# John Mellencamp discography

The following is a comprehensive discography of John Mellencamp, an American singer-songwriter. During Mellencamp's career in the recording industry, he has released 25 studio albums, two live albums, four compilation albums, and 71 singles.
Mellencamp's first album to chart on the Billboard 200 was the self-titled John Cougar album in 1979; the album was certified gold by the RIAA. Mellencamp's major commercial breakthrough came in 1982 with American Fool, which reached number one on the Billboard 200 and yielded two singles, "Hurts So Good" and "Jack & Diane", which reached number two and number one respectively on the Billboard Hot 100. American Fool would eventually sell 10 million copies worldwide (five million in the US alone). From 1983 to 1987, Mellencamp released three consecutive albums—Uh-Huh (1983), Scarecrow (1985), and The Lonesome Jubilee (1987)—which were all certified triple platinum by the RIAA. Combined, the three albums spawned sixteen singles, seven of which—"Crumblin' Down", "Pink Houses", "Lonely Ol' Night", "Small Town", "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.", "Paper in Fire" and "Cherry Bomb"—became top 10 hits in the US. In 1997, Mellencamp released his first-ever greatest hits collection entitled The Best That I Could Do 1978–1988.
Mellencamp has charted 28 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, including 22 hits in the Top 40, 17 in the Top 20 and 10 in the top 10. He has scored 22 albums on the Billboard 200, including 17 in the Top 20 and 11 in the Top 10. Mellencamp has sold about 30 million albums in the US and over 60 million worldwide.

## Studio albums
### 1970s

| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Certifications |
| Year | Album details | US | AUS | CAN | Certifications |
| 1976 | Chestnut Street Incident Release date: October 1, 1976 Label: MCA | — | — | — | |
| 1978 | A Biography Release date: March 6, 1978 Label: Riva | — | 19 | 19 | |
| 1979 | John Cougar Release date: July 27, 1979 Label: Riva Released as Miami in Australia | 64 | 77 | 77 | RIAA: Gold |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart ||||||

### 1980s

| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Certifications |
| Year | Album details | US | AUS | CAN | GER | NL | NOR | NZ | SWE | SWI | UK | Certifications |
| 1980 | Nothin' Matters and What If It Did Release date: September 15, 1980 Label: Riva | 37 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | RIAA: Platinum |
| 1982 | American Fool Release date: April 12, 1982 Label: Riva | 1 | 18 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 30 | — | 37 | RIAA: 5× Platinum MC: 5× Platinum |
| 1983 | The Kid Inside Release date: January 27, 1983 Label: MainMan | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1983 | Uh-Huh Release date: October 23, 1983 Label: Riva | 9 | 57 | 9 | — | — | — | — | 24 | — | 92 | RIAA: 3× Platinum MC: 5× Platinum |
| 1985 | Scarecrow Release date: July 31, 1985 Label: Riva | 2 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | 14 | 9 | — | — | RIAA: 5× Platinum ARIA: 4× Platinum MC: 5× Platinum |
| 1987 | The Lonesome Jubilee Release date: August 24, 1987 Label: Mercury | 6 | 2 | 1 | 41 | 34 | 16 | 3 | 6 | 10 | 31 | RIAA: 3× Platinum ARIA: Platinum MC: 6× Platinum |
| 1989 | Big Daddy Release date: May 9, 1989 Label: Mercury | 7 | 1 | 3 | 27 | 33 | 12 | 6 | 6 | 11 | 25 | RIAA: Platinum ARIA: Platinum MC: 2× Platinum |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart |||||||||||||

### 1990s

| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Certifications |
| Year | Album details | US | AUS | CAN | FIN | GER | NL | NZ | SWE | SWI | UK | Certifications |
| 1991 | Whenever We Wanted Release date: October 8, 1991 Label: Mercury | 17 | 3 | 8 | — | 44 | — | 40 | 19 | 16 | 39 | RIAA: Platinum ARIA: Platinum MC: Platinum |
| 1993 | Human Wheels Release date: September 7, 1993 Label: Mercury | 7 | 7 | 6 | — | 48 | 87 | — | 8 | 18 | 37 | RIAA: Platinum MC: Platinum |
| 1994 | Dance Naked Release date: June 21, 1994 Label: Mercury | 13 | 6 | 17 | — | — | — | — | 24 | 32 | — | RIAA: Platinum MC: Platinum |
| 1996 | Mr. Happy Go Lucky Release date: September 10, 1996 Label: Mercury | 9 | 11 | 11 | 26 | 53 | — | 36 | 26 | 37 | 82 | RIAA: Platinum ARIA: Gold MC: Platinum |
| 1998 | John Mellencamp Release date: October 6, 1998 Label: Columbia | 41 | 41 | 37 | — | — | — | — | — | 48 | 108 | RIAA: Gold |
| 1999 | Rough Harvest Release date: August 17, 1999 Label: Mercury | 99 | 131 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart |||||||||||||

