John Mellencamp

Born with a mild form of spina bifide, Mellencamp spent a lot of his early life in hospital, forming his first band Crepe Soul at 14. He played in various local bands, including glam rockers Trash and after graduating from Vincennes University, he decided to concentrate on music, using the stage name Johnny Cougar. His first album Chestnut Street Incident featured a collection of covers and his career accelerated with his 1980 album Nothin' Matters And What If It Did, which included two pop hits, This Time and Ain't Even Done With The Night. Mellencamp converted to a harder-edged rock sound for his breakthrough album American Fool in 1982, featuring Hurts So Good and the Number 1 hit Jack & Diane. His Uh-Huh album in 1983 marked a name change to John Cougar Mellencamp, incorporating his real surname, and he became a superstar, building a reputation as one of the world's most exciting live acts. His 1985 album Scarecrow broadened his alt. country style and The Lonesome Jubilee (1987) introduced a more acoustic approach. Mellencamp dropped the "Cougar" part of his name for the 1991 album Whenever We Wanted and, despite a heart scare, he continued to release albums and tour through the 2000s.