''American Fool'' is the fifth studio album by

John Mellencamp John J. Mellencamp (born October 7, 1951), previously known as Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for his catchy brand of heartland rock, which emphasizes traditional instrument ...

, released under the

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

John Cougar in 1982. The album was his commercial breakthrough, holding the No. 1 position on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' album chart for nine weeks. A remastered version of ''American Fool'' was released on Mercury/Island/UMe on March 29, 2005; it includes one bonus track, the previously unreleased title track.

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 Neil Leslie Diamond (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. He has sold more than 130 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling musicians of all time. He has had ten No. 1 singles on the Hot 100 and Adul ...

‑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 "Jack & Diane" is a song written and performed by American singer-songwriter John Mellencamp, then performing as "John Cougar." Described by critics as a "love ballad," this song was released as the second single from Mellencamp's 1982 album '' ...

,’ 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." According to a 1983 article in the ''

Toledo Blade ''The Blade'', also known as the ''Toledo Blade'', is a newspaper in Toledo, Ohio published daily online and printed Thursday and Sunday by Block Communications. The newspaper was first published on December 19, 1835. Overview The first issue o ...

'', 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."

Track listing

All songs written by

, except where noted. # "

Hurts So Good "Hurts So Good" is a song by American singer-songwriter John Mellencamp, then performing under the stage name "John Cougar". The song was a number two hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for the singer/songwriter. It was the first of three major hi ...

" (Mellencamp, George M. Green) – 3:42 # "

" – 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

Charts

Personnel

* John Mellencamp – lead vocals, guitar, tambourine * Larry Crane – guitar, background vocals * Mike Wanchic – guitar, background vocals *

Kenny Aronoff Kenny Aronoff (born March 7, 1953) is an American session drummer. Early life Aronoff grew up in Stockbridge, Massachusetts He developed an interest in music at an early age and gravitated to the drums as "drumming was one hundred percent ene ...

– drums,

LinnDrum The LinnDrum, also referred to as the LM-2, is a drum machine manufactured by Linn Electronics between 1982 and 1985. About 5,000 units were sold. Its high-quality samples, flexibility and affordability made the LinnDrum popular; it sold far mo ...

George "Chocolate" Perry George Wesly Perry (born 1953), known professionally as "Chocolate Perry" is an American bassist, songwriter and producer. Perry has worked with the Bee Gees, John Cougar, Jon Secada, Stephen Stills, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Al Kooper, D ...

– bass *

Mick Ronson Michael Ronson (26 May 1946 – 29 April 1993) was an English musician, songwriter, arranger, and producer. He achieved critical and commercial success working with David Bowie as the guitarist of the Spiders from Mars. He was a session music ...

– guitar, background vocals''

The Best That I Could Do 1978–1988 ''The Best That I Could Do 1978–1988'' is the first greatest hits compilation album by American singer-songwriter John Mellencamp, released by Mercury Records in 1997 (see 1997 in music). It compiles Mellencamp's most popular material recorded ...

'' liner notes (1997) * Robert "Ferd" Frank – bass, background vocals *

Eric Rosser Eric Franklin Rosser (born January 17, 1952) also known as Doc Rosser, is a former keyboardist for John Mellencamp. He joined Mellencamp's band in 1979 and toured with Mellencamp for over two years. He recorded with the band on Mellencamp's 1980 ...

– keyboards * Dave Parman – background vocals

Notes

{{Authority control John Mellencamp albums 1982 albums Albums produced by Don Gehman Riva Records albums