### 2000s

| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Certifications |
| Year | Album details | US | US Rock | AUS | GER | SWE | UK | Certifications |
| 2001 | Cuttin' Heads Release date: October 16, 2001 Label: Columbia | 15 | — | 131 | 99 | — | — | RIAA: Gold |
| 2003 | Trouble No More Release date: June 3, 2003 Label: Columbia | 31 | — | 159 | — | — | — | |
| 2007 | Freedom's Road Release date: January 23, 2007 Label: Universal South Records | 5 | 3 | 145 | — | — | — | |
| 2008 | Life, Death, Love and Freedom Release date: July 15, 2008 Label: Hear Music | 7 | 3 | 21 | — | 53 | 162 | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart |||||||||

### 2010s

| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions |
| Year | Album details | US | US Folk | US Rock | AUS | GER | NL | NOR | SWE | SWI | UK |
| 2010 | No Better Than This Release date: August 17, 2010 Label: Rounder | 10 | — | 5 | 83 | 62 | 93 | 29 | 33 | 83 | 138 |
| 2014 | Plain Spoken Release date: September 23, 2014 Label: Republic | 18 | 2 | 5 | — | 84 | — | — | — | 58 | 169 |
| 2017 | Sad Clowns & Hillbillies Release date: April 28, 2017 Label: Republic | 11 | 1 | 3 | — | 52 | — | — | — | 28 | 78 |
| 2018 | Other People's Stuff Release date: December 7, 2018 Label: Republic | 7 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | 70 | — |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart ||||||||||||

### 2020s

| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions |
| Year | Album details | US | US Folk | US Rock | GER | SWI |
| 2022 | Strictly a One-Eyed Jack Release date: January 21, 2022 Label: Republic | 196 | 5 | 30 | 24 | 6 |
| 2023 | Orpheus Descending Release date: June 16, 2023 Label: Republic | — | — | — | 79 | 93 |

## Compilation albums

| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Certifications |
| Year | Title | US | US Rock | AUS | CAN | NZ | UK | Certifications |
| 1997 | The Collection Release date: 1985 label: Castle | — | — | — | — | — | — | BPI: Silver |
| 1997 | The Best That I Could Do 1978–1988 Release date: November 18, 1997 label: Mercury | 33 | 37 | 5 | 9 | 19 | 25 | RIAA: 3× Platinum ARIA: 2× Platinum BPI: Silver MC: Platinum |
| 2004 | Words & Music: John Mellencamp's Greatest Hits Release date: October 19, 2004 Label: Island/UTV | 13 | — | 93 | — | — | — | RIAA: Platinum |
| 2010 | 20th Century Masters – The Millennium Collection: The Best of John Mellencamp Release date: January 4, 2010 Label: Universal | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 2010 | On the Rural Route 7609 Release date: June 15, 2010 Label: Island Def Jam | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart |||||||||

## Live albums

| Year | Album details |
| 2009 | Life, Death, Live and Freedom Release date: June 23, 2009 Label: Hear Music |
| 2014 | Performs Trouble No More Live at Town Hall Release date: July 8, 2014 Label: Mercury |
| 2018 | Plain Spoken: From the Chicago Theatre Release date: May 11, 2018 Label: Eagle Rock |
| 2021 | The Good Samaritan Tour 2000 Release date: August 27, 2021 Label: Republic |

## Singles
### 1970s singles

| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Album |
| Year | Single | US | AUS | Album |
| 1978 | "I Need a Lover" | — | 5 | A Biography |
| 1978 | "Factory" | — | — | A Biography |
| 1979 | "Miami" | — | 31 | John Cougar |
| 1979 | "I Need a Lover" | 28 | — | John Cougar |
| 1979 | "Taxi Dancer" | — | — | John Cougar |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart |||||

