['Family Guy' Enlists Kate McKinnon as Peter's Sister]

'Family Guy' Enlists Kate McKinnon as Peter's Sister

Family Guy will introduce another member of the Griffin family this coming season.

Saturday Night Live star Kate McKinnon will lend her voice as Peter's sister, a professional female wrestler who goes by the wrestling name Heavy Flow, the animated comedy's creative team announced Saturday at Comic-Con.

Executive producers Seth MacFarlane, Mike Henry, Rich Appel and Steve Callaghan, joined by voice stars Seth Green and Alex Borstein, revealed a slew of upcoming guest stars including Ed O'Neill, Glenn Close, Kyle Chandler, Cosmos' Neil deGrasse Tyson and Fox Sports broadcaster Joe Buck. Singer John Mellencamp will not just lend his voice, he'll sing a song in which he pokes fun at himself, according to the exec producers.

Other storylines teased for the upcoming season include an episode in which Chris becomes a registered sex offender and an episode in which the gang discovers that Quagmire was once a Korean soap opera actor and travel to Korea to find the last episode of his series. An entire act of one upcoming episode will take place inside Stewie's sleeping mind when he has his first nightmare and becomes determined to confront his demons head-on.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/comic-con-family-guy-enlists-808166

John comes on just after 8:30 and plays until about 10:25 or so. Carlene Carter, the opening act, takes the stage at 7:30 sharp and plays 45 minutes.

[The Long Road to Completing 'John Cougar,' Keith Urban's Newest Hit]

The Long Road to Completing 'John Cougar,' Keith Urban's Newest Hit
By Tom Roland

When Keith Urban performed with John Mellencamp during the May 21 NBC special Red Nose Day, he decided against telling Mellencamp about his next single. "John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16" hinges in part on the stage name that a former manager stamped on Mellencamp’s first albums, and it’s been a point of contention in his career.

"He’s obviously got mixed feelings on the name John Cougar," allows Urban. "I didn’t really want to get into all that."

The journey from Cougar to Mellencamp symbolized the artist’s struggle to define and honor his own identity. Self-definition is part of everyone’s life path -- whether it’s recognized or not -- and it’s at the root of the "John" song’s journey, too. Identifying what was in it was a struggle and finding the best way to express it became a separate puzzle.

One thing about it: The artistic destination for "John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16" was sealed barely a week after the song’s conception. Urban sang it live for the first time on Feb. 25 at the Ryman Auditorium during Country Radio Seminar. He didn’t know until before hitting the stage that he was going to play it, and didn’t even know if he could remember all the lyrics.

"Maybe two days later, somebody sent me a YouTube link, and that’s the first time I actually heard the crowd react to the end of the first chorus," recalls Urban. "I thought, ‘Oh, that’s a good sign. It’s sort of like the punch line landed and they laughed.’ It connected in the way I hoped it would, so I think that’s probably what had all of us start thinking maybe that’s the first song we should get in the studio and work on."

Songwriter Ross Copperman ("Smoke," "Beat of the Music") provided the foundation for "John Cougar," a rootsy track he had built around acoustic guitar patterns before a songwriting session with Shane McAnally ("American Kids," "Wild Child") and Josh Osborne ("Merry Go ’Round," "Take Your Time"). Copperman had pieces of the melody in place, but didn’t know what direction the lyrics needed to take. They quickly settled on a nostalgic vein for a generation McAnally dubs "the MTV-era kids."

"All of the writers that I write with come from that small-town place where we didn’t have a lot, but it seemed like we had a lot because we had all we needed," says McAnally.

Osborne’s father had bought him an old-school gramophone after "Merry Go ’Round" became a hit for Kacey Musgraves, and a reference to that machine kicked off the first-verse romp down memory lane, building a story through such images as John Wayne, Pepsi-Cola and Don McLean’s "American Pie." More ideas piled up in the chorus, including a reference to "The Boulevard of Broken Dreams" (a painting that features James Dean and Elvis Presley -- not the Green Day song) and a line about "Marilyn Monroe and the Garden of Eden."

"I don’t exactly know what that line means, but that’s my favorite line in the whole song," offers Osborne.

It didn’t come easy, and at one point, they considered abandoning the song. But when "John Cougar" spilled out at the end of the chorus, it led to a jag where they tied in some other "John" references, and they realized they were creating a song with some lyrical weight.

"John Cougar references all the sort of sexual tension of teenage angst all of us were growing up in," says McAnally. "John Deere represents the way that our parents worked and what we saw living in the country, and of course [there’s] the element of religion. And [there’s] irony in John Cougar starting the line, and John 3:16 ending the line because that was the push and pull of that teenage thing."

The craft part of songwriting took over as they supported the John Deere piece with country images in verse two and stuffed the John 3:16 religious background into the bridge. A demo was completed that day, and they soon picked Urban as a target for the song. McAnally sent him the demo, and within days, Urban visited Copperman to sing on top of the tracks. "I think he just wanted to hear himself sing it and see how he sounded on the song," says Copperman.

Urban subsequently gave the Ryman performance, which publicly marked it as his song. But turning it into a recording was difficult, especially because Urban aspired to do something that wasn’t just copying the sound he had already established. He enlisted drummer Matt Chamberlain to create a loop and started building the song around drums, vocal and acoustic guitar. He thought it was too predictable, so he tried electric, to no avail. Then he pulled a bass off the wall at Blackbird Studios and laid down a pinging line to show a studio bassist who arrived later that day.

"Keith doesn’t play bass all the time, but he’s such an intuitive musician," says producer Dann Huff (Rascal Flatts, The Band Perry). "He played it with such a different take, unlike any bass player would do it. I felt bad for the bass player. He came in and heard it and was like, ‘What’s wrong with that?’ And the answer was, ‘There’s nothing wrong with it.’"

Urban also created a four-note guitar pattern that sort of answers the vocal  -- "It’s kind of calypso, almost reggae-ish," he says -- and a track on a Kendrick Lamar album inspired him to build in a key change. But it wasn’t just a standard modulation up; he wanted to return to the original key before the song ended.

