A Biography
A Biography | ||||
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Studio album by Johnny Cougar | ||||
Released | March 6, 1978 | |||
Recorded | 1977–78 | |||
Studio |
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Genre | Rock, heartland rock | |||
Length | 42:58 | |||
Label | Riva | |||
Producer | John Punter | |||
Johnny Cougar chronology | ||||
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Singles from A Biography | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
A Biography is the second album by the American musician Johnny Cougar.[3] Recorded in London, it was released in the UK and Australia by Riva Records on March 6, 1978.
Due to poor sales of Mellencamp's debut album, Chestnut Street Incident, A Biography did not receive a U.S. release upon its 1978 debut. Two of its tracks, "Taxi Dancer" and the single "I Need a Lover," were also included on his 1979 album John Cougar, which was released in the U.S.
In Australia, however, "I Need a Lover" became a Top 10 hit, giving Mellencamp his first taste of success. The song would eventually crack the Top 40 in the U.S. in late 1979 when released as a single from his John Cougar album. AllMusic reviewer Stephen Thomas Erlewine described "I Need a Lover" as Mellencamp's "first good song."[1]
A Biography, along with all Mellencamp's other Riva Records/Mercury Records albums, were remastered and re-released in 2005, marking the first time A Biography was released in the United States.
Mellencamp has often spoken negatively about his early albums, and A Biography is no exception. He stated in Tim Holmes’ 1986 biography: “A Biography is so bitter. I mean I don’t even like to listen to it. I can’t believe it’s me. The songs were written in ’76 or ’77. The lyrics were real awful. They were real ‘I hate you. I hate this.’ And that’s the way I felt at that time."
Track listing
All tracks are written by John Mellencamp
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Born Reckless" | 4:35 |
2. | "Factory" | 3:02 |
3. | "Night Slumming" | 4:40 |
4. | "Taxi Dancer" | 4:05 |
5. | "I Need a Lover" | 5:37 |
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Alley of the Angels" | 3:58 |
2. | "High C Cherrie" | 4:58 |
3. | "Where the Sidewalk Ends" | 3:56 |
4. | "Let Them Run Your Lives" | 5:55 |
5. | "Goodnight" | 2:05 |
Personnel
- Johnny Cougar – lead vocals, acoustic guitar, background vocals
- Brian BecVar – keyboards, background vocals
- Larry Crane – guitars, background vocals
- Robert "Ferd" Frank – bass, background vocals
- Tom Knowles – drums, background vocals
- Andy Mackay – saxophones
- Ann Odell – string arrangement on "Taxi Dancer"
- David Steen – photography
References
- ^ a b "A Biography – John Mellencamp". AllMusic. Retrieved October 21, 2010.
- ^ "John Mellencamp". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2014-03-20.
- ^ Pesselnick, Jill (Jul 14, 2001). "Mellencamp named 2001 Century Award Honoree". Billboard. Vol. 113, no. 28. pp. 1, 105.
- v
- t
- e
- Chestnut Street Incident (1976)
- A Biography (1978)
- John Cougar (1979)
- Nothin' Matters and What If It Did (1980)
- American Fool (1982)
- The Kid Inside (1983)
- Uh-huh (1983)
- Scarecrow (1985)
- The Lonesome Jubilee (1987)
- Big Daddy (1989)
- Whenever We Wanted (1991)
- Human Wheels (1993)
- Dance Naked (1994)
- Mr. Happy Go Lucky (1996)
- John Mellencamp (1998)
- Rough Harvest (1999)
- Cuttin' Heads (2001)
- Trouble No More (2003)
- Freedom's Road (2007)
- Life, Death, Love and Freedom (2008)
- No Better Than This (2010)
- Plain Spoken (2014)
- Sad Clowns & Hillbillies (2017)
- Strictly a One-Eyed Jack (2022)
- Orpheus Descending (2023)
- Life, Death, Live and Freedom (2009)
- Performs Trouble No More Live at Town Hall (2014)
- Plain Spoken: From the Chicago Theatre (2018)
- The Best That I Could Do 1978–1988 (1997)
- Words & Music: John Mellencamp's Greatest Hits (2004)
- On the Rural Route 7609 (2010)
- Other People's Stuff (2018)
- "I Need a Lover"
- "This Time"
- "Ain't Even Done with the Night"
- "Hurts So Good"
- "Jack & Diane"
- "Crumblin' Down"
- "Pink Houses"
- "Lonely Ol' Night"
- "Small Town"
- "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A."
- "Paper in Fire"
- "Cherry Bomb"
- "Check It Out"
- "Pop Singer"
- "Wild Night"
- "Key West Intermezzo (I Saw You First)"
- "Just Another Day"
- "Peaceful World"
- "Walk Tall"
- "Our Country"
- "My Sweet Love"
- "What Say You" (with Travis Tritt)
- Discography
- George Green
- Farm Aid
- Falling from Grace (1992)
- Ghost Brothers of Darkland County (2012)
- Elaine Irwin
- Meg Ryan