A biography for John Mellencamphasn’t been written yet.
“Regret should be handled swiftly, and you shouldn't hold onto it. People spend their entire lives regretting what they didn't do and what they should've done. Hey, man, you did what you did.”
“This is about black people selling out other black people.”
“If I'm painting, I paint every day. I'll be up in the studio from 8:00 in the morning to 8:00 at night.”
“Unemployment is sky-rocketing; deflation is in our future for the first time since the Great Depression. I don't care whose fault it is, it's the truth.”
“For me to pretend I'm the keeper of the small town mentality or that's all I'm interested in is wrong.”
“I've just been fortunate to havehad a lot of hit records, though Human Wheels doesn't qualify as a hit record-but it's really the best single I've ever had.”
“I've seen beautiful art on the sides of buildings. I've seen beautiful art in museums. I've seen beautiful art in galleries. Beautiful art is everywhere.”
“I've been around so many people for so long that I take great delight in my own company.”
“Radio was my friend after 'Jack & Diane' and 'Hurts So Good.'”
“Hanging out is a waste of time. The only time I would hang out was when I was a kid, I would hang out in the streets. But once I started making records, I stopped hanging out.”
“As I've matured as a songwriter, I realize that if it's out there, it's mine.”
“People have the right to say what they want to.”
“I just think if the song's good, sing it. I don't care who's doing it. I don't care if it's a country act. I don't care if it's a rock act. If the song's good, sing it.”
“I'm as left-wing as you can get.”
“What's the difference? One guy's the same as the other.”
“Everything I see and hear... I will take ideas from anyplace, anywhere, anytime, and life has become a song to me. I'm always looking for a song.”
“It's my responsibility as a singer-songwriter to report the news.”
“I don't want to be a politician. I don't like politics. It's petty; it fights dirty.”
“My best songs come from a place outside myself.”
“I wish my grandmother and grandfather were still alive, because they were able to keep me grounded.”