"The trick with going back was that it almost never works because it’s anti-climatic," says Urban. "You can’t lift everything up and then drop it back down and think it’s going to hold the energy, so it took us forever to figure out how to do it."

Urban also grafted on a spacious guitar solo that uses a tone and wah-pedal fuzziness inspired by the Steve Miller Band pop single "The Joker." To top it off, he did multiple vocal recordings in Nashville, Los Angeles and Australia as he hopped continents in the middle of American Idol tapings. Each time, he got a little closer to the emotional center of "John Cougar."

"Some songs, you just wear ’em around like a squeaky leather jacket," says Urban. "It just takes a while for it to feel loose, and just to feel right."

Capitol Nashville released "John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16" to radio June 9, and Urban performed it the next day on the CMT Music Awards. It’s No. 24 in its second week on Country Airplay and No. 25 in its third week on Hot Country Songs. Whether people are responding to the nostalgia or the struggle it represents, they’re clearly drawn to "John Cougar," the song and the icon, who made America real to a kid growing up Down Under.

"His songwriting was such a huge part of my life," says Urban. "I almost feel like between all the TV I grew up with in Australia and John Mellencamp’s music -- among many others -- I knew what it meant to live there and grow up there."

http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/country/6612606/the-long-road-to-completing-john-cougar-keith-urbans-newest-hit

[Mellencamp fires up his crowd at Berglund Performing Arts Theatre]

Mellencamp fires up his crowd at Berglund Performing Arts Theatre
By Tad Dickens

Nearly 40 years have passed since John Mellencamp started in the music business, and he still knows how to get a crowd stirred up.

From the look of things at Berglund Performing Arts Theatre on Wednesday night, many in the audience of 1,797 had been Mellencamp fans since he first came to national prominence in the early 1980s. But they were just as game as the headliner to rock out. Some were a little too game. Some were even obnoxious.

By the end of the night, even Mellencamp was exasperated with the struggles among security and one giant and overly exuberant reveler.

"Would you guys quit fightin' down there?" he called out after he and his band played one of his signature hits, "Pink Houses." "I'll have to hop down there and kick you guys' asses or something."

It wasn't the typical relaxed crowd in the 2,100 seat venue. But that's what good rock 'n' roll music can do to people. It can get them fired up, maybe a little out of their minds. Mellencamp figured that out way back when, with such classics as "Small Town," "Paper In Fire," "Crumblin' Down" and "Authority Song."

He and his groove and texture machine of a six-piece band delivered those songs, some newer and lesser known ones, even a couple of numbers that he wrote with horror author Stephen King for a musical.

Of the musical, "Ghosts of Darkland County," Mellencamp said that he and King didn't know what they were doing when they began working on it 15 years ago, but it is now scheduled for production in London's West End.

"Art is never complete; it is only abandoned," he told the crowd. "The only critic without an agenda is time. Time will tell what kind of person you are."

Two hours told the tale of a performer who at first seemed distant, but by the end was fully engaged, his raspy Indiana drawl warming up as the set went on, his outsized charisma keeping security busy with audience members who wanted to rush the stage or spaz around the center aisle.

He started the show with songs from his most recent album, "Plain Spoken" — the big beat shuffle of "Lawless Times" and the fiddle-fueled angst of "Troubled Man." He was four songs in before pulling out the first hit, "Small Town," but the crowd was already with him. It stayed with him as he covered Robert Johnson's "Stones in My Passway," Mellencamp reaching way up for notes and grinning at the end.

The rowdiness really started to build as he sang "Check It Out." "Getting too drunk on Saturdays / Playin' football with the kids on Sundays / "Soarin' with the eagles all week long / And this is all that we've learned about livin.'"

That's part of his appeal — a down home philosophy that appeals to blue collar people and inspires them to raise some Cain. "Rain on the Scarecrow" was a blast of rock with lyrics about a failed family farm. Show closer "Cherry Bomb" was about reminiscence, Mellencamp introducing it by noting that "people love to talk about old times."

He gave them some more of them to talk about.

Opening act Carlene Carter had plenty of old times to recount, having grown up the daughter of June Carter Cash, step-daughter of Johnny Cash and granddaughter of country music founding "Mother" Maybelle Carter. Carter, performing solo, played music from her most recent project, "Carter Girl," a tribute to the Carter Family era and its music, as well as from her own rocking past, opening a 44-minute set with her MTV-era number, "Every Little Thing."

Her voice is like a family heirloom, and her guitar picking style was reminiscent of Maybelle Carter's.

Mellencamp called her back out to help with the "Ghosts of Darkland County" numbers. Their harmonies made a listener wish for more of the same.

http://www.roanoke.com/arts_and_entertainment/music/reviews/concert_review/mellencamp-fires-up-his-crowd-at-berglund-performing-arts-theatre/article_530cfef8-1570-11e5-aab0-e7f5ec9c4910.html?mode=jqm

[Music review: John Mellencamp]

Music review: John Mellencamp
BY HAYS DAVIS Special correspondent

Seeing John Mellencamp live illustrates why his latest album hit the Billboard top 20 and what likely prompted Republic Records to offer him a lifetime contract.

His songs continue to age remarkably well and sound of-the-moment, whether new or old. More importantly, they echo the experiences of those who follow his music. In short, they sound like his fans.

At the Altria Theater Saturday night, Mellencamp engaged the audience at times with the enthusiasm of a newbie embracing a big break.

With the crowd welcoming him like a returning hero, Mellencamp and his six-piece band led with a pair of songs from 2014’s “Plain Spoken” before lighting up the room with “Minutes to Memories” and “Small Town” from 1985’s “Scarecrow.”

During a feisty take on Robert Johnson’s “Stones in My Passway,” he broke into a bout of dancing before meeting the audience at the edge of the stage.

Playing before a backdrop of a graffiti wall, the band sported formal wear and fleshed out the songs with fiddle, harmonica, accordion and standup bass. Mellencamp’s vocals sounded seasoned and strong as he moved comfortably between the darker “The Full Catastrophe” and upbeat songs like “Check It Out.”

