Mellencamp Preps CD Release w/Tour

Getting some of that T Bone Burnett magic dust.

By Fred Mills

John Mellencamp drops his new album next week, Life, Death, Love and Freedom (Hear Music), produced by T Bone Burnett. He’s just kicked off the accompanying tour that runs through July.

Mellencamp will be performing music from the album on Late Night with David Letterman on Thursday, July 17 and on the CBS Early Show in a special remote concert broadcast from Chicago on Monday, July 21 — and if you eye BLURT’s TV listings for TODAY, you’ll notice that the Biography Channel is running a special on him tonight at 10 p.m.

In our forthcoming review of the album, critic Jake Cline notes that Mellencamp “soberly tackles the big issues raised in the album’s title… [it is] something of a mild shock to find how good this album actually is. Produced by the ubiquitous T Bone Burnett, the disc is decidedly low-key, with understated guitars and organs complementing the singer’s morbid, reflective lyrics.” Watch BLURT next week for the full review.

Notes Mellencamp’s camp,  “The album is the very first ever release employing the ΧΟΔΕ (CODE) format, developed by Burnett and his team, offering high resolution audio playable through any DVD player.  All copies are packaged with a standard CD at no additional charge.  Hear is also releasing the album on vinyl, as well, to address the analog renaissance.”

John Mellencamp Tour Dates:

July      10 Nikon at Jones Beach Theater - Wantagh, NY

      11 PNC Bank Arts Center - Holmdel, NJ

      14 Bank of America Pavilion - Boston, MA

      15 Bank of America Pavilion - Boston, MA

      18 DTE Energy Music Theatre - Clarkston, MI

      22 Charter One Pavilion @ Northerly Island - Chicago, IL

      23 Riverbend Music Center - Cincinnati, OH

      25 Ford Center - Oklahoma City, OK

      27 Red Rocks Amphitheatre - Denver, CO

      30 Santa Barbara Bowl- Santa Barbara, CA

     31 Greek Theatre - Los Angeles, CA

Aug 2 Greek Theatre - Berkeley, CA