John Cougar - Nothing Matters and What If It Did?
#366
by Paul Zickler
September 12 1980
John Cougar
Nothin’ Matters And What If It Did?
Genre: Canadian Icon
Allen’s Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Paul’s Rating: 4.75 out of 5
Highlights:
Ain’t Even Done With the Night
This Time, Tonight
Cry Baby
Don’t Misunderstand Me
Cheap Shot
For M.G. (Wherever She May Be)
Review: According to Wikipedia... When John J. Mellencamp was 18 years old, he married his pregnant girlfriend, who gave birth to their daughter six months after they both graduated. By then, Daddy John had already burned through four different bands, with names like Crepe Soul and Snakepit Banana Barn.
Unable to find decent work, he enrolled in a two-year junior college, where he mostly got stoned, laid on the couch, and listened to Roxy Music, somehow finding time to play in a glam band named after a New York Dolls song. After college he got clean and sober, moved to New York, and within a year and a half, landed a record contract. Unknown to John, his manager released his first album under the name Johnny Cougar. It sold 12,000 copies and disappeared, but the name unfortunately stuck. None of this explains how “John Cougar” managed to emerge as a heartland version of Bruce Springsteen. Nothing in that bio suggests that he’d write relentlessly catchy, snarly pop hits like “Ain’t Even Done With The Night” and “This Time” (aka the blueprint for virtually every hit record Huey Lewis ever made).
Not mentioned is how young Mr. Mellencamp managed to walk into the studio with a fully formed, bigger than life persona and introduce himself to the world. Sure, you have to dig a bit to recognize the artist responsible for “Rain on the Scarecrow” in adolescent fluff like “Tonight” and “Cry Baby” (both of which contain cringe-worthy lyrics I won’t bother repeating).
Yes, the production does him no favors, putting that smooth ‘70’s gloss on everything and burying his voice under layers of compression. Still, it’s all there. The rebellious, unapologetic kid wearing his heart on his sleeve kicks just hard enough and makes just enough noise to let us know there’s more to come. “Don’t Misunderstand Me” sets up the scenario he’ll play much more effectively later, but for now, “I bring you renegade stories / And you tell me I’m crazy and wild / You say I lack maturity / Stop actin’ like a child” does just fine. “Cheap Shot” attempts to tear down the entire music industry, and if they’d let him record it with his band in his garage, it might have almost worked. “Well the record company’s changing my name now / But the record company’s goin’ out of business.”
But really, the one that endures is “To M.G. (Wherever She May Be).” I have a theory that the best songs about aging and regret are all written by people in their twenties. Sure enough, JM wrote this one when he was about 26. Ignore the silly kid voice chorus from the opening, and just listen to the story. The old, familiar story. That first girl (or guy) you thought you were totally in love with in junior high, the one who reminded you of somebody in the movies, the one you *almost* got close to - or maybe you did get close, but it didn’t last. Even at 26, you were already “old enough to know that these memories can’t hurt a thing.” Let yourself remember how good it felt to breathe in the intoxication of those moments. And then listen to the last line, “If I saw you today, if I could be with you today, I wouldn’t even know you.” Great songs can convince you that the singer feels exactly the way you do. This is a great song. Johnny Cougar Melonhead would go on to write bunches of great songs. Hell, he’s still writing ‘em. It all starts here, and that’s gotta be worth something, right?