Mellencamp seemed to be enjoying himself, a point that carried into a story about how his father regularly presses him to have a good time. When a particularly ebullient fan let out a yell during a story about a young Mellencamp praying with his grandmother, he joined the moment by incorporating a holler of his own into the tale.

The set list spanned the past several decades, with highlights including “Rain on the Scarecrow” and “Paper in Fire.”

While each song in the show was received well, nothing quite matched the moment when a solo Mellencamp broke into his chart-topping 1982 hit “Jack & Diane.” The audience sprang to its feet and sang along with every word, and for three minutes everyone was outside the Tastee Freez with a chili dog.

Carlene Carter opened the show with a set that charmed the crowd as she introduced songs from her latest album, “Carter Girl.” Performing solo, Carter moved from guitar to piano, and her detailed between-song anecdotes included tales of growing up as the daughter of June Carter Cash.

Carter’s rich vocals made her performance memorable, but hearing of a leather-clad Kris Kristofferson emerging from a helicopter on her lawn made it doubly entertaining.

http://www.richmond.com/entertainment/music/article_4045c2f6-7636-5870-9dd9-308aad4cb7db.html

[John Mellencamp's Still “Plain Spoken” After All These Years]

John Mellencamp's Still “Plain Spoken” After All These Years
By Gary Graff

John Mellencamp used to feel at home playing the biggest arenas and amphitheaters that could hold him during his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame career.

Nowadays, however, the “Small Town” guy likes the smaller places.

Some of it is pragmatic, he freely acknowledges. The albums and radio play are not as abundant as they were during the multiplatinum ’80s heyday of “American Fool,” “Uh-Huh,” “Scarecrow” and “The Lonesome Jubilee.” Fortunately, however, that dovetails with a time in his life when Mellencamp, at 63, has less interest in playing the big rock shows.

“I just can’t go out in front of 10,000 drunk people and play anymore,” the Indiana native says in a recent interview. “There’s nothing there for me to do that. I’m a musician. I’m a songwriter. You’re coming to hear music. I’m not here for your folly and your throwing up, too. I really have no interest in doing that.”

But before he sounds like, well, his father, Mellencamp adds, “Don’t get me wrong; I have nothing with people having a drink or being stoned a little bit, but I don’t want fights breaking out and I don’t want to have to stop the show because people are jumping on the stage and all that stupid (stuff). That was all really fun when you were 28. It’s ... silly now”

The theaters and opera houses are also better suited for Mellencamp’s latest album, the aptly titled “Plain Spoken,” which came out in September. It’s his first new release in seven years, and Mellencamp’s first in a new lifetime deal with Republic Records.

“I thought it was time to probably make one,” Mellencamp says with a chuckle. “Y’know, I’ve never planned nothing in my life. I probably could’ve been more popular if I would’ve made a plan.”

Popularity is relative, of course. Since 1976 he’s sold more than 40 million albums worldwide, scored nearly two dozen Top 40 hits and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008. He also established credentials in painting, film (“Falling From Grace,” “After Image,” “Lone Star State of Mind”) and, more recently theater, via “Ghost Brothers of Darkland County,” a joint effort with Stephen King.

Mellencamp began his career as Johnny Cougar during the mid-’70s, eventually retaking his surname and growing from brash ne’er-do-well into an Americana troubadour and activist who co-founded Farm Aid in 1984. Nearly four decades in, Mellencamp still sounds quietly awed by how durable his career has been.

“We were all kids when we signed our first (record) deals, and you didn’t really anticipate making records your entire life,” says the thrice-married Mellencamp, who has five children and has been linked with actress Meg Ryan, who took the cover photo for “Plain Spoken.” “I got a text from another artist the other day that just read, ‘Can you ... believe we’re still doing this?’ I wrote back, ‘No. It’s unbelievable to me.’

“I’m very grateful that I never had to have a straight job. I never had to do any of that stuff. But I will tell you that being in a rock band — I don’t even like to use the word ‘rock’ anymore — early in my career and now being a songwriter and my own boss tends to make it all very colorful, to be kind. It makes a guy very colorful.”

Early on, in fact, Mellencamp dubbed himself The Little Bastard on production credits in a nod to his sometimes surly temperament and the bad-boy posture of his music. At the start of “Plain Spoken” he declares himself “a troubled man,” while on “The Isolation of Mister” he confesses that he’s “never looked forward to the future, never enjoyed where I’ve been.” Give him an opening in conversation, he’ll grouse with gusto about the political right, the deteriorating state of the music industry and declining opportunities for artists in the Internet age.

“Intellectual property, it just doesn’t have any value because everybody thinks music should be free. Everybody thinks books should be free, and movies,” Mellencamp explains. And because of that, he considers “Plain Spoken” “just a calling card.”

“I don’t intend that it’s going to sell anything like I used to sell. Everybody goes, ‘Oh, it’s his age. He’s not writing hit songs. ...’ “That’s bull---- It’s got nothing to do with my age. It’s got nothing to do with the songs on the record. It has to do with the delivery system, the Internet, and that people don’t want to pay for music anymore.”

Mellencamp acknowledges that environment is liberating for a veteran artist like him, however, and “Plain Spoken” reflects that. Its 10 songs are dominated by acoustic instruments and introspective lyrical ruminations. It’s not until the closing “Lawless Times” that he and his band get up a head of blues-rock steam as he rails about big business, government, authority in general and illegal downloading.

“I think it’s definitely not an album a 25-year-old could write,” Mellencamp says. “Maybe some of our greatest songwriters could’ve written something like that at 25; obviously (Bob) Dylan did. But for me it was an achievement to be able to take my life experience and try to relate it to people our age, which is really what this record is.

“I’m not sure how much my 19-year-old son would enjoy this record, y’know? He’s 19; I’m not so sure he’s gonna know what I’m talking about. But that’s OK. It’s not for him. I don’t have to write songs for 19-year-olds anymore. That’s not really in my vocabulary anymore.”

http://www.macombdaily.com/arts-and-entertainment/20150608/john-mellencamps-still-plain-spoken-after-all-these-years

[Review: John Mellencamp sings the blues, and more, at Detroit Opera House]

Review: John Mellencamp sings the blues, and more, at Detroit Opera House
By Gary Graff, The Oakland Press



DETROIT -- Putting John Mellencamp in an opera house seems like the proverbial bull in the china shop scenario.

