John Mellencamp Details Upcoming ‘Strictly a One-Eyed Jack’ Album
John Mellencamp has announced a new album, Strictly a One-Eyed Jack, which will hit shelves on Jan. 21.
The heartland rocker previewed the LP with a new single titled “Chasing Rainbows,” released today. You can listen to the song below, and you can preorder Strictly a One-Eyed Jack now via Amazon Music and Apple Music.
Mellencamp has kept busy in recent months, releasing a collaborative song with Bruce Springsteen titled “Wasted Days” in September. It's one of three songs on Mellencamp's new LP to feature the Boss, along with "Did You Say Such a Thing" and "A Life Full of Rain."
“I would consider Bruce now, one of my better friends in the music business. Bruce and I talk quite a bit,” Mellencamp told SiriusXM’s E Street Radio. “I think he and I relate to each other because we’ve had similar experiences of growing up in a small town. Starting out, big band leaders. … He’s like my big brother now.”
Mellencamp debuted another One-Eyed Jack song, “I Always Lie to Strangers,” at Farm Aid in September. The performance presaged an anticipated return to the road in 2022, where Mellencamp wishes to play theaters as opposed to arenas and amphitheaters.
“I don’t like playing outside and I don’t like playing in arenas,” he told the Indianapolis Monthly. “That means it’s more work and I make less money, but I’d rather have people see something that could turn into magic rather than something that’s a drunken brawl. In arenas, there’s always people drinking and fighting and all that bullshit."
This summer, Mellencamp also released The Good Samaritan Tour 2000 live album and documentary, chronicling the trek that saw him playing free shows in public parks and common spaces across the U.S.
You can see the Strictly a One-Eyed Jack track listing below.
John Mellencamp, 'Strictly a One-Eyed Jack' Track Listing
"I Always Lie to Strangers"
"Driving in the Rain"
"I Am a Man That Worries"
"Streets of Galilee"
"Sweet Honey Brown"
"Did You Say Such a Thing" (with Bruce Springsteen)
"Gone So Soon"
"Wasted Days" (with Springsteen)
"Simply a One-Eyed Jack"
"Chasing Rainbows"
"Lie to Me"
1"A Life Full of Rain" (with Springsteen)