### 1980s singles

| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album |
| Year | Single | US | US Main | US AC | US Country | CAN | UK | IRE | AUS | NZ | GER | Certifications | Album |
| 1980 | "Small Paradise" | 87 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | John Cougar |
| 1980 | "A Little Night Dancin'" | 105 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | John Cougar |
| 1980 | "This Time" | 27 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 43 | — | — | | Nothin' Matters and What If It Did |
| 1981 | "Ain't Even Done with the Night" | 17 | 44 | — | — | 15 | — | — | — | — | — | | Nothin' Matters and What If It Did |
| 1981 | "Hot Night in a Cold Town" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Nothin' Matters and What If It Did |
| 1982 | "Hurts So Good" | 2 | 1 | — | — | 3 | — | — | 5 | 39 | — | RIAA: Gold MC: Platinum | American Fool |
| 1982 | "Jack & Diane" | 1 | 3 | — | — | 1 | 25 | 7 | 7 | — | — | RIAA: Gold BPI: Silver MC: Platinum | American Fool |
| 1982 | "Thundering Hearts" | — | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | American Fool |
| 1982 | "Hand to Hold on To" | 19 | — | — | — | 41 | 89 | 26 | 97 | — | — | | American Fool |
| 1983 | "Crumblin' Down" | 9 | 2 | — | — | 9 | — | — | 42 | — | — | | Uh-huh |
| 1983 | "Pink Houses" | 8 | 3 | — | — | 15 | — | — | 69 | — | — | | Uh-huh |
| 1984 | "Serious Business" | — | 34 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Uh-huh |
| 1984 | "Play Guitar" | — | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Uh-huh |
| 1984 | "Authority Song" | 15 | 15 | — | — | 41 | — | — | 93 | — | — | | Uh-huh |
| 1985 | "Lonely Ol' Night" | 6 | 1 | 37 | — | 7 | 138 | — | 32 | 50 | — | | Scarecrow |
| 1985 | "Small Town" | 6 | 2 | 13 | — | 13 | 53 | — | 80 | 40 | — | | Scarecrow |
| 1985 | "Justice and Independence '85" | — | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Scarecrow |
| 1986 | "Minutes to Memories" | — | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Scarecrow |
| 1986 | "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A. (A Salute to '60s Rock)" | 2 | 6 | 36 | — | 7 | 67 | — | 18 | 17 | — | MC: Gold | Scarecrow |
| 1986 | "Under the Boardwalk" | — | 19 | — | — | — | — | — | 18 | — | — | | Non-album song |
| 1986 | "Rain on the Scarecrow" | 21 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | 34 | — | — | | Scarecrow |
| 1986 | "Rumbleseat" | 28 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | 84 | — | — | | Scarecrow |
| 1987 | "Paper in Fire" | 9 | 1 | — | — | 3 | 86 | — | 13 | 16 | — | | The Lonesome Jubilee |
| 1987 | "Cherry Bomb" | 8 | 1 | 12 | — | 5 | — | — | 20 | 4 | — | MC: Gold | The Lonesome Jubilee |
| 1987 | "Hard Times for an Honest Man" | — | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | The Lonesome Jubilee |
| 1987 | "The Real Life" | — | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | The Lonesome Jubilee |
| 1988 | "Check It Out" | 14 | 3 | — | — | 10 | 96 | — | 22 | 18 | — | MC: Gold | The Lonesome Jubilee |
| 1988 | "Rooty Toot Toot" | 61 | 7 | — | — | 19 | 124 | — | 54 | 10 | — | | The Lonesome Jubilee |
| 1988 | "Rave On" | — | 17 | — | — | 18 | — | — | — | 7 | — | | Cocktail soundtrack |
| 1989 | "Pop Singer" | 15 | 2 | — | — | 1 | 93 | — | 8 | 1 | 87 | | Big Daddy |
| 1989 | "Jackie Brown" | 48 | 20 | 31 | 82 | 23 | — | — | 47 | 30 | — | | Big Daddy |
| 1989 | "Martha Say" | — | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Big Daddy |
| 1989 | "Let It Out (Let It All Hang Out)" | — | 42 | — | — | 83 | — | — | — | — | — | | Big Daddy |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart ||||||||||||||

