“‘Jack & Diane’ was originally about race. And back then, that was about as close to heaven as I ever got, because just the time to be able to spend with her, and she was very, very religious.”ġ8. And she’d come over and pick us boys up, and we would go to the Nazarene church. “My grandmother made sure that I went to church every Sunday. I try to be objective about things that I’m writing about.”ġ7.

Sometimes I squeak my opinions in there, but generally, I don’t. “It sounds funny, but I always try to keep an open mind about what I’m writing about. Then you start digging and the deeper you go, the more there is.”ġ6. “What is there to be afraid of? The worst thing that can happen is you fail. “I used to think that eating healthy was ordering a fish sandwich at McDonald’s.”ġ4. It was devised to prop up record sales on the expectation of people replenishing their record collections with CDs of albums they had already purchased.”ġ3. “The CD, it should be noted, was born out of greed. If they get a scratch or a hole in them, it just becomes part of the painting.”ġ2. “I want my paintings to look like they were found in a garage. People spend their entire lives regretting what they didn’t do and what they should’ve done. “Regret should be handled swiftly, and you shouldn’t hold onto it. That’s the great thing about Bob Dylan’s songs: We the listeners have made more out of them than he ever intended.”Ĩ. A vague notion, a vague image, but enough to give the listener the opportunity to make more out of what’s being said than is there.

“One quality of a good songwriter is to be vague. I like to paint the human condition, and the human condition is not smiles and happy people.”ħ. People think it’s their God-given right to be happy, and it’s just not. “If I laugh a couple of times a day, I’m doing good. “My best songs come from a place outside myself.”Ħ. “I believe in something, even if it’s just me.”ĥ. Do I need more money? Do I need more platinum and gold records? The only thing I can think of is ego.”Ĥ. “This cycle of, make a record, tour, has been going on for 20 years now. “For me to pretend I’m the keeper of the small town mentality or that’s all I’m interested in is wrong.”ģ. “I’ve seen beautiful art on the sides of buildings. Inducted into Rock And Roll Hall of Fame in 2008 (Performer).1. John has collaborated with Me'Shell Ndegeocello and India Arie over the years. A heart attack in 1994 prevented him from touring for one of his most famous albums to date Dance Naked. Following that was Uh-huh which would be his first release under the moniker John Cougar Mellencamp the name he would stick by until he gradually dropped the 'Cougar' and just went by his given name John Mellencamp. It wasn't until the release of American Fool, released this time under the moniker John Cougar, which featured his most well-known hit to date, 'Jack & Diane' that he really made it big the album stayed at #1 on the charts for nine weeks. It was also the label's idea to release the album under the name Johnny Cougar which Mellencamp did not approve of. That album was a complete flop partly due to the fact that the record label wanted to mold John into something he was not (a pretty boy ala James Dean) and the fact that the album mostly consisted of cover songs. He started out for a brief period of time as a glam rocker, but then tried out for a solo career with his first album Chestnut Street Incident released by former David Bowie manager, Tony DeFries on the Mainman (division of MCA) label. John Mellencamp was born in Seymour, Indiana on October 7, 1951.

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