John Mellencamp Caricature 1979

John Mellencamp Caricature 1979, shown here with his 1970 Gibson Dove guitar, age 28 upon the release of his third album, “John Cougar” which was the pivitol album that sparked his famous career; featured his first hit, “I Need A Lover”.

Pat Benatar recorded “I Need a Lover” on her debut album “In the Heat of the Night”, also in 1979.

Mellencamp previously known as Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American musician, singer-songwriter, painter, and actor. He is known for his catchy, populist brand of heartland rock, which emphasizes traditional instrumentation.

His biggest musical influences are Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie, James Brown and the Rolling Stones. Upon graduating from Vincennes University in 1974, Mellencamp played in several local bands including the glitter-band Trash, which was named for a New York Dolls song, and he later got a job in Seymour installing telephones. At this time, Mellencamp, who had given up drugs and alcohol before graduating from Vincennes University, decided to pursue a career in music and traveled to New York City in an attempt to land a record contract.

In 1982, Mellencamp released his breakthrough album, American Fool, which contained the singles “Hurts So Good”, an uptempo rock tune that spent four weeks at No. 2 and 16 weeks in the top 10, and “Jack & Diane”, which was a No. 1 hit for four weeks. A third single, “Hand to Hold on To”, made it to No. 19. “Hurts So Good” went on to win the Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance at the 25th Grammys.

John Mellencamp has written an astounding number of hits which include: “I Need A Lover”, “Hurts So Good”, “Jack & Diane”, “Hand To Hold On To”, “Pink Houses”, “Crumblin’ Down”, “Lonely Ol’ Night”, “Small Town”, “R.O.C.K. In The USA”, “Rain On The Scarecrow”, “Rumbleseat”, “Paper In Fire”, “Cherry Bomb”, “Jackie Brown”, “Pop Singer”, “Human Wheels”, “Dance Naked” and “Wild Night” (Van Morrison cover) to name a few.

Mellencamp is also one of the founding members of Farm Aid, an organization that began in 1985 with a concert in Champaign, Illinois.

Mellencamp was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on March 10, 2008. On June 14, 2018, Mellencamp was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Country music star Keith Urban has consistently cited Mellencamp’s influence on his music. It originated when Mellencamp’s Lonesome Jubilee tour went to Australia in 1988, Urban was in attendance at one of the concerts and described the experience as an “epiphany.”

Mellencamp lives five miles outside of Bloomington, Indiana on the shores of Lake Monroe, but he also has a vacation home on Daufuskie Island, South Carolina. In January 2018, Mellencamp purchased an 1,800-square foot loft in the Soho district of New York City for $2.3 million.

Mellencamp has five children from his three marriages.