Track Listing

1. I Need a Lover
2. Ain't Even Done with the Night
3. Hurts So Good
4. Jack and Diane
5. Crumblin' Down
6. Pink Houses
7. Authority Song
8. Lonely Ol' Night
9. Small Town
10. R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.
11. Paper in Fire
12. Cherry Bomb
13. Check It Out
14. Without Expression

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1362 in Music
• Released on: 1997-11-18
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .20 pounds

Amazon.com
The Best That I Could Do collects the singles that led John Mellencamp into the radio/jukebox pantheon he celebrated in "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." and "Cherry Bomb." While albums such as American Fool, Uh Huh, and Scarecrow held Top 10 spots for months, their spinoff hits made this Hoosier disciple of Jagger, J.B., and Iggy into something like a Reagan-era John Fogerty: not only were "Pink Houses," "Paper in Fire," and "Crumblin' Down" wise (and wiseacre) dispatches from an America where it wasn't always morning, they could fill a dance floor and get you pounding the dashboard on the way home. --Rickey Wright

Customer Reviews

Best of his early years
Initially this collection was envisioned as a lengthy single-disc career overview of the noted rocker, with 17 singles spanning his twenty years on the Mercury label. Ultimately, it was pared back to 14 singles emphasizing the first decade, with such recent hits as "Get A Leg Up," "Wild Night," and "Key West Intermezzo (I Saw You First)" being dropped from the lineup (the prolific Mellencamp deserved a double-disc retrospective anyway, so hopefully we will see a second set highlighting his more recent material in the not too distant future).

After Mellencamps's first couple of albums on Mercury in 1979 and 1980, it was hard to envision that such a long, substantial career lie ahead. As represented here by initial hits "I Need A Lover" and "Ain't Even Done With The Night," Mellencamp (then known as John Cougar) came across as a rebel with a few good riffs (copped from the Rolling Stones?) and simplistic lyrics which rarely went beyond stud-boy prowling (a la Eddie Money). This trite image would thankfully be altered by 1982's American Fool album and, especially, its second single "Jack and Diane," a slice of life saga of a boy and girl growing up in the midwest (as Mellencamp did). The lyrics remained simple, but they acquired a nostalgic eloquence to which a broader audience could relate.

1983's Uh-Huh (with its enclosed singles "Crumblin' Down," "Pink Houses," and the raucous "Authority Song") showed even more of an emphasis on heartland reflections, while Mellencamp hit his artistic peak with 1985's thematically varied Scarecrow album. His odes to rock and roll heroes ("R.O.C.K. In The U.S.A."), the simple life ("Small Town"), and young love ("Lonely Ol' Night") made it onto this Best Of, while the throbbing yet haunting "Rain On The Scarecrow" unfortunately does not (it's the most sorely missed Mellencamp single from this era). After Scarecrow, Mellencamp closed out his first ten years at Mercury with his most sonically enjoyable effort to date, 1987's The Lonesome Jubilee (represented here by "Paper In Fire," "Cherry Bomb," and "Check It Out)." Collectively, these aforementioned singles make The Best That I Could Do one of the strongest compilations in recent memory.

The Best That I Could Do does not, as hinted in the subtitle (1978-1988), look exclusively at Mellencamp's first decade of Mercury hits. There is also one new track to end the set: a remake of Terry Reid's "Without Expression." Unlike most Mellencamp singles, the tune is not immediately infectious. Once this midtempo philosophical tale sinks in upon repeated listenings, however, it easily takes its place among Mellencamp's best recordings and bodes well for his future output. As for the past, The Best That I Could Do reveals Mellencamp to be one of the more important commercial rockers of the past twenty years. The "best that he could do" is indeed pretty damn good.

A near-perfect compilation
Anyone who's ever stepped foot in a bar or put money in a jukebox is more than familiar with the work of John Mellencamp. His earthy pairing of rock and country, not to mention lyrics that often celebrate the American dream as well as its disillusions, produces a down-home feel that appeals to any hard-working guy sidling up to the bar for a cold one. Listening to a Mellencamp record always sounds like you're sitting in on a jam session; the musicianship is tight as can be but it still sounds like everybody's hanging loose. This compilation, then, featuring almost all of his major hit singles, sounds like a party from start to finish.

Early hits like "I Need a Lover" and "Ain't Even Done With the Night" still hold up well, and even the most modern rock would be hard-pressed to match the weight of the grooves found in "Hurt So Good" and "Jack and Diane." The songs that proved him heir to the Springsteen throne, "Pink Houses" and "Small Town," still sound as earnest as they did upon release, and if ever a pair of pop songs justified testing the volume limit of your stereo, they would be "Lonely Ole Night" and "Crumblin' Down."

To have the collection stop at 1988 is puzzling, however; this leaves out his amazing cover of "Wild Night" with Me'shell N'Degeocello, and the two major VH1 staples from his "Mr. Happy Go Lucky" release, "Key West Intermezzo (I Saw You First)" and "Just Another Day." Had these been included (instead of the less-deserving "Check it Out," a "Cherry Bomb" knockoff) the compilation would have felt a touch more complete. Still, you hold in your hands thirteen classic examples of down-home, feel-good rock, one of which is a brand-new cut (the impressive "Without Expression"). Get your friends to a pool hall, order a round of brews, drop a couple of bucks into the jukebox, and enjoy.

The Best I Could Do
Although I now own all but two of the original albums that these came from ,and many other Mellencamp albums, this is my favorite of his CDs. It only goes through 1988 and there should be a Volume 2.
I Need A Lover- Great opening track.
Ain't Even Done With The Night=- One of his best.
Hurts So Good- You gotta like this.
Jack And Diane- See above.
Crumblin' Down- This is awesome and the drums on it are great.
Pink Houses- The best on this CD.
Authority Song- I love the guitar on the intro.
Lonely Ol' Night- In my opinion, this is a good song but not one of his best and Rain On The Scarecrow should be in it's place.
Small Town- One of the highlights of the Scarecrow album is also a highlight here.
R.O.C.K. In The U.S.A.- A tribute to the music he grew up on
Paper In Fire- A different style from his earlier stuff but is still great.
Cherry Bomb- I love this
Check It Out- Pretty good.
Without Expression- Bonus track and proves he still has it.
John has a new album called Trouble No More coming out June 3!!!