One of the best things about Indiana: Mellencamp

I am old enough to still remember Johnny Cougar and "I Need A Lover" and I wisecrack that Bloomington's WTTS is actually Radio Free Mellencamp. For all that show me another muscian from that the Seventies (beside Elvis Costello) who has shown as much growth. Tom Petty? Not hardly. Even Springsteen has not shown Mellencamp's willingness to experiment with style and content.

Peter Rothberg does not make these same points on his blog at The Nation. Mellencamp's 'Jena' is the post. It may be a matter of taste but I would put Mellencamp over Springsteen on writing political songs. Mr. Rothberg presents Mellencamp's lyrics and a link to the video for the song Jena. Besides the guy is from Indiana.