The Next CD I'm Going To Buy

John Mellencamp has never been one of my overall favorites. I'll admit that yes, there are a few of his songs that I have liked. I like Mellencamp's cover of Van Morrison's Wild Night quite a bit. Not that the original isn't great in it's own right, and it's really, really hard to think that anyone could out-do Van The Man... but Mellencamp really got this one right (with significant help from Me'shell Ndegocello). I originally liked the Pat Benatar cover version of I Need A Lover better than Mellencamp's original, but over the years I've changed my mind about that. There are a few others I could mention, but his new album Trouble No Moreis unlike anything else of his that I've ever heard, and that's what I really like about it. It's all "roots music"... covers of classic blues, folk, and early rock. It's Robert Johnson, Woody Guthrie, Howling Wolf and other greats, reinterpreted with a freshness that purists might hate, but I think that the original artists themselves would say is true to the spirit of how they approached the music. I've seen/heard Mellencamp and his band do a couple of songs from the album on late night talk shows, and I'm thoroughly impressed with what they've done. No, I haven't bought it yet, and I haven't heard all the songs... but I've heard enough to know that I have to have it.