The dude refers to himself as the Little Bastard, after all. And the hard-hitting heartland rock on which he’s staked his reputation is more punky than Puccini, more R.O.C.K. (in the U.S.A.) than “Rigoletto.” Somewhere Giuseppe Verdie may be rolling in his grave.

But Mellencamp’s early two-hour show on Wednesday night, June 10, proved well-suited for the Detroit Opera House. His songs, and performance, still have plenty of bite, but the Indiana singer and songwriter has mellowed just enough and, more importantly, expanded his musical reach to comfortably fit such intimate confines. He still stirred ‘em up on Wednesday, especially with anthemic hits such as “Small Town,” “Paper In Fire,” “Crumblin’ Down,” “Authority Song,” “Pink Houses” and “Cherry Bomb,” but there was an age-appropriate gravitas and deliberate arc to the encoreless 21-song show that made it more vital than just another rock ‘n’ roll showdown.

What Mellencamp chose to leave out was particularly telling. There was no “Hurts So Good” or, for that matter, “R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.” He stuck to the weighty side of his canon; even the aforementioned pop smashes as well as the likes of a solo acoustic “Jack and Diane” and “Check it Out” were fortified with serious underpinnings, whether social commentary or introspection. And the show was in many ways defined by the rootsier and bluesier material from recent albums such as “Plain Spoken” and “Life, Death, Love and Freedom,” including the pensive “Troubled Man” and “Lawless Times,” a cover of Robert Johnson’s “Stones in My Passway” -- which featured Mellencamp’s most animated dance moves of the night -- and Dylanesque fare such as “The Isolation of Mister” and “Longest Days.”

He also scored with a pair of songs -- “Away From This World” and the stomping “Tear This Cabin Down” -- from “Ghost Brothers of Darkland County,” the musical he wrote with Stephen King, on which Mellencamp was assisted by opening act Carlene Carter, who was part of the production’s touring company last fall.

Mellencamp’s facile band, decked out in formal wear for the evening, proved up to the task of covering the set’s broad stylistic and emotional range, adding new introductions to some of the songs -- such as the heavier start of “Small Town” and elevating the arrangements with solos from guitarist Andy York and violinist Miriam Sturm. Strum, with keyboardist Troye Kinnett on accordion, also played a curious late show “Overture,” lacing together snippets of various Mellencamp hits before the group returned en masse for a pulverizing “Rain on the Scarecrow.”

Mellencamp offered warm memories of playing early career shows at the Center Stage in Canton and also ruminated on mortality, aging and sentimentality. “The only critic without an agenda is time,” he noted at one point, and Wednesday’s concert showed that time has indeed been good for both Mellencamp and his music.

http://www.theoaklandpress.com/arts-and-entertainment/20150611/review-john-mellencamp-sings-the-blues-and-more-at-detroit-opera-house

[John Mellencamp leaves memorable impression on Peoria]

John Mellencamp leaves memorable impression on Peoria
It may have taken 16 years, but it was a concert that local John Mellencamp fans won’t soon forget.

Mellencamp’s stop at the Peoria Civic Center June 3 featured plenty of hits, new tracks from his “Plain Spoken” album and some personal looks at his life.



It may have taken 16 years, but it was a concern that local John Mellencamp fans won’t soon forget.

Mellencamp’s stop at the Peoria Civic Center June 3 featured plenty of hits, new tracks from his “Plain Spoken” album and some personal looks at his life.

Before taking the stage for almost two hours, Carlene Carter, daughter of June Carter, warmed up the crowd with some of the Carter family hits and stories. Between songs such as “I Fell in Love” and “Stronger,” Carter told various stories from her life growing up and of touring around the states.

Whether it was playing the guitar or piano, the crowd got into both her songs and stories, but really exploded when Mellencamp took the stage.

Mellencamp started off hot and went up from there. He kicked the show off with two new songs, “Lawless Times” and “Troubled Man” before going into “Minutes to Memories.”

Once he and his seven-piece band got going, though, the hits started rolling out. From “Pink Houses” to “Check It Out” and “Jack and Diane,” audience members sang and yelled along with Mellencamp through the night.  “Jack and Diane” was especially memorable, both for being an acoustic solo and for joking with the crowd when they came in early with the refrain.

Personally, I loved the haunting melody and his voice on “The Full Catastrophe,” which featured just him and John Cascella on keyboard. It’s vastly different from his normal songs, but that stark difference shows the versatility of his voice.

For as great as Mellencamp’s voice was, though, his band was just as strong. Miriam Sturm showed just how hot of a violin she could play throughout the night, with various solos on songs sounding perfect. Andy York also did a great job on guitar as well, playing strong but never overpowering.

When Mellencamp mentioned his work with Stephen King on the musical “Ghost Brothers of Darkland County,” he brought out Carter to help sing a few of the songs from the musical. The duet was perfect, between Mellencamp’s roaring voice and Carter’s country twang.

After a few more tunes, Mellencamp wrapped up the night with “Cherry Bomb.” This led to probably the only complaint of the night from the crowd: no encore. However, if the only complaint the crowd has is they wanted to keep the night going, then he’s doing everything right.

http://www.washingtontimesreporter.com/article/20150609/ENTERTAINMENT/150609166

[Concert review: John Mellencamp rocked better than ever at DeVos Performance Hall]

Concert review: John Mellencamp rocked better than ever at DeVos Performance Hall
By John Serba



GRAND RAPIDS, MI – At the conclusion of his set Tuesday night at DeVos Performance Hall, John Mellencamp waxed amusingly and philosophically about nostalgia. He went on about how older folk – a camp he admits he pitches his tent in now – tend to go on and on about "old times," then followed it with a nostalgia number about nostalgia, "Cherry Bomb," a bit of delicious Midwestern corn that created many memories for people who blared their car radios in the 1980s.

