It was an era where anything quote-unquote mainstream was just anathema to me. It's funny that you mentioned being way past radio pop at that time, because I was, too. For the longest time, I really thought "Wild Nights" was his song-not Van Morrison's. (For example, just two years later, Mellencamp's drummer, Kenny Aronoff would be filling in for Smashing Pumpkins during their Adore-era tour.)Īnd say what you will about Mellencamp, but he knows- knows-how to write a damn good song. There's Mellencamp's ragged vocal delivery on what is essentially the grandest of all pop/rock songs the imagery embedded deep in the lyrical couplets that unforgettable chorus and a trove of talented musicians all over that record. In 1996, you couldn't escape that song on the radio, and it's really easy to understand why when you go back and listen to it. I hadn't thought about that song in years either. Scott: You just hit on so many elements that I was feeling as well. Why did I start the discussion? Maybe it's time for Mellencamp to rise again.
Twenty-three years later, I still love this song, and I suspect that anyone who says they don’t is lying. I couldn’t help but like lines like “this loud Cuban band was crucifying John Lennon.” I couldn’t help but love the odd couples in the video in love with each other. But, dang it, I couldn’t help but like that song. My grunge phase was over and I was all about that Athens rock. It was REM and the Vigilantes of Love for me. In 1996, I was way past radio pop anyway. Mellencamp (or John Cougar or whatever his name was) was irrelevant. “Wild Night” (with the epic Me'Shell Ndegéocello) had come out a couple of years before, but that was an anomaly. Everybody knew “Jack and Diane,” “Pink Houses,” and “Small Town,” but that stuff was ages ago. I had just graduated from high school, and Mellencamp was the definition of passé.
#Little pink houses lyrics meaning full#
The full name, of course, is “Key West Intermezzo (I Saw You First),” and I saw it first when it came out in 1996. I didn’t even have to watch it again, I just remembered it-the deep creases in Mellencamp’s face, the cigarette smoking, the pre-superstar Matthew McConaughey (post- A Time To Kill but pre- Contact). My first thought was “Pink Houses,” but then that glorious video for “Key West Intermezzo” came to my mind. But I was making a Spotify playlist for my 16-year-old daughter, and, after including Dawes, Manchester Orchestra, Michael Penn, Josh Ritter, 10,000 Maniacs, Vigilantes of Love, Amy Grant and others, I thought about Mellencamp. John: Honestly, I’d forgotten about “Key West Intermezzo.” I hadn’t thought about it in years. Scott : John, I seldom venture into the world of Facebook but occasionally something pops up that draws me in and you managed to make that happen the other day by mentioning John Mellencamp, specifically the song, "Key West Intermezzo (I Saw You First)." Can you fill me in on the specific thread or question you posed on Facebook and how it ended up leading to that particular Mellencamp song? What was your goal in starting the discussion?
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