John Mellencamp

[where's izzy?]

I have a certain fondness for John Mellencamp because that was my first concert experience and I'm excited to enjoy him again almost ten years later in December, but what do you guys think of him? I like his older stuff (Uh-Huh, Lonesome Jubilee, Scarecrowe) but his new stuff is too preachy and all about America. I don't mind when artists mature, but it would be cool to hear him whip out another "Play Guitar." that song was probably the first subliminal message I heard as a kid to make me want to play guitar.

"Forget all about that macho shit, and learn how to play a guitar!"

Now thats Rock n Roll.

[Becket]

I like him. I definatly agree about the whole America thing. His older stuff is better.

[Shuffle]

I've only heard his 80's stuff and it's pretty good. Not amazing or anything but good all the same

[DirtyDeeds]

My favorite albums are Dance Naked and Big Daddy.

[KBear]

Just listened to American Fool. My favourite songs are Hurts So Good, Jack and Diane, Danger List, and Weakest Moments. A good album and the sound quality is top notch.

Mellencamp's another artist that I knew of from radio singles, but never really checked out anything more than that. I bought a couple of albums a while back and only now am I giving them a spin.

Next up is The Lonesome Jubilee.

Edited May 12, 2008 by KBear

[Getizzyback]

He is on his "Our Country" kick, and on the Hall Of Fame induction this year, he said

he's still on a mission to spread the word about the United States."He's Still Not Done"!

Good for him, and let him fight for what he believes in.You might be able to take John

out of the country, but you can't take the country out of John!

I have always liked his "John Cougar Mellencamp" stuff the most.

He's one of those artists IMO that is just not capable of putting out

music his fans won't like.He's a master of the art.I appreciate his

accomplishments.

[Axlin08]

Sucks. Just have never been crazy about him. My mom used to love him.

I'd rather have Springsteen.

[JONEZY]

He's like a 'Springsteen' for the Mid-West. Saw him once in the late 80's, great show. And his violin player, Lisa Germano was hot.

[zeppelinrocksnexttognr]

Yeah, some of his songs are good.

[MrsBrownstone]

I've always been a fan of his music and was excited to see him in concert for the first time a couple of years ago. Well, the concert was okay, he didn't seem like he was really into it. Then, he invites the local singer who was his opening act to come on stage and sing "Pink Houses". Well, she obviously wasn't as familiar with it as she thought she was because she fucked up all the words, to the point where he finally took the mic away from her. After that, the show was over. No encore, nothing. Obviously myself and the entire crowd at Jones Beach (NY) were more than disappointed. A lot of people left booing.

[DCGNR]

I don't go buying his albums, but I respect him as a musician

He's got some good songs and I will usually leave them on when they play on the radio.....with the exception of ROCK in the USA

Favorite song is probably "What if I came knocking"

[Zint]

My first Mellencamp concert,Toronto 1988

(I got chills watching that clip,just like I did being there watching that performance live)

First saw Mellencamp on the Lonesome Jubilee tour.I adored that record,I just thought it was so good!

The concert was better than I could have possibly imagined...just stellar,classy on all levels.

I saw Springsteen three months later,and,he was excellent...but he didn't knock me out live the way Mellencamp did.

Mellencamp shakes things up during his show,there's a groove element.

With Springsteen,I get tired of "the rusty factory gates are closed forever and the unemployment checks have long run out" vibe....it grates on me after a while.

The Lonesome Jubilee tour man...it was bloody cool!

Gotta admit though...I haven't dug Johnny Cougar for a while now.

I think he peaked with Jubilee in all honesty.

A quote from the youtube page:

"many music critics called the Mellencamp band the best in the business during his (Kenny Aronoff) tenure with the group. "Hell, yeah!" Aronoff exclaimed. The Scarecrow and (Lonesome) Jubilee tours - I think we were as good of an American rock band as there was, right there with Springsteen and Tom Petty and Bob Seger. We had a great band. We kicked ass."

Indeed they did!

Edited May 21, 2008 by zint61

[DirtyDeeds]

I've always been a fan of his music and was excited to see him in concert for the first time a couple of years ago. Well, the concert was okay, he didn't seem like he was really into it. Then, he invites the local singer who was his opening act to come on stage and sing "Pink Houses". Well, she obviously wasn't as familiar with it as she thought she was because she fucked up all the words, to the point where he finally took the mic away from her. After that, the show was over. No encore, nothing. Obviously myself and the entire crowd at Jones Beach (NY) were more than disappointed. A lot of people left booing.

My guess is that you saw him while he was having a heart attack. My mom did, and that's precisely how she described the show and she was very disappointed... until she learned a few days later he had had a heart attack. I believe that's the same show she went to. I couldn't tell you the year, though.

Give him another shot. What you saw was not an accurate representation.

[KBear]

I preferred American Fool to The Lonesome Jubilee, by quite a fair margin to be honest. Guess I'm just not a huge fan of the accordian, which to me takes the edge off the music more than I'd like. I mean, it's nice to have in places but it felt to me like it dominated the album and I'm sure it's what he wanted as an artist, to explore that sound, but it's just not something I took too. Not only that, but the whole America's Heartland theme became too much. The lyrics just seemed all the same to me, a bit on the simplistic side, though I guess I felt the genuinness (if that's even a word). Note that this is just on one listen, so maybe I'm not being fair.

Cherry Bomb is ace though. My other favourite JM songs would have to be Small Town, Jack and Diane, ROCK in the USA, Danger List, and Weakest Moments. And a few others perhaps that don't come to mind right now. But I'd say my very fave JM song is

. I don't know what it is about that song but I totally dig it.

I'm sure eventually I'll seek out some of his other earlier releases, as it seems I'm taking a liking to those moreso than his late 80s and onward material.

Edited May 21, 2008 by KBear