Check It Out (John Mellencamp song)

"Check It Out"
"Check It Out"
Single by John Cougar Mellencamp
from the album The Lonesome Jubilee
B-side	"We Are the People"
Released	1988
Studio	Belmont Mall (Indiana, US)
Genre	Heartland rock
Length	4:19
Label	Mercury
Songwriter(s)	John Mellencamp
Producer(s)	John Mellencamp, Don Gehman
John Cougar Mellencamp singles chronology

"Check It Out" is a 1987 song by John Mellencamp released as the third single from his album The Lonesome Jubilee in 1988. The single was a top 20 hit, reaching number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100.^[1]^[2]

Lyrics and music edit

According to Mellencamp biographer David Masciotra, the song "describes the rewards and punishments of a typical American middle-class family" and professes that "our attempts to solve the mysteries of the heart and grasp the truth of humanity are fraught with disaster and disappointment."^[3] Mellencamp biographer Paul Rees called its sound "uplifting".^[4]

Reception edit

Cash Box said that Mellencamp's rough county-ish feel takes you into the heartland [of America]" and that the song "features a nice instrumental hook line that sounds like an otherworldly bagpipe and leads into the verses."^[5]

Masciotra calls it "a uniquely powerful testament to the mystery of inner life".^[3]

Music video edit

The video was shot as a live performance at Market Square Arena in Indianapolis on December 11, 1987, during Mellencamp's massive Lonesome Jubilee tour.

Charts edit

Weekly charts edit

Chart (1987–1988)	Peak position
US Cashbox^[6]	14
US Billboard Hot 100^[7]	14

References edit

^ Whitburn, Joel (2009). Top Pop Singles (12th ed.). Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research, Inc. p. 649. ISBN 978-0898201802.
^ Bessman, Jim (2007). John Mellencamp: The Concert at Walter Reed. Bloomington, Indiana: Author House. p. 5. ISBN 9781434346469.
^ ^a ^b Masciotra, David (2022). Mellencamp: American Troubadour. University Press of Kentucky. pp. 4, 100–103, 106, 122, 135. ISBN 9780813195582.
^ Rees, Paul (2021). Mellencamp. Atria Books. p. 94. ISBN 9781982112165.
^ "Single Releases" (PDF). Cash Box. February 6, 1988. p. 10. Retrieved December 21, 2022.
^ Whitburn, Joel (2014). Cash Box Pop Hits 1952-1996. Sheridan Books, Inc. ISBN 978-0-89820-209-0.
^ "John Mellencamp Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved December 13, 2021.

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[1] Whitburn, Joel (2009). Top Pop Singles (12th ed.). Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research, Inc. p. 649. ISBN 978-0898201802.

[2] Bessman, Jim (2007). John Mellencamp: The Concert at Walter Reed. Bloomington, Indiana: Author House. p. 5. ISBN 9781434346469.

[troubadour-3] Masciotra, David (2022). Mellencamp: American Troubadour. University Press of Kentucky. pp. 4, 100–103, 106, 122, 135. ISBN 9780813195582.

[4] Rees, Paul (2021). Mellencamp. Atria Books. p. 94. ISBN 9781982112165.

[cb-5] "Single Releases" (PDF). Cash Box. February 6, 1988. p. 10. Retrieved December 21, 2022.

[Cash_Box-6] Whitburn, Joel (2014). Cash Box Pop Hits 1952-1996. Sheridan Books, Inc. ISBN 978-0-89820-209-0.

[sc_Billboardhot100_John_Mellencamp-7] "John Mellencamp Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved December 13, 2021.

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