John Cougar Mellencamp "Check It Out (USA, 7'' Vinyl Single & Video, Mercury Records, 870 126-7)"

"Check It Out" is a 1987 song by John Mellencamp released as the third single from his album The Lonesome Jubilee in 1988. The single was a top 20 hit, reaching number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100.

According to Mellencamp biographer David Masciotra, the song "describes the rewards and punishments of a typical American middle-class family" and professes that "our attempts to solve the mysteries of the heart and grasp the truth of humanity are fraught with disaster and disappointment." Mellencamp biographer Paul Rees called its sound "uplifting".

Cash Box said that Mellencamp's rough county-ish feel takes you into the heartland [of America]" and that the song "features a nice instrumental hook line that sounds like an otherworldly bagpipe and leads into the verses."

Masciotra calls it "a uniquely powerful testament to the mystery of inner life".

The video was shot as a live performance at Market Square Arena in Indianapolis on December 11, 1987, during Mellencamp's massive Lonesome Jubilee tour.

John Cougar Mellencamp "Cherry Bomb (USA, 7'' Vinyl Single & Video, Mercury Records, 888 934-7)"

"Cherry Bomb" is a song by American rock singer John Mellencamp. It was released as the second single from Mellencamp's ninth studio album, The Lonesome Jubilee (1987). The single was released in the United States in October 1987, backed with the B-side "Shama Lama Ding Dong".

"Cherry Bomb" features a female voice (Mellencamp background singer Crystal Taliefero) and two other male voices (band members Toby Myers and Mike Wanchic) in addition to Mellencamp's on the second verse. Mellencamp told GQ magazine in 2022 what inspired him to have voices other than his own take turns singing lead: "Sly and the Family Stone. He had all those hit records when I was in junior high, and I love the fact that all the sudden there's a female voice, then a male voice."

"Cherry Bomb" is a nostalgic song that reflects on Mellencamp's teenage years hanging out at the Last Exit Teen Club. The opening line of the chorus, "That's when a sport was a sport" is often misinterpreted as "That's when a smoke was a smoke."

The music video for the song features an interracial couple dancing intimately with one another near a jukebox while Mellencamp dances by himself, switching to Mellencamp and his band playing the song on a beach, interspersed with vintage video clips. Mellencamp spent years in an interracial band and felt it was important to make a statement about music’s effect on people and the benefits of different kinds of music coming together.

Upon its release, "Cherry Bomb" reached number one on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart, number 12 on the Adult Contemporary chart, and number eight on the Hot 100. Internationally, "Cherry Bomb" peaked at number four in New Zealand and number five in Canada, earning a gold certification in the latter country.

John Cougar Mellencamp "R.O.C.K. In The U.S.A. - A Salute To 60's Rock (USA, 7'' Vinyl Single & Video, Riva, 884 455-7)"

"R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.", subtitled "A Salute to 60's Rock", is a rock song written and performed by John Mellencamp. It was the third single from his 1985 album Scarecrow and a top-ten hit on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Top Rock Tracks charts, peaking at number 2[4] and number 6 respectively. In Australia, the single effectively became a double-A side when the B-side "Under the Boardwalk" received significant airplay and both tracks were listed together on the singles chart, reaching #18.

According to the John Mellencamp biography Born in a Small Town, Mellencamp was initially reluctant to include "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." on Scarecrow, feeling the song was too light-hearted to include alongside the otherwise grim songs such as "Rain on the Scarecrow" and "Face of the Nation".  Mellencamp told Timothy White in a 1986 article for the Illinois Entertainer of his decision to include "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." on Scarecrow: "It was one of those absolute last-split-second decisions. I was only including it on the cassette and CD copies of Scarecrow as a bonus party track, but my manager loved the energy of it and I thought, 'Yeah! What the hell!'"

Mellencamp required his band to learn how to play about 100 songs from the 1960s before recording Scarecrow, and the song includes several direct musical references to 1960s songs, including The Troggs' "Wild Thing".

The song was recorded at Belmont Mall in Belmont, Indiana. The recording was produced by Mellencamp (under the alias "Little Bastard") and Don Gehman, engineered by Gehman and Greg Edward; backing Mellencamp on the recording were Kenny Aronoff (drums), Toby Myers (bass), Mike Wanchic (guitars, background vocals), Larry Crane (guitars, flutophone), John Cascella (keyboards), and Sarah Flint (background vocals).

