John Mellencamp Community

I saw in the NPR review that Izzy Stadlin and Stan Lynch play on Grandview.  I know they both played on Miss Missy on the 98 self titled record. With that said I must ask if this is an older recording, dug up for this record? John does sound 20 years younger on the vocal, and does not sound like the grizzled style on Easy Target. 

Hi Hoss, I'm seeing the question pop up quite a bit regarding the Grandview recording. I don't believe the moderators have answered this. The following is from the Indystar...

Something old: “Grandview,” the current single from the album that arrives in stores today, is a sonic time traveler Mellencamp co-wrote with his cousin, Bobby Clark, in the 1990s. An early stab at recording the song featured Indiana native and former Guns N' Roses guitarist Izzy Stradlin and drummer Stan Lynch, formerly of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Mellencamp said the "Sad Clowns" version of "Grandview" includes some vocals he recorded in the '90s and some recorded this century. Stradlin's gritty, insistent riffs and Lynch's beats were salvaged for the final version, and country vocalist Martina McBride came on board to portray Mellencamp's foil in the song's home stretch. "It took a long time to build this song," Mellencamp said.

Here's something else interesting. When I heard the song All Night Radio it also sounded to me like an older recording, like maybe something left off the Mr Happy Go Lucky album. It even reminds me of Circling Around the Moon. So today I'm looking at the Wikipedia page for Sad Clowns and Hillbillies and noticed that Toby Meyers and Kenny Arnoff are credited for electric bass and drums on All Talk Night Radio! How cool is that... sounds like we might actually have a Mr Happy Go Lucky outtake on this album. This is pure speculation but plausible. It's definitely one of my favorites for the album.

Also Christie Brinkley is credited for background vocals on My Souls Got Wings and What Kind of Man Am I.

 I noticed that too when listening to all night talk radio. I know Toby has worked with John on and off over the years- but I never thought Kenny would.  Very possible this is an old song finished up for Sad Clowns. 

I got the same impression about All Night Talk Radio!


I've got to go look at that wiki page now!

Lisa in Georgia

But did they have all night talk radio back then?

In late 1993, John went in the studio to record 6-8 new songs for a box set that was going to be titled "Nothing Like We Planned." At the time David Grissom had just left the band and John and Kenny Aronoff weren't seeing eye-to-eye on Kenny not being available for sessions because he was constantly doing work outside the band. John brought in Izzy Stradlin to temporarily replace Grissom and Stan Lynch, who had just left Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, to temporarily replace Kenny. Among the songs recorded in these 1993 sessions were "Miss Missy" and "Grandview."

John eventually scrapped the "Nothing Like We Planned" idea and began making "Dance Naked" in early 1994, so the songs recorded in these sessions remained on the shelf. Andy York was hired in January 1994 to replace Grissom permanently, and John and Kenny patched things up and Kenny returned to work on "Dance Naked" as well.

"Miss Missy" was used five years later for the 1998 self-titled album, and we are just now getting "Grandview," although Martina McBride wasn't a part of the song back then. Her involvement came later.

As for "All Night Talk Radio," John mentioned that song in an interview back in 1996. It was cut for "Mr. Happy Go Lucky" - hence Kenny and Toby Myers' involvement - but it wasn't used for that album and stayed unreleased for 21 years. John revisited the song for "Sad Clowns & Hillbillies," and he added a few new elements to it, like Carlene's voice, although it's clearly still John's 1996 vocal on the song. It's a fantastic tune, so we're lucky it has finally been released. See my separate post for full band and songwriting credits for all the songs on "Sad Clowns & Hillbillies."

http://forum.mellencamp.com/index.php?topic=4708.0

I can't wait to hear Grandview in St. Augustine Florida in two weeks. I'm probably one of very few people who has been waiting for this song to be released for 20 years. When I got the new CD and saw it on the songs list my jaw dropped, since I was losing hope that it would ever surface.

The story- A friend of mine knew I was a huge Mellencamp fan and handed me an unlabeled cassette tape one day with five songs on it and told me to listen. On it was- When Jesus Left Birmingham, The Breakout, Grandview, Sweet Evening Breeze & Human Wheels. All of them have been released except Grandview and I have been sort of protecting it and only letting a few of my friends listen to it through the years. My favorite song all along was the quirky little trailer park song, Grandview. It is of course really raw, but a great version that I actually like better than the album, but of course I am used to it. The Breakout is actually a very different version as well from the album version. I would love to share it, now that is has been released, but I'm not sure I can since it is a bootleg and don't want a record company lawyer calling me! So I guess if a moderator reads this let me know if I can share, or if Mr. Mellencamp wants to hear it I will meet him at the concert and play it for him. LOL!

I hope it is in the set list when I go in two weeks!!!