John Mellencamp was born Oct. 7, 1951, in Seymour, Ind. He survived an early phase as a glam-rocker to become one of America's most successful mainstream rock singers of the 1980s. After playing in a local band, he was signed by David Bowie's manager Tony de Fries to a recording deal with MainMan in 1976. His name was changed to Johnny Cougar, and he was given a James Dean-style image, but a rush-released album of cover songs did not chart. He left MainMan and moved back to Indiana and recorded the self-penned The Kid Inside.
Shortly afterwards he signed to Riva Records, owned by Rod Stewart's manager Billy Gaff, who presented the singer as the next Bruce Springsteen. Mellencamp's first chart action came with the Top 30 single "I Need a Lover" in December 1979. He and his band toured constantly, a strategy which paid off in 1982 when his third Riva album, American Fool, topped the album chart, while "Hurts So Good" (which earned his only Grammy) and "Jack and Diane" were certified as gold singles.
The following year, the singer changed his billing to John Cougar Mellencamp, and his chart successes continued with Uh-Huh in 1983 and Scarecrow in 1985. Many of his songs were now dealing with social problems, and he was one of the organizers of the Farm Aid series of benefit concerts. His straight-ahead rock numbers also brought a string of big hits in the late '80s, such as "Small Town," "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.," "Paper in Fire" and "Cherry Bomb."
Moving to Mercury Records, the 1987 album Lonesome Jubilee used fiddles and accordions to illustrate bleak portraits of America in recession, while "Pop Singer" from 1989's Big Daddy expressed his disillusionment with the music business. In addition to ditching the "Cougar" nickname, he then took time off to concentrate on painting but returned with Whenever We Wanted in 1991, which recaptured the muscular rock sound of his earlier albums.
In 1992, he directed and starred in the movie Falling From Grace. Despite radio's dismal reception to 1993's album Human Wheels, he made a strong comeback with Dance Naked and its Top 10 cover version of Van Morrison's "Wild Night." He suffered a major heart attack shortly after the release of Dance Naked and was sidelined for more than a year. He returned in 1996 with Mr. Happy Go Lucky, augmented by the work of noted dance music producer Junior Vasquez. The album spawned the catchy hit single "Key West Intermezzo (I Saw You First)."
In 1997, Mercury Records released The Best That I Could Do (1978-1988). That hits collection has sold 3 million copies, while American Fool and Scarecrow have been certified for sales of 5 million each. The Lonesome Jubilee and Uh-Huh rest at 3 million, and six other albums have been certified platinum.
After parting ways with Mercury, a self-titled album arrived on Columbia in 1998, and Cuttin' Heads followed in 2001. Though neither caught fire on the airwaves, both have been certified gold. The blues album Trouble No More bowed in 2003.
True to the lyrics of his hit "Small Town," Mellencamp lives in Indiana with his family.
