American Fool
| American Fool | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
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| Studio album by John Cougar | ||||
| Released | April 12, 1982 | |||
| Recorded | Cherokee Studios, Criteria Studios 1981–82 |
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| Genre | Rock, heartland rock | |||
| Length | 34:26 | |||
| Label | Riva | |||
| Producer | John Mellencamp, Don Gehman | |||
| John Cougar chronology | ||||
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| Singles from American Fool | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    [1] |
| Robert Christgau | B[2] |
| Rolling Stone | [3] |
American Fool is the fifth album released by John Mellencamp, released under the stage name John Cougar in 1982. The album was his commercial breakthrough, reaching number one on the Billboard 200 chart in 1982 and becoming the best-selling album of that year.
According to a 1983 article in the Toledo Blade, the song "Danger List" originated when Mellencamp heard his guitarist Larry Crane playing some chords in a basement rehearsal room. "I turned on the tape recorder and sang 30 verses," Mellencamp explained. "I just made them up. Then I went and weeded out the ones I didn't like."
The remastered version was released March 29, 2005 on Mercury/Island/UMe and includes one bonus track.[4]
Track listing
All songs written by John Mellencamp, except where noted
- "Hurts So Good" (Mellencamp, George M. Green) – 3:42
- "Jack & Diane" – 4:16
- "Hand to Hold on To" – 3:25
- "Danger List" (Mellencamp, Larry Crane) – 4:28
- "Can You Take It" – 3:35
- "Thundering Hearts" (Mellencamp, Green) – 3:40
- "China Girl" (Joe New, Jeff Silbar) – 3:34
- "Close Enough" – 3:38
- "Weakest Moments" – 4:07
- "American Fool" (2005 re-issue bonus track) – 3:46
Production
Producer Don Gehman stated in a 2011 interview that "American Fool" “was fraught with layers of problems. We had 20 or so songs, we had a record company that was hoping we were making a Neil Diamond‑type album, and after we spent two or three months in the studio recording these songs and mixing them to the best of our ability, I can remember an A&R guy in a pink shirt coming in to listen to them and basically thinking we had nothing. At that point, they put a stop to the project. We had ‘Jack & Diane,’ we had ‘Hand To Hold On To,’ we had ‘Weakest Moments’ — we had some good songs — and while I don’t know the precise nature of the discussions that took place, Riva went from wanting to get a new producer to not even wanting John on the label anymore. Finally, they came around to letting us finish it but wanting to hear the new songs we were going to cut.”
Charts
- Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Billboard 200 | 1 |
- Singles
| Year | Title | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | "Hurts So Good" | Billboard Hot 100 | 2 |
| Cash Box Top 100 Singles | 1 | ||
| 1982 | "Jack and Diane" | Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| Cash Box Top 100 Singles | 1 | ||
| 1982 | "Hand to Hold On To" | Billboard Hot 100 | 19 |
| Cash Box Top 100 Singles | 22 |
- Charted album tracks
| Year | Title | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | "Hurts So Good" | Billboard Top Tracks | 1 |
| 1982 | "Jack and Diane" | Billboard Top Tracks | 3 |
| 1982 | "Thundering Hearts" | Billboard Top Tracks | 36 |
Personnel
- John Cougar – lead vocals
- Larry Crane – guitar, background vocals
- Mike Wanchic – guitar, background vocals
- Kenny Aronoff – drums
- George "Chocolate" Perry – bass
- Mick Ronson – guitar, background vocals[5]
- Robert "Ferd" Frank – bass, background vocals[5]
- Eric Rosser – keyboards[5]
- Dave Parman – background vocals[5]
Notes
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- ↑ http://www.mellencamp.com/discography.html?dd_id=39
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 The Best That I Could Do 1978–1988 liner notes (1997)
| Preceded by | Billboard 200 number-one album September 11 - November 12, 1982 |
Succeeded by Business as Usual by Men at Work |