I'm sure it's still creating good memories, considering how strong Mellencamp's performance was. He spent the entirety of the 115-minute concert by turns warmly embracing and stubbornly fighting nostalgia. An insistence upon the viability of new material came early, via "Lawless Times" and "Troubled Man," from 2014 record "Plain Spoken," the evening's first two numbers. The former features a lyric that stabs out of the arrangement like a sword: "I don't trust myself, I don't trust you." During the latter, he bandied about words such as "anxiety," "self-destruction" and "failure," punctuating with "I laughed out loud once/Won't do that again...I'm a troubled man."

So this clearly isn't the same Mellencamp in tone – he paints with the cynicism and sarcasm we don't sense in the massive anthems of his past. Yet "Lawless Times" looks outward, and "Troubled Man" looks inward, something he so effortlessly did in a single breath on many of those hits, in which he spun personal observations and experiences into simple profundities, tightly braiding them with irrepressible hooks. Those songs would come, unavoidably, the first crowd-pleaser being "Small Town," although it's hard to say the performance was better than his gritty cover of Robert Johnson's "Stones in My Passway," which pared his six-piece backing band down to a punchy power trio.

During the opening chords of "Small Town," Mellencamp stood back, blending with the band, as if acknowledging that some songs are bigger than him. Later, he would introduce a solo, acoustic version of "Jack and Diane" with tongue slightly in cheek: "I can't even figure out why I play it anymore," he said. "But y'all want to hear it." Performing it unplugged was an act of giving the song to the audience, letting them sing along without a band drowning them out.

Of course, the crowd, eager to get to the chorus, and perhaps a few beverages into the evening, stepped on the second verse, prompting Mellencamp to playfully chide them. The number served as a reminder that 2,000-plus people, even if they're a little drunk and off-key, being accountants and clerks and so forth, and generally not professional singers, can unify their voices into something elevating. It felt like affirmation of the power of strong, enduring songs, how good ones can transcend its time and just be about whatever moment it's in right now.

His band was consistently stellar, anchored by longtime guitarist Mike Wanchic, drummer Dane Clark and bassist John Gunnell, with lead guitarist Andy York, violinist Miriam Sturm and keyboardist/accordionist Troye Kinnett providing pointed accoutrement. Mellencamp's stage presence has gotten more eccentric – just this side of Tom Waits' weirdness, and thankfully not even close to Bob Dylan's impenetrability. Although he seemed a bit stiff physically, he postured like a rock star with the utmost confidence in his band and songs, vigorously chewing gum and putting fists in the air when not playing his telecaster.

Mellencamp's between-song raps rambled amusingly, ranging from endearingly crusty to the earnestness that characterized his early career and John Cougar persona. His voice, a product of uncountable cigarettes – maybe that's nicotine gum he chonks – veered from his signature rasp to a cantankerous growl, most prevalent on "The Full Catastrophe," a Waitsian number if there ever was one, performed under somber blue lights and loaded with bleak, comic hyperbole: "Man, I was tattooed when it first came out," he grumbled cheekily, the chorus refrain referencing "the full catastrophe of life."

Pairing nicely with the rigorous musicianship was an impeccable pacing, exemplified by a sequence featuring dark rockers "Rain on the Scarecrow" and "Paper in Fire," along with blues-rooted "If I Die Sudden," leading lithely to an awesome and beefy run through "Crumblin' Down" and a spirited "Authority Song." Only a pair of songs from Mellencamp's stage-musical collaboration with Stephen King, "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County," felt like padding even with their duets with opening act Carlene Carter, a forced attempt at presenting unfamiliar material.

"Check it Out" and "Pink Houses" still wear their weighty Americana melancholy well, even with additional live instrumentation; any slight tweak in tone would derail their poignant slice-of-life sincerity. It's worth mentioning the evening's most notable exclusion," "ROCK in the USA," which the crowd most likely would have enjoyed, but it just doesn't seem functional in a modern Mellencamp set. Some things change, some stay the same – Mellencamp is as compelling a performer as ever.

Carter, the daughter of June Carter Cash and former 1990s commercial-country hopeful, opened the show with a terrific 45-minute set culled from her solo work and ageless Carter Family cuts. She shared amusing anecdotes between strong solo performances of "Black Jack David," "The Storms Are on the Ocean" and a heartbreaking lament about the death of her mother, stepfather Johnny Cash and sister Rosey Nix Adams, "Lonesome Valley."

http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2015/06/concert_review_john_mellencamp.html

[Doctor who saved John Mellencamp's life dies in Birmingham]

Doctor who saved John Mellencamp's life dies in Birmingham
By Greg Garrison



The neurosurgeon who saved rock singer John Mellencamp's life as an infant has died in Birmingham, just three months after attending Mellencamp's March 12 concert in Alabama at the singer's invitation.

Dr. Robert Heimburger, 97, died Tuesday, June 9, at his residence, the Somerby at St. Vincent's One Nineteen retirement home in Hoover, Somerby spokeswoman Valerie Boyd confirmed. He was surrounded by family when he died, she said.

Heimburger performed the dangerous surgery on Mellencamp, who was born Oct. 7, 1951, when the future singer was an infant.

Heimburger pioneered surgeries on newborn infants with spina bifida. At the time, it was common to wait six months or longer to see if the child lived before attempting surgery, he said. "I had established a different way of doing surgery," Heimburger said in an interview with AL.com.

Mellencamp's birth defect on his spinal cord at the back of the neck would likely have been fatal, Heimburger said. Mellencamp was less than six weeks old when he had his surgery. The late Dr. John Russell performed the surgery with him, Heimburger said. "We got rid of it," he said. "I went out to tell the parents how it was going. I did have outpatient visits with him quite often. The Mellencamps were delightful people."

Mellencamp's parents waited years to tell him about his brush with death as an infant.
"Twelve years went by and I was sitting in class and some kid said, 'Hey, John, what's that big pink scar on the back of your neck?" Mellencamp said during his speech at his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on March 10, 2008.

Dr. Robert Heimburger talks about lifesaving surgery he performed on John MellencampAlabama resident Dr. Robert Heimburger perfomed a lifesaivng operation on an infant John Mellencamp.

