I've never seen a musician biopic or documentary quite like this one. As John Mellencamp and his band perform before an enthusiastic crowd at The Chicago Theatre, Mellencamp himself provides a voice-over narrative about his life and career, trying to keep it as 'plain spoken as possible'. To hear him tell it, he's an observer of what other people do and say, stating that he never tried to live up to other people's expectations, including his parents, who weren't always there for him in his youth. It was his grandmother who inspired him with encouragement every day of his life until the age of forty. Mellencamp describes how it was actually easy for him to land a recording contract, simply by leaving copies of a tape he recorded as a teenager with a garage band he joined up with. Very quickly, he came to understand that the music business was all about the money. He's not cynical when he says this, simply a matter of fact that all new recording artists must learn to contend with.
I was always curious about Mellencamp's early career when he was billed as John Cougar. That was a studio concoction that he hated, plainly stating that "I did not want to be Johnny Cougar". Very early on, Mellencamp decided that drugs and alcohol wouldn't work for him; a four year period between the ages of seventeen and twenty one convinced him of that when he woke up one morning, severely beaten up by a man who he insulted during a drunken confrontation. He hasn't touched either one since.
Mellencamp is joined by country singer Carlene Carter for one number; for this viewer it was a reprise of a performance this past summer, along with Emmy Lou Harris, in a concert at the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in Bethel, New York, site of the famed Woodstock Music and Arts Festival in 1969. As both events occurred within the past year, Mellencamp appears to be the same, ageless rocker who thrives on creativity and performing. He cites painting, poetry and song writing as his other principal passions, and for him, "True art is always a surprise". Watching this show and hearing his words, the quotes I've provided throughout this review receive their proper context. Above all, Mellencamp emphasizes the words that he's followed throughout his life and career - "There is no reward in this world for settling for something you don't want."
I was always curious about Mellencamp's early career when he was billed as John Cougar. That was a studio concoction that he hated, plainly stating that "I did not want to be Johnny Cougar". Very early on, Mellencamp decided that drugs and alcohol wouldn't work for him; a four year period between the ages of seventeen and twenty one convinced him of that when he woke up one morning, severely beaten up by a man who he insulted during a drunken confrontation. He hasn't touched either one since.
Mellencamp is joined by country singer Carlene Carter for one number; for this viewer it was a reprise of a performance this past summer, along with Emmy Lou Harris, in a concert at the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in Bethel, New York, site of the famed Woodstock Music and Arts Festival in 1969. As both events occurred within the past year, Mellencamp appears to be the same, ageless rocker who thrives on creativity and performing. He cites painting, poetry and song writing as his other principal passions, and for him, "True art is always a surprise". Watching this show and hearing his words, the quotes I've provided throughout this review receive their proper context. Above all, Mellencamp emphasizes the words that he's followed throughout his life and career - "There is no reward in this world for settling for something you don't want."