A name change and a defiant attitude characterized John Cougar Mellencamp‘s 1983 album Uh-huh, along with the hit songs that emerged from it. In one of those hits, “Authority Song,” Mellencamp plays the underdog in a battle with the bigwigs. But in real life, he was winning that battle in a big way with his refusal to make anything other than the music he wanted to make.
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What’s the meaning of the song? How did Mellencamp fight for the freedom that he received on the record? And what was with the name change? Let’s get all the answers as we look back to the creation and meaning of “Authority Song.”
Caging the Cougar
Almost from the moment he became a pop star, John Mellencamp, or John Cougar as he was originally known to fans, began to chafe against that notion. As a young artist without enough clout, he had to pick his battles if he wanted to make music. And one of the battles that he decided to avoid was the once concerning his stage name.
After some minor hits in the first six years or so of his recording career, Mellencamp struck it big with the 1982 album American Fool. The single “Jack and Diane” changed the course of his career, as he managed to deliver singer/songwriter truths while still becoming a darling of MTV fans. (Something, it should be mentioned, he achieved even before Bruce Springsteen, who didn’t quite find his commercial stride until 1984 and Born in the U.S.A.)
Mellencamp used his newfound success as leverage against his record company and anybody else who thought they could exert some sort of power over the artist. The first step was to insist that his 1983 album Uh-huh come out with his given last name attached. (It would be credited to John Cougar Mellencamp; he would eventually drop the “Cougar” all together.)
Doing It His Own Way
More important than any concerns about the name on the record was what was going to go into it. Record execs were likely hoping for American Fool Part II from Uh-huh. But Mellencamp removed some of the pop elements that helped him break big, preferring to record the album with his band at a friend’s house for a more organic, natural sound. As he explained in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, those hit songs had served their purpose, but they weren’t going to define him:
“But the good thing that came out of it is that it was Record of the Year and I never had to f–k with the record company again, ever. I remember saying to the president of the record company after he told me that he hated it, ‘Hey, look, it’s not your f–king job to like or judge what I’m doing. It’s your job to sell the f–king record. So why don’t you do your job, and I’ll do my job.'”
He did his job exceptionally well. Hit singles kept coming, even without the LinnDrums of “Jack and Diane” anywhere in sight. Crunching rocker “Tumbling Down” and heartland ballad “Pink Houses” both soared into the Top 10. For the third single from the album, Mellencamp released a song that bore more than a passing resemblance (and intentionally so) to a big hit from the ’60s.
What Does “Authority Song” Mean?
The ’60s song that inspired “Authority Song” was the legendary “I Fought the Law” by The Bobby Fuller Four. Instead of the law, however, Mellencamp’s narrator faces down a broader enemy: I fight authority, authority always wins. But you’ll notice that even though he might be losing the battles, he’s clearly winning the war: Well, I’ve been doing it since I was a young kid / And I come out grinnin’.
In “Authority Song,” you can hear Mellencamp’s struggles with the record industry in microcosm. Not only do they get you in a compromising position, but they smile in your face while they do it. The narrator admits he’s in Round 5 of a 15-round heavyweight struggle. But he’s not about to take any trite advice about growing up, even it does come from his preacher: I said, ‘Growin’ up leads to growin’ old and then to dyin’ / Ooh, and dyin’ to me don’t sound like all that much fun.'”
“Authority Song,” on the other hand, is a ton of fun. It showed Mellencamp had a sense of humor about his stubbornness, even though he wasn’t about to let up with it. Considering this song yielded another Top 20 smash, you can’t argue with his insistence on doing it his way.
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