### 1990s singles

| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Album |
| Year | Single | US | US Main | US AC | US Adult | CAN | UK | AUS | NZ | GER | Album |
| 1991 | "Get a Leg Up" | 14 | 1 | — | — | 4 | — | 21 | — | — | Whenever We Wanted |
| 1991 | "Love and Happiness" | — | 5 | — | — | 54 | — | — | — | — | Whenever We Wanted |
| 1992 | "Again Tonight" | 36 | 1 | 46 | — | 8 | — | 39 | — | — | Whenever We Wanted |
| 1992 | "Last Chance" | — | 12 | — | — | 73 | — | — | — | — | Whenever We Wanted |
| 1992 | "Now More Than Ever" | — | 3 | — | — | 29 | 76 | 61 | — | — | Whenever We Wanted |
| 1993 | "Human Wheels" | 48 | 2 | 40 | — | 3 | — | 40 | — | — | Human Wheels |
| 1993 | "What If I Came Knocking" | — | 1 | — | — | 23 | — | — | — | — | Human Wheels |
| 1993 | "When Jesus Left Birmingham" | — | 35 | — | — | 21 | — | — | — | — | Human Wheels |
| 1994 | "Junior" | — | 35 | — | — | 45 | — | — | — | — | Human Wheels |
| 1994 | "Baby Please Don't Go" | — | — | — | — | 72 | — | — | — | — | Blue Chips soundtrack |
| 1994 | "Wild Night" (featuring Me'Shell Ndegéocello) | 3 | 17 | 1 | 30 | 1 | 34 | 18 | — | 55 | Dance Naked |
| 1994 | "Dance Naked" | 41 | 21 | 37 | — | 7 | — | 79 | — | — | Dance Naked |
| 1996 | "Key West Intermezzo (I Saw You First)" | 14 | 10 | 15 | 4 | 1 | 92 | 21 | 35 | — | Mr. Happy Go Lucky |
| 1997 | "Just Another Day" | 46 | 13 | 24 | 13 | 1 | — | 81 | — | — | Mr. Happy Go Lucky |
| 1997 | "Without Expression" | — | 25 | — | — | 14 | — | — | — | — | The Best That I Could Do |
| 1998 | "Your Life Is Now" | — | 15 | 19 | 23 | 3 | — | 136 | — | 92 | John Mellencamp |
| 1999 | "I'm Not Running Anymore" | — | 37 | 22 | 22 | — | — | 196 | — | 100 | John Mellencamp |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart ||||||||||||

### 2000s singles

| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Album |
| Year | Single | US | US Main | US AC | US Adult | US Country | Album |
| 2000 | "Yours Forever" | — | — | — | — | — | The Perfect Storm soundtrack |
| 2001 | "Peaceful World" (featuring India.Arie) | — | 38 | 27 | 11 | — | Cuttin' Heads |
| 2003 | "To Washington" | — | — | — | — | — | Trouble No More |
| 2003 | "Teardrops Will Fall" | — | — | — | — | — | Trouble No More |
| 2004 | "Walk Tall" | — | — | 25 | 26 | — | Words & Music |
| 2006 | "Our Country" | 88 | — | 16 | — | 39 | Freedom's Road |
| 2007 | "The Americans" | — | — | — | — | 55 | Freedom's Road |
| 2007 | "Someday" | — | — | — | — | — | Freedom's Road |
| 2008 | "My Sweet Love" | — | — | 25 | — | — | Life, Death, Love and Freedom |
| 2008 | "Troubled Land" | — | — | — | — | — | Life, Death, Love and Freedom |
| 2009 | "A Ride Back Home" (featuring Karen Fairchild) | — | — | — | — | — | Life, Death, Love and Freedom |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart ||||||||

### 2010s and 2020s singles

| Year | Single | Album |
| 2010 | "No Better Than This" | No Better Than This |
| 2010 | "Save Some Time to Dream" | No Better Than This |
| 2014 | "Troubled Man" | Plain Spoken |
| 2020 | "A Pawn in the White Man's Game" | |
| 2021 | "Wasted Days" (featuring Bruce Springsteen) | Strictly a One-Eyed Jack |
| 2021 | "Chasing Rainbows" | Strictly a One-Eyed Jack |
| 2022 | "Did You Say Such a Thing" (featuring Bruce Springsteen) | Strictly a One-Eyed Jack |
| 2023 | "Hey God" | Orpheus Descending |
| 2023 | "The Eyes of Portland" | Orpheus Descending |

