My favourite Mellencamp music has always been political stuff, protest songs in their way. Pink Houses, Rain On The Scarecrow, Paper In Fire, Jackie Brown, To Washington, Rodeo Clown, The West End, just to mention a few.

John has always been the best in combining great melodies with a protest saying. Springsteen sang about running away, Dylan about a lot of things, the Stones about girls, Neil Young´s voice is too high,...Mellencamp has the melodies, the shouting voice and the right message.

And the moment to raise his voice has rarely been so right as currently.
I would like to hear a complete rock´n´roll album by a furious John shouting at all those idiots.
For some years now, the world has been in an enormous changing process, and I still miss the rock album to raise some questions.

Will the financial crisis ever end or is this just the beginning of the end?
Why is there such a huge gap between the politicians and the people?
How many guns does a man need to be free?
When will the last man understand that the nature will strike back?
...any many more, too many questions unanswered.

WE NEED YOU, JOHN! We need your voice now, and we want it loud!

The concert was great! Valerie June as opening act also was fantastic.
Ryan Bingham put on a great show, the songs from his new album sounded great.

Man the hand that button breaks
If we hesitate we not forget
About the hard ticks written for last month's rent, mhm
How in the hell can we progress
If we're all out of work hooked on pills for stress
They tell us, up in heaven there is food for eat
But for now all we get is this shit on the street
For in this world we just can't trust
And food stamps filling our bellies up
Homeless kids on forgotten roads
Let's hope they can bear when the winter cold cause
The spark within the youngest eye
Can slowly fade with the whisper cry
So lend your heart and all you know
And relieve the pain so the good can grow
Relieve the pain so the good can grow.
Lyrics from the song "Flower Bomb".

Going to see Ryan Bingham live in concert tomorrow. He is an interesting artist, I am looking forward to the show!

Great show, thanks for the videos. I hope I got the words of the changed lyrics right, would be nice if anyone could write them down, as well as the intro speech to "West End".

Thanks for the videos and thanks for the election result. Well done USA!

4 more years for Obama. Well done, USA!

Looks like nobody is politically interested here, well...some of John´s best songs are political songs, Pink Houses, Rain On The Scarecrow, Paper In Fire, Country Gentleman, To Washington, The West End etc...

100% agree

He is damn right, there is a lot going wrong on the internet. this so-called freedom is not what they claim, it´s nothing else but a few big companies making big business on the back of the people.
Hopefully his voice will be heard soon and the anarchism of the internet will be stopped!

I am not sure, if political topics are allowed on this website, though John´s music has always been politically and socially aware, and I find it more useful than talking about his girlfriends.
Besides, this section "Melting Pot" seems to be fully occupied by one ambitious writer.

anyway, I have a try, as I would like to know more from people like you about the upcoming election.
living in Germany, I am far away and just don´t trust the media. what´s going on in your country has always interested me a lot, not only because of the music.
It´s a fantastic country, and in my opinion your current president is the best man one can imagine. surely not without mistakes, but he seems to be much more intelligent than the rest.

What are your thoughts and dreams? I dont want to start a political discussion, but just get some more information from the real people, not from journalists.
Thanks and good luck to all of you!

A rock´n´roll album would be great, though his last two albums were too good to say he should change anything. But "Rodeo Clown" showed us how great a rock album could sound.
Let´s wait, he never disappointed me with any new release.

the "Scarecrow" program I have doesn´t list any tour dates or cities.

this link http://www.findadeath.com/forum/showthread.php?6538-First-Concert says he played the Centroplex in Baton Rouge in 1985, but no exact date.

No "Jackie Brown"? hm...

but a great recording, thanks for the download link!
R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A. including "Turn on Your Love Light" sounds fantastic, great rock´n´roll!
where does the recording come from, who did it and with what device?

looks a great show, despite missing "West End".

is anything known about the opening set by the Cowboy Junkies?
they are a great band as well. the band´s leader Michael Timmins wrote this on their website´s tour diary:
"A little know fact is that John Mellencamp’s music was a pretty big influence on the band and an influence that we probably haven’t acknowledged enough. When we were putting together the songs for Trinity Session, Mellencamp’s albums Scarecrow and The Lonesome Jubillee were enormous hits. We listened to them a lot and his arrangements and use of fiddle and accordion was very inspiring, especially the way he used accordion. So we owe it to John for setting us off down a path that lead to Jaro and Jeff (who we initially contacted as a fiddle player). We are very happy to be along for this ride, it feels like another completed circle.
"

Totally agree.
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So do I. but before a full live album of this great tour would fit in. this long tour deserves to be immortalized somehow.
and then a rock´n´roll album in the style of "Rodeo Clown". Andy York on guitar for the stones sound, and John still can shout. he should shout it out again that he "just don´t care".
but it´s nothing we can plan...he´ll do the right thing anyway!

Is there any chance that the art show in nashville would go longer than june 10th? or perhaps go to another city later? it´s a bit far from the canadian tour cities and not so easy to combine, except staying for several weeks...