interesting cover! Im trying to figure out the wall John is standing in front of, especially if there is any meaning to be found in the letters written there.

CERFIHOE:ENKRO?
CERFIHCE:EUKRO?
CERF,HOE:ENRRO?

maybe you know or see more than i do:)

For me John and Bruce are two "totally different" artists, apart from that they both are american singer-songwriters. I never really could follow the comparisions.
I always highly appreciated both, but whereas John´s creativity is still in full blossom, none of Bruce´s albums since the 80s reached the level of his best work from the 70s.
I like the new version of "Ghost of Tom Joad", but overall this new album is disappointing for me. I rather listen to his old music.

Interesting blues/folk-singer from oklahoma. "From The Ground Up" is his debut album.

If I'm not mistaken, once a tour is announced it will be a North American one - not worldwide.

this is what I read in the article: "Once the album is done, Mellencamp plans to promote it with an extensive world tour. "I want to do one hundred shows in the United States and Canada," he says. "Then I'll deal with the rest of the world later."

This sounds like great news. 85 new songs already written and more to come for the recording sessions? The excitement about the new album is rising.
Plus, a world tour to follow, what else can we hope for?

Surely well deserved, but all these official honours are so boring. the music industry are just celebrating themselves.
The greatest hall of fame is the heart of the people, and here John is top of the best.

The way listening to music has changed a lot in the past. I would like to know, how do you listen to music, what format, what device do you use?

I ask this, as I am getting more and more confused.
Starting out with vinyl records (which I still love today), then came the CDs (which were ok, though I hated the plastic cases), then MP3 downloads (which started the chaos for me), and now it´s all about streaming.
Nobody seems to buy and own anything anymore, but just listen to music from a cloud?
They claim "all music wherever you go", but I am not sure, if I need this.

Does anyone here use streaming portals (spotify, napster, deezer, etc.)? What are your experiences?

Finally received the hardcover cd/dvd edition, shipping took weeks, but it was worth waiting for. the whole package is fantastic, great work from everybody involved, this is really something special.

I listened to the music before on the official website and was very impressed by the songs, now with the book and all the stuff in my hands, it get´s even better.

my favourite songs at this moment are "What Kind of Man Am I", "You Don´t Know Me", "So Goddam Smart", "Tear This Cabin Down", and "Truth". could have listed them all though.
I have never listened a lot to Elvis Costello or Sheryl Crow. Them singing these songs now again show me, that it´s the song and not the singer.

I am still figuring out who is who in the story, trying to really understand it all. while reading through the libretto I noticed there are a few songs that don´t appear on the soundtrack. "Longing Around In Heaven", "On Belle Reve Time", "Put Me In The Ground", and "A Rose for Poor Anna".
Are these complete songs as well, have they been recorded? Maybe someone knows about this.

I also wonder about the cooperation of the 3 masterminds. Normally I think that in any cooperation there must be one person to decide at the end of the day.
What was first, the story or the songs?

This brothers story is crazy. I have a brother, and he is the best friend in my life.
John wrote about brother relationships in a few songs before, the Cain and Abel thing. "Fruit Trader", "Brothers", "Longest Days" or "No One Cares About Me" for example.
I always wondered how he got on with his brother and if this relationship was the inspiration to the songs. Now this story which is supposed to really have happened.

So a lot to think about and listen to!
Thanks to all who took part in this exciting project! I´d wish I could come over for a show, we´ll see...

International tour planned? That would be fantastic, if the exhibition would come to germany where some of the basic influences come from.

honestly, I don´t know much about painting, like i can´t play guitar or sing, but i like the style and the message in many of his paintings.

I´d wish for Little Bastard turning up the volumes at Belmont Mall, but anything he will ever do, will be doubtless brilliant music. Looking very much forward to it.

This is what I know, apart from his own movie "Falling From Grace" and all the soundtracks including well-known songs:
Cocktail, 1988, "Rave On"
Honeymoon in Vegas, 1992, "Jailhouse Rock"
The Perfect Storm, 2000, "Yours Forever"

This is exciting, the short piece of the song John sings at the end of the trailer sounds great!

Interesting story that he started with piano and guitar when he was young. He seems to be a multi-talented musician, not just a great drummer!
Thanks for this informative article!

I agree. The No Better Than This Tour deserves to be preserved officially.
In the past live albums often did not equal the real live experience, it was always only a money making thing for artists. from the many live albums that the Stones or Dylan for example released, there is not one that was worth the money.
So I always understood John´s point of view.

but this changed with the modern dvds. I can imagine some great live footage from the past tour and I would be very happy to see an official release.

Hm, I don´t think this yahoo theory is logical.
"Whenever We Wanted" was the first album without "Cougar", but "Little Bastard" appeared as producer name already some years earlier on "Uh-huh" and "Scarecrow", both released as "John Cougar Mellencamp" albums. So I don´t think "Little Bastard" was to replace "Cougar".

It seemed to have been just a pseudonym as producer that he also used when producing Mitch Ryder´s "Never Kick A Sleeping Dog" in 1983. Similar to what the Rolling Stones did by using "The Glimmer Twins" as producer names.