Jon Bream gives a lot of negative reviews. The last time John was in St Paul, the review from him was terrible as well. I was so unhappy with him, I e-mailed the guy telling him what I thought of his review. He obviously does not like JM so I am hoping John and the band just ignore this review. As the other MN gal stated, just look at the Star and Tribune's website for the comments from his fans. The singing from the crowd was so loud at times, it was hard to hear John at times. The St Paul Pioneer Press review was excellent and some fans even blasted the Star and Tribune there for writing such a horrible review. I was one of those fans. I will post the St Paul review here next.
Here is the link to the Star and Tribune review if you want to let Jon Bream know how you feel about his review. I also included some of the comments from the fans in case you don't want to login there. There are a few negative ones there but mostly good.
http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/music/110016584.html?elr=KArksUUUoDEy3LGDiO7aiUComment 1: Hey Jon, how old are you, 16? The whole tour is described as an intimate show, and his talents really came out in this concert. Many of todays 'hit" artists play for about 70 minutes and go "whoop whoop". Big deal. Mellencamp can write, play and sing, and is truly a performer. Many performers should take note of how to "perform" from a classic like John Mellencamp.
Comment 2: His last "Hit" was 14 years ago... SO? Does that mean he's lost his credibility as a performer? Mellencamp has only had about what, 25 "Hits" over the last 30 years? He doesn't NEED to write another song to be honored for what he has already accomplished. What a CROCK review.
Comment 3: When a performer plays note for note renditions of their album there is little compelling reason to see the show, especially at today's prices, when you could listen to the same music at home with better clarity. I would be more compelled to hear new arrangements of tunes to see how someone grew as a performer than to have them rehash material that they are probably sick of playing the same way for the last twenty years.
Comment 4: So I guess he's gone full circle. From the contrived stage name "Johnny Cougar" (remember that- some of you might have still been in diapers back then), thru the "Mellencamp" era, to just plain John Mellencamp. He smoked a zillion cigarettes, suffered a heart attack, and absolutely rocke that Target Center ten or so years ago. Now let him sunset his career the way he wants to. He was a major force in the day, and I'll always appreciate what he's done for rock.
Comment 5: Wow. Mr. Bream was apparently at a different show than I. First, the film at the beginning, while a little too long for my taste, did a great job of framing Mellencamp's head space these days and put his new material in a beautiful context. From where I was sitting, everyone thoroughly enjoyed all of the new material and applauded explosively and enthusiastically after every number. Secondly, didn't connect with the audience? People were hanging on every word. All of the rootsy numbers told great stories of maturity, and aging, and wonder and a lust for life. I thought it was extremely well received and appreciated. And finally, even though Mr. Mellencamp had a "set" set apparently (no encore was to be given) the audience stuck around quite a while screaming and applauding and begging for more. And Finally Mr. Bream... isn't an artist allowed to evolve, to explore, to create? I suppose to earn a good review from you, they need to come out and play their hits note for note just like you remember them. Seems like a music "critic" worth his salt would appreciate watching an artist grow and challenge his fans. But alas, we've come to expect this kind of drivel from an aging critic that's just "mailing it in."
Comment 6: I was at the show and I agree to a certain extent with this critique. I felt that a lot of people around me were looking for the more traditional Mellencamp. The exception would be the women behind us who, like much of the crowd, were hanging on his every word. Personally, I'm not a big fan of his older music, but I was pleasantly surprised by the new direction. I went for my wife and it turned out that I probably got a better show than she did. I guess since I enjoyed the music more than I thought, I'll have to agree with Brewman in that he's earned the right to go where he wants with his music at this point in his career. Oh, and excellent supporting musicians, wow!
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