"And I said, 'What scar?' My parents had never told me anything had ever happened to me. I'm lucky. And my Grandma, my entire life, from a little kid until she died, would always come up to me and whisper. She called me Buddy. And she'd go, 'Buddy, you're the luckiest boy in the world.' And I am."

Mellencamp mentioned Heimburger in the speech. "It was a high-risk operation," he said. "It took 18 hours. A young surgeon carefully worked on my spinal cord without damaging it and damaging any of the nerves. And the doctor charged my parents, who didn't have any money, a dollar. I called this guy up, his name is Dr. Heimburger. He's still alive... I talked to him before I came here to get all the details."

In September last year, he met Heimburger in person for the first time since those doctor's visits when he was an infant.

"He remembered it because I was the first one they'd ever done," Mellencamp told Anthony Mason of CBS News, for a segment that aired Oct. 3, 2014 on CBS This Morning.
Mellencamp said he was one of three babies who underwent similar surgeries at the Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis.

"They did three operations," Mellencamp said. "One died on the table. Another girl lived I think till she was 14 and then she died. And then me ... So they basically cut my head off from here to here (he points fingers at each side of the front of his neck), laid it open, cut that thing off and then put all the nerves into my spine."

The hospital still has the records of Mellencamp's surgery, with an X-ray that shows a bulging mass at the back of his neck.

"This thing was the size of a man's fist," Mellencamp said. "I'm 62 years old; I just saw for the first time the growth on the back of my neck. It was like, 'Why didn't you guys show this to me earlier? 'Cause I would have seen how lucky I am to even be here. It was like finding out that your parents weren't your parents. It was really an epiphany moment for me. You just couldn't thank the guy enough."

Heimburger said that he was on staff at the time at Indiana University, where he was a longtime chief of neurosurgery. He was on salary and routinely did not charge for surgeries. "When I first started practice, I did not charge pastors, policemen, firemen, military," Heimburger said.

http://www.al.com/living/index.ssf/2015/06/doctor_who_saved_john_mellenca.html

[5 ways John Mellencamp has maintained his authenticity]

5 ways John Mellencamp has maintained his authenticity

In his recent performance for David Letterman, John Mellencamp's voice resembled Tom Waits: more eccentric than we remember, and more a mouthful of gravel than honey.

At 63, Mellencamp is far removed from the youthful roar that identified his youth – precisely why he dropped the "Cougar" from between "John" and "Mellencamp." He's touring theaters instead of arenas, writing contemplative records instead of slick, catchy ones. He claims he was never comfortable with fame. His songs have never been more sincere (although they've never been phony, even the massive, evergreen hits).

If you think this is an elaborate way of calling the guy old, well, you're wrong. He's more credible and authentic than ever – and here are five reasons why:

1. He sounds like a wise man now. In his aforementioned Letterman appearance, Mellencamp dispensed his grandmother's earnest philosophy to the retiring talk-show host: "Life is short, even in its longest days," he said, which inspired his song "Longest Days."

2. He's still prolific. Although the era of the download derailed many a musician's ambition to release albums, he never stopped writing. Although his modern discography isn't as crazed as Neil Young's, Mellencamp is way more productive than many "legacy" artists of his era. He has released six albums in the 21st century, the latest being 2014's "Plain Spoken," as well as songs for the stage production "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County." (Those who purchase tickets online for his current tour dates get a free download of the new album.)

3. His shows are more than just nostalgia. Sure, he plays the hits – he'd get lynched if he skipped "Jack and Diane." But peruse his recent set lists, and you'll see he isn't afraid to mix in recent work and the traditional songs that inspire him.

4. He picked Carlene Carter as his current opening act. Of course Mellencamp wants to tour with someone who has deep roots in American music - the daughter of June Carter Cash (and stepdaughter of Johnny Cash). Her set should feature some Carter Family hits along with her own compositions.

5. He "acts his age." Those are essentially his own words. The new songs have been described as "thoughtful" and "quieter" than what many may expect from the rocker, who they know for his big 1980s anthems ("R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.", etc.). That makes him more of a critical success than a commercial one, drawing comparisons to Bob Dylan. And he's happy with the way his voice has aged: "Two million cigarettes later and I finally sound like a black guy," he told Billboard magazine in 2014. "Thank God. The cigarettes finally paid off. They're going to give me cancer and they're going to kill me, but for a short amount of time, they're going to make my voice sound like it should sound."

http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2015/06/5_ways_john_mellencamp_has_mai.html

[John Mellencamp inspires childlike glee at the Riverside Theater]

John Mellencamp inspires childlike glee at the Riverside Theater
By Piet Levy of the Journal Sentinel

Farm Aid at Miller Park in 2010 had Willie Nelson and Neil Young and Dave Matthews and Kenny Chesney — but hands down, John Mellencamp was the best entertainer on that day, enthusiastically playing hit after hit, accompanied by stadium singalongs, even a little dancing atop the Brewers dugout.

But a man can change a good deal in four years, and the Mellencamp who appeared on last year's "Plain Spoken" wasn't very happy company. "Never made love with my love in it," Mellencamp sang with tattered voice on "The Isolation of Mister," in which he also professes he never wanted friends.

Many of the other "Spoken" songs are just as dour. It's not like Mellencamp's been an inherently happy musician, and the latest album isn't awful by any means. But stripped of any and all rock excesses, Mellencamp's misery was more plainly visible.

Mellencamp sang "Mister" Friday at a near-capacity Riverside Theater — and, not surprisingly, he isolated some in the crowd. There was also an inexplicable, and frankly embarrassing, moment when a swell of crowd banter erupted at the start of an acoustic version of "Lost Highways" — mere moments after Mellencamp shared a touching story about his grandmother before she passed away.

He looked annoyed when that happened — and was clearly bothered by a couple of loud drunken women whom he gently roasted a few times Friday. But the crowd was enthralled otherwise, and Mellencamp put plenty of heart in his heartland rock songs, and even offered inspiration throughout the two-hour show.