## Featured singles

| Year | Single | Artist | Peak chart positions | Album |
| Year | Single | Artist | US Country | Album |
| 1992 | "Sweet Suzanne" | Buzzin' Cousins | 68 | Falling from Grace soundtrack |
| 2004 | "What Say You" | Travis Tritt | 21 | My Honky Tonk History |

## Other appearances

| Year | Song | Album |
| 1987 | "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" | A Very Special Christmas |
| 1994 | "Pink Houses" (live version) | The Unplugged Collection, Volume One |
| 2007 | "This Land Is Your Land" | Song of America |
| 2009 | "Pink Houses" (live version) | The Official Inaugural Celebration (DVD) |

## Music videos

| Year | Video | Director |
| 1978 | "I Need a Lover" | David McMahon |
| 1979 | "Miami" | Bruce Gowers |
| 1980 | "Small Paradise" | Bruce Gowers |
| 1980 | "This Time" | Bruce Gowers |
| 1981 | "Ain't Even Done with the Night" | Bruce Gowers |
| 1982 | "Hurts So Good" | Bruce Gowers |
| 1982 | "Hand to Hold Onto" | Bruce Gowers |
| 1982 | "Jack and Diane" | Bruce Gowers |
| 1983 | "Crumblin' Down" | Chris Gabrin |
| 1983 | "Pink Houses" | Chris Gabrin |
| 1984 | "Authority Song" | Jay Dubin |
| 1985 | "Lonely Ol' Night" | Jonathan Kaplan |
| 1985 | "Small Town" | Jonathan Kaplan |
| 1986 | "R.O.C.K. in the USA (A Salute to '60s Rock)" | John Mellencamp |
| 1986 | "Rain on the Scarecrow" | Jonathan Kaplan |
| 1986 | "Rumbleseat" | Faye Cummins |
| 1987 | "Paper in Fire" | Jonathan Dark |
| 1987 | "Cherry Bomb" | |
| 1987 | "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" | |
| 1988 | "Check It Out" | Jonathan Dark |
| 1988 | "Rooty Toot Toot" | Jonathan Dark |
| 1989 | "Pop Singer" | Jonathan Dark |
| 1989 | "Jackie Brown" | John Mellencamp |
| 1989 | "Let It Out (Let It All Hang Out)" | Wayne Maser |
| 1991 | "Get a Leg Up" | |
| 1991 | "Love and Happiness" | |
| 1992 | "Again Tonight" | Dennis Virkler |
| 1992 | "Now More Than Ever" | |
| 1992 | "Sweet Suzanne" (Buzzin' Cousins) | Marty Callner |
| 1993 | "Human Wheels" | |
| 1993 | "When Jesus Left Birmingham" | |
| 1994 | "Baby Please Don't Go" | |
| 1994 | "Wild Night" (With Meshell Ndegeocello) | |
| 1994 | "Dance Naked" | |
| 1996 | "Key West Intermezzo (I Saw You First)" | |
| 1996 | "Just Another Day" | |
| 1998 | "Your Life Is Now" | Samuel Bayer |
| 1999 | "I'm Not Running Anymore" | Robert Duffy |
| 2001 | "Peaceful World" (With India.Arie) | |
| 2003 | "To Washington" | |
| 2003 | "Teardrops Will Fall" | |
| 2004 | "What Say You" (With Travis Tritt) | Chris Lenz |
| 2004 | "Walk Tall" | |
| 2006 | "Our Country" | Deaton Flanigen |
| 2007 | "The Americans" | Eric De Fino |
| 2008 | "My Sweet Love" | |
| 2008 | "Troubled Land" | |
| 2009 | "A Ride Back Home" (With Karen Fairchild) | Jamie Anderson |
| 2010 | "No Better Than This" | Ian And Kurt Markus |
| 2014 | "Troubled Man" | |
| 2017 | "Easy Target" |
| 2020 | "A Pawn in the White Man's Game" |
| 2021 | "Wasted Days" (With Bruce Springsteen) | |
| 2023 | "Hey God" | |
| 2023 | "The Eyes of Portland" | |