Cash Box called it a "no-holds-barred rocker." Billboard said that it "evokes, without quite quoting, reference points from 'La Bamba' to '96 Tears.'"

A music video for the single was released in 1986. The video was directed by Mellencamp and Faye Cummings, and it was filmed using a kinescope camera. It featured an African American-vocal group and a Caucasian-instrumental group with the two groups playing together at the end of the video.

During George W. Bush's first presidential campaign, "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." was played at a campaign event. While Mellencamp had denied the request of President Ronald Reagan to use "Pink Houses" as a campaign song in 1984 during his presidential re-election campaign, he expressed reluctance to object to Bush's use of "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." at the event, telling Rolling Stone that despite his opposition to Bush's political positions, "I don't see any sense in being silly about it. It's entertainment. It's a song."

In 1994, the song was also used during the World Cup USA '94, when announcing the United States as one of the teams who qualified.

"R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." has appeared on a number of Mellencamp compilations, including 1997's The Best That I Could Do 1978–1988 and 2004's Words & Music: John Mellencamp's Greatest Hits.

The song was also featured in The Simpsons episode "Eight Misbehavin'" during the scene where Apu (Hank Azaria) and Majula Nahasapeemapetilon (Jan Hooks)'s octuplets were being used in a zoo show.

John Cougar Mellencamp "Pink Houses (USA, 7'' Vinyl Single & Video, Riva, 818 024-7)"

"Pink Houses" is a song written and performed by John Cougar Mellencamp. It was released on 23 October 1983 as the second single from his album Uh-Huh. It reached No. 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in early 1984 and No. 15 in Canada. "Pink Houses" was ranked No. 447 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Recorded in a farmhouse in Brownstown, Indiana, the song was inspired when John Mellencamp was driving along an overpass on the way home to Bloomington, Indiana, from Indianapolis International Airport. Mellencamp observed an old black man sitting outside his small pink shotgun house with his cat in his arms, completely unperturbed by the traffic speeding along the highway in his front yard. "He waved, and I waved back," Mellencamp said in an interview with Rolling Stone. "That's how 'Pink Houses' started."

Mellencamp has stated many times since the release of "Pink Houses" that he is unhappy with the song's final verse. At an October 2014 press conference, he stated: "A long time ago, I wrote a song called 'Pink Houses.' Now when I hear that song, all I can think is: 'Why didn't I do a better job on the last verse?' If I had written it today, the last verse would've had more meaning."

Mellencamp had intended Pink Houses to be a lesson on race, class and survival in America. The repeating line in the chorus of "Ain’t that America" was meant to be sarcastic and cynical. Ironically, the song came to be used in political advertisements and campaign rallies, especially by conservatives.

In 2004, the song was played at events for Senator John Edwards' presidential campaign. The song was also used at events for Edwards' 2008 presidential campaign.

"Pink Houses" along with "Our Country" was played by Senator John McCain at political events for his 2008 presidential campaign. Mellencamp contacted the McCain campaign pointing out Mellencamp's support for the progressive wing of the Democratic Party and questioning McCain's use of his music; in response, the McCain campaign ceased using Mellencamp's songs.

In January 2009, Mellencamp played "Pink Houses" at We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial.

In 2010, "Pink Houses" was used by the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) at events opposing same-sex marriage. At Mellencamp's instruction, his publicist sent a cease and desist letter to NOM stating "that Mr. Mellencamp's views on same sex-marriage and equal rights for people of all sexual orientations are at odds with NOM's stated agenda" and requesting that NOM "find music from a source more in harmony with your views than Mr. Mellencamp in the future."

John Cougar "Jack & Diane (Single & Video)"

"Jack & Diane" is a song written and performed by American singer-songwriter John Mellencamp, then performing as "John Cougar." Described by critics as a "love ballad", this song was released as the second single from Mellencamp's 1982 album American Fool, and was chosen by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) as one of the Songs of the Century. It spent four weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1982 and is Mellencamp's most successful hit single.