He stayed James Dean-cool Friday with his squinty eyes and mellow swagger, chewing his gum and slyly brushing his hand through his floppy mane of hair. Fans, though, acted like giddy teenagers, trying to "hold on to 16" as long as they could, as Mellencamp famously suggested on "Jack & Diane."

During "Tear This Cabin Down" — a breather track sung with opener Carlene Carter, from Mellencamp's Stephen King-penned musical "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County" — a couple even danced down the center aisle, the woman sporting a hockey jersey with the name "Mellencamp" on the back. And the audience was so excited to get to the chorus during an acoustic rendition of "Jack & Diane" that it skipped over the second verse.

When the night's set list veered into more unexpected territory, Mellencamp and his six-piece band made a little extra effort to keep the crowd engaged. "Plain Spoken" track "Troubled Man" fared far better than "Isolation," with Dane Clark's booming drums and Troye Kinnet's warm accordion. For the Robert Johnson cover "Stones in My Passway," Mellencamp channeled David Byrne with a quirky little interpretive dance at the start, then popped the collar on his sports jacket, and tried to match guitarist Andy York's blues-rock smolder with a grand, voice-belting finish.

And performing alone with Kinnet's saloon-ready piano for "The Full Catastrophe," Mellencamp rolled up his sleeves and took drags of a cigarette, singing with the raspy gravitas and enigmatic allure Bob Dylan displayed in the same room a few weeks back.

After "Catastrophe," Mellencamp walked offstage to let Kinnet and fiddle player Miriam Sturm run through a wordless medley of "Jerry," "Just Another Day" and "I Need a Lover." Then he re-emerged for a nonstop string of seven hits, including "Rain on the Scarecrow," "Paper in Fire" and "Pink Houses." Mellencamp let the crowd carry half of the choruses, but he finally lost his composure with a dynamic drum solo during "Crumblin' Down," and slipped in a little "Land of 1000 Dances," a song he's sung since he was 14, at the end of "Authority Song."

Even with just 2,000 people, the Riverside was just as loud and electric Friday as Miller Park at that Farm Aid set five years back.

"I was 27 years old when I wrote this song," the 62-year-old Mellencamp said in the middle of "Authority." "And I still feel the same way tonight."

Judging by the childlike glee of the crowd, he wasn't the only one.


JOHN MELLENCAMP'S BANTER OF WISDOM

■ "When we're brought into this world, they find it fit to give each and every one of us a dream....When a guy gets to be my age, he realizes that just having the dream was success enough."

■ "The only criticism you should listen to is the criticism you give yourself. It doesn't matter what they say, it only matters what you think."

■ "We are all great warriors in this world."

THE SETLIST

1. "Lawless Times"

2. "Troubled Man"

3. "Minutes to Memories"

4. "Small Town"

5. "Stones in my Passway" (Robert Johnson cover)

6. "Human Wheels"

7. "The Isolation of Mister"

8. "Check It Out"

9. "Longest Days" (acoustic)

10. "Jack & Diane" (acoustic solo)

11. "The Full Catastrophe" (piano accompaniment)

12. "Away From This World" (from "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County," featuring Carlene Carter)

13. "Tear This Cabin Down" (from "County," featuring Carter)

14. "Jerry"/"Just Another Day"/"I Need a Lover" (violin and accordion medley)

15. "Rain on the Scarecrow"

16. "Paper in Fire"

17. "If I Die Sudden"

18."Crumblin' Down"

19. "Authority Song" (with "Land of 1000 Dances")

20. "Pink Houses"

21. "Cherry Bomb"

Video Review

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/7P-NkuxBVgI?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_US" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/7P-NkuxBVgI?fs=1&amp;amp;hl=en_US</a>

http://www.jsonline.com/entertainment/musicandnightlife/john-mellencamp-at-the-riverside-theater-b99510805z1-306346581.html

[John Mellencamp performs live on 2015 Plain Spoken tour at Overture Hall in Madison, Wis.]

John Mellencamp performs live on 2015 Plain Spoken tour at Overture Hall in Madison, Wis.



Five stars

Celebrating roughly four decades as a touring musician, John Mellencamp played to a packed house at the Overture Hall in Madison, Wis., on June 2. Touring in support of his latest album “Plain Spoken,” his 22nd studio release, Mellencamp’s show drew from every aspect of his accomplished career. Carlene Carter performed solo to open the show.

Mellencamp has made a successful career telling brutally honest stories through music, while tugging on the heartstrings of his fans along the way. His plainspoken delivery on subject matter that resonates with fans was obvious on Tuesday night. He performed with his airtight, six-piece band while also providing some insight into some of his songs.

Guitarist Mike Wanchic spoke with us prior to the tour and prefaced it by stating, “[The fans] are going to see things in this show that they've never seen at a John Mellencamp show, and may never see again. Through both the song choice and delivery, it's a unique opportunity to see a unique show.” Wanchic’s words rang true as Mellencamp worked through stripped down versions of his hits and touched upon some of his influences. A heavy riff lead into blues legend Robert Johnson’s cover of “Stones in My Passway,” while Mellencamp shuffled his feet on stage. His gravelly vocals were the perfect complement to Johnson’s song.

Each song conveyed a story and, on occasion, Mellencamp would break down the background behind a song. “A man has a dream…it’s not whether or not that dream comes true but it’s the quest that matters,” Mellencamp said. He added, “My grandmother once told me, ‘Life is short even in its longest days.’” He then played a stripped-down, acoustic version of “Longest Days.” He followed with a solo acoustic performance of “Jack and Diane” with the crowd coming in strong for the chorus. Mellencamp had to stop them when they chimed in prematurely after the first verse.

Components of rock, jazz, blues and country filled the night. Mellencamp performed the emotional “The Full Catastrophe” with only a backing piano. The country-tinged “The Isolation of Mister” took the show into another direction. Then, at midset, Mellencamp noted that he had spent 16 years working on a collaborative musical that recently came to fruition, “Ghost Brothers of Darkland County.” They performed “Away From This World” and “Tear This Cabin Down” from the production with opener Carlene Carter on vocals.

