Several songs seemed to have minor changes but that could have just been normal recorded-to-live-version differences. Mellencamp mentioned a sore throat and an almost cancellation of the show a few songs in but it was hard to tell how much his voice was affected because it sounded like John Mellencamp. "Jack and Diane" was done acoustically which was a nice change to a song well over thirty years old. Mellencamp also played several fan favorites, "Small Town," "Jack and Diane," "Paper in Fire," "Check it Out," "Cherry Bomb," "Crumbin' Down," and "Authority Song." Each of these was a thrill to hear live from the man who defined so much of my youth. Hearing his more mature voice in his new work is a pleasant surprise because the songwriting is in the same vein, just from a man who still dances, albeit a bit more slowly. It is just that in my brain, John Mellencamp is still under thirty and raising hell in rural Indiana. As a long time fan, I find it hard to reconcile his new music with the music I grew up loving. "Lawless Times," "Troubled Man," and "Minutes to Memories" were all played at the start of his show to capture the attention of his audience and hopefully focus it on his newer work. The show started off with new material from his Plain Spoken album (most recent release). His newer music has a slower tempo, seems more introspective and looks at the world from the viewpoint of a man who has seen a lot of life. Mellencamp is older and maybe/maybe not wiser from the lyrics of his songs. The show at the Chicago theater was probably a lot different than someone who would have seen Mellencamp in the 1980s would expect. I grew up listening to his music and watching his videos on MTV and I thoroughly enjoyed the rock with a dash of country violin. This was my first time seeing John Mellencamp after being a fan since I was a young kid. Continuing a strong touring schedule and releasing albums, he continues into 2014, most recently with his album “Troubled Man.” He released his eighteenth album, “Life, Death, Love and Freedom” in 2008, and sold over 50,000 copies. Shortly after, he partook in the first Farm Aid benefit concert with other founders, Willie Nelson and Neil Young, followed by a tour for “Scarecrow.” By the early 90s he dropped Cougar from his name and was billed simply as John Mellencamp.īy the early 21st century, he paired up with other artists for collaborations, and in 2005 set out on tour with John Fogerty and Donovan. The 1985 release of “Scarecrow” was the first album that he recorded in his home studio, and saw it as the start of his alternative country genre. His breakthrough album finally came in 1982 with the release of his album, “American Fool.” With the commercial success, Mellencamp was allowed to push to use his surname. Upon returning to the United States, he recorded and released “Nothin’ Matters an What If It Did?” which did have two charting singles however, Mellencamp was not too happy with the finished product. Mellencamp then briefly moved to London to record and tour for his album “A Biography.” The record, which was not released in the United States did manage to chart in Australia. Eventually, he parted ways with DeFrieds and signed to Riva Records and paired with Rod Stewart’s manager, Billy Gaff. Mellencamp recorded an album of cover songs, but it didn’t sell well. Around 1975 he found someone who was receptive to his music from MainMan management named Tony DeFries, who insisted Mellencamp used Johnny Cougar as his stage name in order to be easier to market. John Cougar Mellencamp was born on 7 October 1951 and formed his first band at the early age of 14.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |