\n<\/p>\n
Early in his career, John Mellencamp<\/a> had a choice. He could either change his name and release his first album on MCA Records, or he could head back home to Seymour, Ind. Potential rock stardom or a minimum wage job for the phone company \u2013 these were the options for the young singer, not even 25 years old, when presented with the stage name of Johnny Cougar.<\/p>\n \u201cNo one\u2019s ever called me Johnny in my life,\u201d Mellencamp complained<\/a>, perhaps not knowing how to begin to address Cougar. He had been trying to gain attention from the music industry for a couple years, making routine trips to New York City from the Midwest, and had little luck. That is, until Tony DeFries heard his demo tape.<\/p>\n DeFries ran MainMan management, and his clients included David Bowie<\/a>, Lou Reed<\/a> and Iggy Pop<\/a>. DeFries\u00a0liked Mellencamp\u2019s voice. He liked his James Dean look even more. What he didn\u2019t care for was his strange German last name. The manager was convinced that no one was going to buy a record from a singer named Mellencamp.<\/p>\n \u201cWe wanted something uniquely American, something hot and wild,\u201d MainMan associate Jamie Andrews told Seventeen<\/em> magazine<\/a>. \u201cJohnny Indiana was one of our choices, Puma, Mustang \u2013 but nothing was as hot as Cougar!\u201d<\/p>\n Read More: Why John Mellencamp Told Some Fans to ‘Shut the Fuck Up’<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Mellencamp didn\u2019t agree, but he went along with it to get his debut album released. \u201cI would have signed anything \u2013 I would have signed the bottom of a shoe,\u201d Mellencamp told Rolling Stone<\/em><\/a> in 2013.<\/p>\n In the short term, the deal didn\u2019t look so great for \u201cJohnny Cougar.\u201d When his debut album, 1976\u2019s Chestnut Street Incident<\/a><\/em>, moved only 12,000 copies and he was excoriated in the press as a slight Bruce Springsteen<\/a> substitute, Mellencamp\u2019s second LP, The Kid Inside<\/em>, was shelved by MainMan. He soon was dropped by MCA.<\/p>\n Listen to Johnny Cougar’s ‘Chestnut Street’<\/strong><\/p>\n Even though Mellencamp\u00a0would admit the album wasn\u2019t great, he blamed Johnny Cougar\u2019s initial flame-out on DeFries and his rampant over-hyping of his new client. Despite the fact that Mellencamp had only begun to write songs, DeFries was comparing him to one of the greats: \u201cHe\u2019s so American, the most American artist I\u2019ve seen since Bob Dylan<\/a>, and I think he will capture the same kind of thing Dylan did.\u201d<\/p>\n After MCA walked away, so did MainMan, leaving Mellencamp with a flop, an unreleased album and a \u201cpretty silly\u201d name.<\/p>\n But rather than ditching the moniker, Mellencamp would alter it to simply John Cougar; he had always bristled at the idea of being \u201cJohnny\u201d anything. He needed a name that wouldn\u2019t drive him crazy.<\/p>\n \u201cI was washed up and over by my mid-twenties,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I knew if I delivered a song that could get on the radio, I had a shot.\u201d<\/p>\n He signed with new management and made a record in England. A Biography <\/em>didn\u2019t see release in the States, but scored an unlikely hit in Australia with \u201cI Need a Lover.\u201d Success, even down under, breeds opportunity, and the newly christened John Cougar got another shot at American rock stardom. \u201cI Need a Lover\u201d was added to his next U.S. album (titled John Cougar<\/em>) and began a modest U.S. single for the singer, as well as a radio hit for Pat Benatar<\/a>.<\/p>\n Watch John Cougar Perform ‘I Need a Lover’ on ‘American Bandstand’ in 1979<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThere were always managers wanting to put their two cents in,\u201d Mellencamp reflected in 2005<\/a>. \u201cBut after that Johnny Cougar debacle, I pretty much rejected about everything they ever said.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, Mellencamp would remain John Cougar through his 1982 breakthrough, American Fool<\/em><\/a>, with its smash hits \u201cHurts So Good\u201d and \u201cJack & Diane.\u201d Having the No. 1 single and album on the Billboard<\/em> charts (Mellencamp\u2019s first and only chart-toppers) was both a blessing and a curse. As John Cougar, Mellencamp had fame, fortune and a Grammy, but he still wasn\u2019t himself, literally.<\/p>\n Plus, DeFries decided to re-enter the Johnny Cougar market after American Fool<\/em>. In 1983, he opened the vault and finally put out The Kid Inside<\/em>, in a bid for cash from new Cougar fans hungry for more music. It would be the last album of Mellencamp\u2019s career to not feature his real last name.<\/p>\n Being an MTV and radio star helped the singer-songwriter gain some more creative control, which showed in the sly songcraft and rougher sound of his next album, 1983\u2019s Uh-Huh<\/em><\/a>. It was also borne out on the LP\u2019s cover, which featured the \u201cnew\u201d name of John Cougar Mellencamp. In contrast to DeFries\u2019 original judgment, it turns out a lot of people would buy records from a guy named Mellencamp. Uh-Huh <\/em>went multi-platinum, delivering three Top 20 Billboard<\/em> hits \u2013 \u201cPink Houses,\u201d \u201cAuthority Song\u201d and \u201cCrumblin\u2019 Down\u201d \u2013 that remain some of his\u00a0most famous songs.<\/p>\n Watch the Video for John Cougar Mellencamp’s ‘Authority Song’<\/strong><\/p>\n If Mellencamp couldn\u2019t outrun the \u201cCougar\u201d just yet, he could record the kind of music he loved. Through the rest of the \u201980s, John Cougar Mellencamp would write both deeply personal and political songs, add rustic touches of fiddle and accordion to his sound and continue to have hit singles and albums. Scarecrow<\/em><\/a>, The Lonesome Jubilee<\/a> <\/em>and Big Daddy<\/em><\/a> all went platinum (or better) while \u201cLonely Ol\u2019 Night,\u201d \u201cSmall Town,\u201d \u201cR.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.,\u201d \u201cPaper in Fire\u201d and \u201cCherry Bomb\u201d all hit the Top 10.<\/p>\n With a streak of success, both commercial and critical, Mellencamp\u00a0finally reclaimed his name. When 1991\u2019s Whenever We Wanted<\/em><\/a> hit record store shelves, it bore the actual name of the man who made it: John Mellencamp.<\/p>\n The prolific musician been recording as himself, ever since. As John Mellencamp, he\u2019s become one of rock\u2019s elder statesmen, continuing to put out new music, tour the world and promote American farmers \u2013 as well as salve his passions in the visual arts. He\u2019s been honored by ASCAP and the Americana Music Association, and he\u2019s been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Johnny Cash<\/a> even called him one of music\u2019s 10 best songwriters. Pretty high praise for a musician who\u2019s seen as quintessentially American.<\/p>\n So if Tony DeFries wasn\u2019t right that Johnny Cougar was \u201cthe most American artist [he had] seen,\u201d he was just about on the money when it came to John Mellencamp.<\/p>\n From David Bowie’s overlooked first album to Dave Grohl’s pre-Nirvana record with Scream.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Gallery Credit: UCR Staff<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Odd Couples: John Mellencamp and Mick Ronson<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\nRock’s Most Overshadowed Debuts<\/h2>\n