While the beginning of the show meandered between new material and various paths of Mellencamp’s prodigious catalog, it was the end of the night that had most of the house on their feet. Beginning with “Rain on the Scarecrow,” they proceeded to work through hits “Paper in Fire,” the rocking “If I Die Sudden” was the perfect segue into “Crumblin’ Down.” They finished strong with “Authority Song,” “Pink Houses” and “Cherry Bomb.” If tickets are available, this is definitely a show to see.

http://www.examiner.com/review/a-multifaceted-john-mellencamp-rocks-madison

[John Mellencamp offers a cool career retrospective at Peabody Opera House concert]

John Mellencamp offers a cool career retrospective at Peabody Opera House concert
By Kevin C. Johnson
St. Louis Post-Dispatch



Classic rocker John Mellencamp had an especially fun moment with his 1982 hit “Jack & Diane” during his concert Friday night at the Peabody Opera House.

“The next song I’ve been playing a long time. I don’t even know why I play it, except you love it.

“But I have to laugh. I remember what I was doing when I wrote it,” he said before singing.

The audience joined him instantly on the memorable song, though he admonished his fans for jumping to the catchy chorus way too quickly.

Dressed in an all-black, tailored suit that oozed style, Mellencamp and his show-off assembly of musicians that made up his band gave a fitting retrospective of his career that covered rock, country and more during the rollicking show.

Mellencamp opened the down-home, two-hour concert with “Lawless Times” and “Troubled Man,” two songs from his latest album, the very fine “Plain Spoken.”

“Thank you very much. I’m John Mellencamp,” he said, as if his self-identification was necessary.

He promised fans songs they know, songs they don’t know, songs they could sing along to and songs they could dance to, as he demonstrated that with a little jig all his own.

On Mellencamp’s musical menu was everything from new cuts to a blues cover to the hits fans want most, though no “Hurts So Good” or “R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A. (A Salute to ’60s Rock).”

At a still-young 63 and voice as raspy as ever, Mellencamp kept the crowd of mostly baby boomers on their feet for much of the evening through songs such as “Small Town,” “Human Wheels,” “Check It Out” and “The Full Catastrophe,” during which he slow dragged on a cigarette.

He honored blues great Robert Johnson with “Stones in My Passway” before going full acoustic, minus the band, during “Jack & Diane” and “Longest Days.”

Country singer Carlene Carter joined Mellencamp on two songs from his musical “Ghost Brothers of Darkland County” (which he co-wrote with horror author Stephen King), “Away From This World” and “Tear This Cabin Down.”

“Crumblin’ Down,” “Pink Houses” “The Authority Song” and “Paper in Fire” were among the songs near the bottom of the show that sent fans home with a Mellencamp hit parade in their heads. After some chatting about old times, he closed his show with a song about old times, “Cherry Bomb.”

Carter, daughter of June Carter Cash and stepdaughter of Johnny Cash, opened with an intimate acoustic guitar set that drew from her album “Carter Girl,” inspired by her musical lineage (the album includes some songs originally recorded by the Carter Family).

Carter opened with her 1993 hit “Every Little Thing” and included “Little Black Train” from her latest album in her set, along with a song she wrote for Emmylou Harris.

She kept much of the set in the family. “Lonesome Valley 2003,” on which she switched to piano, was a poignant song about losing both her mother and Cash in that year. She also performed Cash’s “Will the Circle Be Unbroken.” The Carter Family’s “The Storms Are On the Ocean” was dedicated to those serving the country in the Armed Forces.

She recounted the story of a helicopter landing in her front yard and Kris Kristofferson getting out to see her stepfather. Carter later recorded “Black Jack David” for “Carter Girl,” which she performed here.

http://www.stltoday.com/entertainment/music/kevin-johnson/john-mellencamp-offers-a-cool-career-retrospective-at-peabody-opera/article_976e5305-09e3-59c5-8226-9cdb1680eda8.html

[Apparently, 2,800 John Mellencamp fans don't even know how his biggest hit goes (review)]

Apparently, 2,800 John Mellencamp fans don't even know how his biggest hit goes (review)
By Chris Baker

Apparently, even 2,800 of John Mellencamp's most loyal fans don't know how his biggest hit goes.

As the Heartland rocker strummed the opening chords to "Jack & Diane," early in his two-hour set Friday night, the sold-out crowd at the Landmark Theatre roared along, eagerly singing every word. After his first verse, they collectively belted, "Oh yeah, life goes on, long after the thrill of living is gone!"

Mellencamp stopped the song and chuckled.

"Songs generally have two verses then a chorus," Mellencamp explained, patiently. "You guys are jumping ahead and singing the chorus. So we'll do the second verse then I'll cue you."

The crowd loved it. Clearly it wasn't the first time an audience had jumped the gun. Mellencamp played on, seemingly amused and wholly unfazed.

So went the evening, with Mellencamp playing a bit, then giving the crowd advice or sharing stories and words of wisdom. He outlined his set early on: "We're going to do some songs you know, some you don't know. Some you can sing along to and some you can dance to."

The crowd echoed Mellencamp's crispy folk-rock voice on old favorites like "Small Town" and "Pink Houses." They sat listening while he played newer tunes like "Longest Days." They boomed during an energetic fiddle/accordion duet. And they danced when it came time for "Crumblin' Down."

The evening provided a melting pot of rock, folk, country, patriotism and protest you'd be hard-pressed to find in a younger generation of rock 'n roll. A guest appearance by opener Carlene Carter (daughter of June) sprinkled in some angelic female vocals.

Mellencamp's band wore matching black and white suits. The guitarists played red, over-sized hollow bodies. A handful of yellow and blue lights shrouded the minimalist set in subdued light. At first glance, you might have thought it was a scene from the Enchantment Under the Sea dance.
But that seemed to be the vibe Mellencamp was going for -- a middle-America barn dance from a bygone era of good ol' rock 'n roll. You know, when a sport was a sport and groovin' was groovin'. The tour, after all, is dubbed "Plain Spoken" after an upcoming album of the same name.

And that's exactly what it was. John Mellencamp: Plain-spoken and simple, like good ol' rock 'n roll.

http://www.syracuse.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2015/05/john_mellencamp_landmark_theatre_review.html