This story is featured in CityBeat's April 19 print edition.
When Johnny Cougar released his debut record, Chestnut Street Incident, back in 1976, few would have guessed his career would still be going strong some 45 years later in 2023. But, of course, fans know the Seymour, Indiana, native now by his real name, John Mellencamp, after he ditched the cheesy pseudonym in 1983 with the release of Uh-Huh. Long ago having proven his commercial songwriting chops, which includes having sold over 60 million records globally, the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer is still releasing quality roots music into his seventies.
Strictly a One-Eyed Jack, Mellencamp’s new record from 2022, offers moody textures — even jazz-tinged at times, with his stark, downbeat balladry and craggy croak. More than any other dynamic, his voice has changed dramatically, coarsening into a Tom Waits-like growl that trades higher range for gravitas.
Mellencamp explains to Forbes, “I was happy when I heard me sing “Gone Too Soon” that I sounded like Louis Armstrong. It wasn’t anything I tried to do, it’s just that cigarettes take their f**king toll on your vocal chords. And so even you can tell by just talking to me, that my voice is raspy, and that’s all from smoking. Nothing that I wanted to do. . . But I’m happy that I sound that way.”
Bruce Springsteen even joins Mellencamp on two duets, and their shared “Wasted Days” is one of the record’s highlights. It’s good to hear this pair of classic rockers finally collaborate in the twilight of their careers.
John Mellencamp plays the Aronoff Center for the Arts at 8 p.m. May 12 & 13. Info: cincinnatiarts.org.
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