Everybody who comes from there is a weirdo. Axl Rose, Michael Jackson...what's going on?

― dave q, Friday, 24 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Search: Jessica Simpson: I Think I'm In Love

Destroy: Much of everything else...

― JM, Friday, 24 August 2001 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

twenty years pass...

Here's a gem Mellencamp wrote and gave to the Blasters. (He produced the track as well.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pq0i_LtiA0o

He put out the demo on his box set of rarities years later, but the Blasters' version is still definitive.

― birdistheword, Tuesday, 12 April 2022 20:45 (three years ago)

Here's one recommended by Greil Marcus, a Buddy Holly cover done in 1988 for the Cocktail soundtrack of all things, an otherwise worthless album. (This track was actually issued as a 45):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cz3XAEgvXtQ

― birdistheword, Wednesday, 13 April 2022 00:32 (three years ago)

two years pass...

Probably ruins the great punchline to post this here...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47LLZamZvJY

― birdistheword, Tuesday, 25 February 2025 02:28 (eight months ago)

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