According to John Mellencamp, "Jack & Diane" was based on the 1962 Tennessee Williams film Sweet Bird of Youth. He said of recording the song: "'Jack & Diane' was a terrible record to make. When I play it on guitar by myself, it sounds great; but I could never get the band to play along with me. That's why the arrangement's so weird. Stopping and starting, it's not very musical." Mellencamp has also stated that the clapping was used only to help keep time and was supposed to be removed in the final mix. However, he left the clapping in once he realized the song would not work without it.

In 2014, Mellencamp revealed that the song was originally about an interracial couple, where Jack was African American and not a football star, but the record company persuaded him to change it.

The song was recorded at Criteria Studios in Miami, Florida, and was produced by Mellencamp and Don Gehman (with Gehman also engineering). Backing Mellencamp were guitarists/backing vocalists Mick Ronson, Mike Wanchic, Larry Crane, drummer Kenny Aronoff, bassist/backing vocalist Robert Frank and keyboardist Eric Rosser.

In 1982, producer and guitarist Mick Ronson worked with Mellencamp on his American Fool album, and in particular on "Jack & Diane." In a 2008 interview with Classic Rock magazine, Mellencamp recalled:

Mick was very instrumental in helping me arrange that song, as I'd thrown it on the junk heap. Ronson came down and played on three or four tracks and worked on the American Fool record for four or five weeks. All of a sudden, for "Jack & Diane", Mick said, 'Johnny, you should put baby rattles on there.' I thought, 'What the f*ck does put baby rattles on the record mean?' So he put the percussion on there and then he sang the part 'let it rock, let it roll' as a choir-ish-type thing, which had never occurred to me. And that is the part everybody remembers on the song. It was Ronson's idea.

Cash Box said that "this shuffling pop 'ditty'...has a certain power that hits to the heartland with a warm, descriptive storyline that’s both personal and universal." Billboard said that "The hooks here are in the storyline, which traces a blue collar romance 'in the heartland' where Cougar hails from, capped by taut guitar and percussion."

The 1982 music video featured Mellencamp and his then-wife, Victoria Granucci.

Various Artists "Footloose: Original Soundtrack of the Paramount Motion Picture (15th Anniversary Collectors Edition)"

Footloose: Original Soundtrack of the Paramount Motion Picture is the original soundtrack of the Paramount motion picture Footloose. The original nine-track album was released in 1984 and reached number one on the US Billboard 200 chart on April 21, 1984, where it stayed until June 23, 1984. When it was re-released in 1998, four bonus tracks were added to the album, all of which were used in the film as well. In 2002, Sony International released the "Australian Souvenir Edition", also titled "Australian Cast Special Edition". Two megamixes were added to the album, featuring the Australian cast of the Footloose musical. The original soundtrack contained six Billboard Hot 100 Top 40 hits, three of which reached the Top 10, including two number-one hits, "Footloose" by Kenny Loggins and "Let's Hear It for the Boy" by Deniece Williams, and "Almost Paradise", a duet by Ann Wilson and Mike Reno that reached number seven, plus "Somebody's Eyes" by Karla Bonoff climbed to number sixteen on the Adult Contemporary chart. Many people bought the soundtrack album without even seeing the film.[citation needed]

In 2009, Doveman released a reimagining of the soundtrack album. The original soundtrack for the 2011 remake was released by Atlantic Records and Warner Music Nashville on September 27, 2011.

Track listing

1. "Footloose" (Kenny Loggins) 3:46
2. "Let's Hear It for the Boy" (Deniece Williams)   4:20
3. "Almost Paradise" (Love Theme from Footloose) (Mike Reno and Ann Wilson) 3:50
4. "Holding Out for a Hero" (Bonnie Tyler) 5:50
5. "Dancing in the Sheets" (Shalamar) 4:03
6. "I'm Free (Heaven Helps the Man)" (Kenny Loggins) 3:46
7. "Somebody's Eyes" (Karla Bonoff) 3:33
8. "The Girl Gets Around" (Sammy Hagar) 3:22
9. "Never" (Moving Pictures) 3:45

1998 15th Anniversary Collectors' Edition

1. "Bang Your Head (Metal Health)" (Quiet Riot)   5:17
2. "Hurts So Good" (John Mellencamp) 3:42
3. "Waiting for a Girl Like You" (Foreigner) 4:50
4. "Dancing in the Sheets" (Extended 12" Remix) (Shalamar)  6:16

John Cougar "American Fool (USA, Mercury Records, 814 993-2)

American Fool is the fifth studio album by John Mellencamp, released under the stage name John Cougar in 1982. The album was his commercial breakthrough, holding the #1 position on the Billboard album chart for nine weeks. It was the best selling album of 1982.

