John Mellencamp brought his Live and in Person 2024 tour to the Sangamon Auditorium at the UIS Performing Arts Center on March 23. Most in attendance were likely longtime fans, since the majority seemed closer to his age of 71 than not, with a smattering of younger folks here and there joining in with the late-blooming baby boomers. Overall, the performance was profoundly good and well-paced, covering major hits and minor cuts with a couple of acoustic numbers, along with a few surprises for a rock concert setting.
Our first surprise was a “no alcohol sales” sign at the concession stands, something many people found unusual for a Saturday night concert. Another rather odd occurrence, at least to me and others at the UIS show – although I’ve since learned this is now common practice – was the removal of water bottle caps by the vendors after purchases.
Whatever the reasons
for these choices, the lights dimmed promptly at 8 o’ clock and a video began
on a screen hanging above the stage. For the next 20-plus minutes we watched
scenes from six classic black and white movies such as The Fugitive Kind,
Giant and The Grapes of Wrath. By the time we reached the third
clip, there were definite disgruntled sounds from the crowd. Finally, at the
end a message appeared on the screen written in old typewriter font: “Please
exercise theater etiquette. Thank you.”
With that over, siren
sounds and flashing red lights accompanied the band to the stage. They
proceeded loud and proud with Mellancamp chewing on his ever-present gum while
singing with force and confidence. He shook his fist, strutted the stage in his
now-standard work coveralls and directed the band in fine fashion with energy
and enthusiasm. We wondered about the mannequins on stage and a New Orleans-looking
street corner backdrop, but as Mellencamp and his longtime bandmates left no stone
unturned in rockin’ the house, nothing really mattered to an appreciative
audience but the constant music through a several song set.
After a blistering "Check it Out,” the band left the stage and Mellencamp strapped on an acoustic guitar and donned a harmonica in a rack around his neck. He announced his next song was “about the homeless problem in America” and launched into a plaintive rendition of “The Eyes of Portland" from his acclaimed 2023 Orpheus Descending album. During the song he was very forceful on a few lyrics, shouting out parts of these phrases, “In this land of plenty where nothing gets done” and “Living here in the gutters in this land of the free,” demonstrating his outspoken support of this issue. He finished the acoustic set joined by band members doing “Jack and Diane” while the crowd sang along to practically every word.
Our next surprise came when, after that, Mellencamp left the stage (smoke break, says the cynic in me) and fiddler Lisa Germano told the audience, “John wanted to make these shows a little more deeper and intimate.” After she explained that Mellencamp was good friends with Hollywood couple and actors the late Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, we heard Germano and accordionist Troye Kinnett accompany Woodward, who now suffers from Alzheimer’s and is unable to speak, reciting Mellencamp lyrics she recorded years ago. The session lasted about four minutes, then the star of the show returned with a killer version of “Rain on the Scarecrow,” much to the delight of his fans.
From there the
concert continued jamming along through several hit songs, including an
extended “Crumblin’ Down” highlighting the superb musicians in his band who
then flawlessly segued into an anthemic version of “Pink Houses” that had the
house singing and swaying along. Next came heartfelt band introductions and a
pleasant, jovial, honest talk to the audience about growing old, before “Cherry
Bomb” was proclaimed to be the final tune.
After that, with a
surprise shout of “It’s time to go home,” they laid hard into “Hurts So Good”
for the actual last number. And if there was one more surprise, it was no
chance for an encore as the house lights came up immediately upon the band’s
exit from the stage. Mellancamp, the last to leave, gave many taps to his
heart, waves to the crowd and even a few prayer hand clasps to his chest before
heading off to have a smoke and travel on down the road to the next show.
Tom
Irwin is a Springfield-based singer-songwriter and IT music columnist. He does not own any John
Mellencamp albums and only saw him live once before, but gained a new
appreciation for the talented, prolific and enduring musical artist during this
concert.
