R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.

"R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.", subtitled "A Salute to 60's Rock", is a rock song written and performed by John Mellencamp. It was the third single from his 1985 album Scarecrow and a top-ten hit on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Top Rock Tracks charts, peaking at number 2[3] and number 6 respectively.[4] In Australia, the single effectively became a double-A side when the B-side "Under the Boardwalk" received significant airplay and both tracks were listed together on the singles chart, reaching #18.[5]

"R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.
(A Salute to 60's Rock)"
Single by John Cougar Mellencamp
from the album Scarecrow
B-side"Under the Boardwalk"
ReleasedJanuary 1986
RecordedApril 25, 1985 at Belmont Mall, Belmont, Indiana
GenreRock and roll[1]
Length2:55[2]
2:48 (7")
LabelRiva
Songwriter(s)John Mellencamp
Producer(s)John Mellencamp (a.k.a. "Little Bastard"), Don Gehman[2]
John Cougar Mellencamp singles chronology
"Small Town"
(1985)		 "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.
(A Salute to 60's Rock)"
(1986)		 "Rain on the Scarecrow"
(1986)
Music video
"R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." on YouTube

Background and recording

According to Mellencamp biography Born in a Small Town, Mellencamp was initially reluctant to include "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." on Scarecrow, feeling the song was too light-hearted to include alongside the otherwise grim songs such as "Rain on the Scarecrow" and "Face of the Nation".[6]: 71, 73  Mellencamp told Timothy White in a 1986 article for the Illinois Entertainer of his decision to include "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." on Scarecrow: "It was one of those absolute last-split-second decisions. I was only including it on the cassette and CD copies of Scarecrow as a bonus party track, but my manager loved the energy of it and I thought, 'Yeah! What the hell!'"

Mellencamp required his band to learn how to play about 100 songs from the 1960s before recording Scarecrow, and the song includes several direct musical references to 1960s songs, including The Troggs' "Wild Thing".[6]: 74 

The song was recorded at Belmont Mall in Belmont, Indiana. The recording was produced by Mellencamp (under the alias "Little Bastard") and Don Gehman, engineered by Gehman and Greg Edward; backing Mellencamp on the recording were Kenny Aronoff (drums), Toby Myers (bass), Mike Wanchic (guitars, background vocals), Larry Crane (guitars, flutophone), John Cascella (keyboards), and Sarah Flint (background vocals).[2]

Reception

Cash Box called it a "no-holds-barred rocker."[7] Billboard said that it "evokes, without quite quoting, reference points from 'La Bamba' to '96 Tears.'"[8]

Chart performance

Weekly charts
Chart (1986) Peak
position
Australia (Australian Music Report)[5] 18
Canada (RPM) Top Singles[9] 7
United Kingdom (Top 100)[10] 67
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[3] 2
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary[11] 36
New Zealand (Top 50)[12] 17
Netherlands (Top 100)[13] 42

Year-end charts
Charts (1986)Rank
Australia (Kent Music Report)[14] 50
US Top Pop Singles (Billboard)[15] 66

Music video

A music video for the single was released in 1986. The video was directed by Mellencamp and Faye Cummings, and it was filmed using a kinescope camera. It featured an African American-vocal group and a Caucasian-instrumental group with the two groups playing together at the end of the video.[16]

During George W. Bush's first presidential campaign, "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." was played at a campaign event. While Mellencamp had denied the request of President Ronald Reagan to use "Pink Houses" as a campaign song in 1984, he expressed reluctance to object to Bush's use of "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." at the event, telling Rolling Stone that despite his opposition to Bush's political positions, "I don't see any sense in being silly about it. It's entertainment. It's a song."[6]: 158–159 

In 1994, the song was also used during the 1994 USA World Cup, when announcing the United States as one of the teams who qualified.

"R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." has appeared on a number of Mellencamp compilations, including 1997's The Best That I Could Do 1978–1988 and 2004's Words & Music: John Mellencamp's Greatest Hits.[17]

The song was also featured in The Simpsons episode "Eight Misbehavin'" during the scene where Apu and Majula's octuplets were being used in a zoo show.

References
  1. Steve Sullivan (17 May 2017). Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. p. 583. ISBN 978-1-4422-5449-7.
  2. The Best That I Could Do 1978–1988 (CD liner). John Mellencamp. U.S.A.: Mercury Records. 1997. p. 11. 314 536 738-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  3. Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits (8th ed.). Billboard Books. p. 419. ISBN 0-8230-7499-4.
  4. "John Mellencamp: Billboard Singles". allmusic. Retrieved November 7, 2010.
  5. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. Australian Chart Book, St Ives, N.S.W. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  6. Johnson, Heather (November 1, 2007). Born In A Small Town. Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-8256-7336-8.
  7. "Single Releases" (PDF). Cash Box. February 1, 1986. p. 11. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
  8. "Reviews". Billboard. February 1, 1986. p. 81. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
  9. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". www.collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2012-10-20.
  10. Official Charts Company
  11. Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 161.
  12. Charts.nz
  13. "Dutch Charts - dutchcharts.nl".
  14. "National Top 100 Singles for 1986". Kent Music Report. No. 650. December 1986. Retrieved January 24, 2023 – via Imgur.
  15. Nielsen Business Media, Inc (December 27, 1986). "1986 The Year in Music & Video: Top Pop Singles". Billboard. Vol. 98, no. 52. p. Y-21. {{cite magazine}}: |last1= has generic name (help)
  16. White, Timothy (1997). "Who's to Say the Way a Man Should Spend His Days: The First Two Hundred Years of the John Mellencamp Story". The Best That I Could Do 1978–1988 (CD liner). John Mellencamp. U.S.A.: Mercury Records. p. 4. 314 536 738-2.
  17. "John Mellencamp: R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A." allmusic. Retrieved November 7, 2010.
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