According to a 1983 article in the Toledo Blade, the song "Danger List" originated when Mellencamp heard his guitarist Larry Crane playing some chords in a basement rehearsal room. "I turned on the tape recorder and sang 30 verses," Mellencamp explained. "I just made them up. Then I went and weeded out the ones I didn't like."

The remastered version was released March 29, 2005 on Mercury/Island/UMe and includes one bonus track, the previously unreleased title track.

Producer Don Gehman stated in a 2011 interview that American Fool was fraught with layers of problems. "We had 20 or so songs, we had a record company that was hoping we were making a Neil Diamond‑type album, and after we spent two or three months in the studio recording these songs and mixing them to the best of our ability, I can remember an A&R guy in a pink shirt coming in to listen to them and basically thinking we had nothing. At that point, they put a stop to the project. We had ‘Jack & Diane,’ we had ‘Hand To Hold On To,’ we had ‘Weakest Moments’ — we had some good songs — and while I don’t know the precise nature of the discussions that took place, Riva went from wanting to get a new producer to not even wanting John on the label anymore. Finally, they came around to letting us finish it but wanting to hear the new songs we were going to cut."

Track listing

All songs written by John Mellencamp, except where noted.

1. "Hurts So Good" (Mellencamp, George M. Green) – 3:42
2. "Jack & Diane" – 4:16
3. "Hand to Hold On To" – 3:25
4. "Danger List" (Mellencamp, Larry Crane) – 4:28
5. "Can You Take It" – 3:35
6. "Thundering Hearts" (Mellencamp, Green) – 3:40
7. "China Girl" (Joe New, Jeff Silbar) – 3:34
8. "Close Enough" – 3:38
9. "Weakest Moments" – 4:07
10. "American Fool" (2005 re-issue bonus track) – 3:46

John Mellencamp "The Best That I Could Do 1978–1988 (USA, Mercury Records, 314 536 738-2)"

The Best That I Could Do 1978–1988 is the first greatest hits compilation album by American singer-songwriter John Mellencamp, released by Mercury Records in 1997 (see 1997 in music). It compiles Mellencamp's most popular material recorded during his first decade with Riva and Mercury Records, beginning with 1978's A Biography, up through 1987's The Lonesome Jubilee, with a new recording of Terry Reid's "Without Expression". Mellencamp picked the songs for the album and also came up with the title for the album. The album reached #33 on the Billboard 200. This album and Rough Harvest came about because, after leaving Mercury Records for Columbia Records, Mellencamp still owed the label two more albums.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic.com said that the album's title was suitable and while it did not include all of Mellencamp's hits, it is a good summary of Mellencamp's "remarkably consistent" work. Robert Christgau described it as the best of John Mellencamp, which to him is not saying much. Entertainment Weekly gave the album a "B" rating, describing it as "uncomplicated but sophisticated."

Track listing

Original release

All tracks are written by John Mellencamp, except where noted

1. "I Need a Lover" A Biography 5:38
2. "Ain't Even Done with the Night" Nothin' Matters and What If It Did 4:37
3. "Hurts So Good" (Mellencamp, George Green) American Fool 3:39
4. "Jack and Diane" American Fool 4:16
5. "Crumblin' Down" (Mellencamp, Green) Uh-Huh 3:36
6. "Pink Houses" Uh-Huh 4:45
7. "Authority Song" Uh-Huh 3:50
8. "Lonely Ol' Night" Scarecrow 3:46
9. "Small Town" Scarecrow 3:41
10. "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." Scarecrow 2:55
11. "Paper in Fire" The Lonesome Jubilee 3:53
12. "Cherry Bomb" The Lonesome Jubilee 4:49
13. "Check It Out" The Lonesome Jubilee 4:20
14. "Without Expression" (Terry Reid) Previously unreleased 5:06