''A Biography'' is the second album by the American singer-songwriter

John Mellencamp John J. Mellencamp (born October 7, 1951), previously known as Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for his brand of heartland rock, which emphasizes traditional instrumentation ...

(credited as Johnny Cougar). Recorded in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, it was released in the UK and Australia by

Riva Records Riva Records was a British record label founded in the UK in 1975 by Billy Gaff, manager of Rod Stewart. Rod Stewart signed to the label in the UK, but stayed with Warner Bros. Records in the US and the rest of the world. Another well-known a ...

on March 6, 1978. Due to poor sales of Mellencamp's debut album, ''

Chestnut Street Incident ''Chestnut Street Incident'' is the debut studio album by the American singer-songwriter John Mellencamp, and his first of six albums in which Mellencamp was credited as Johnny (later John) Cougar. It was released by MCA Records on October 1, 19 ...

'', ''A Biography'' did not receive a U.S. release upon its 1978 debut. Two of its tracks, "Taxi Dancer" and the single "

I Need a Lover "I Need a Lover" is the debut single by John Mellencamp, first released in 1978 under the stage name "Johnny Cougar". Background The song appeared on his 1978 album ''A Biography'', which was not released in the United States. After becoming a ...

," were also included on his 1979 album '' John Cougar'', which was released in the U.S. In Australia, however, "

" became a Top 10 hit, giving Mellencamp his first taste of success. The song would eventually crack the Top 40 in the U.S. in late 1979 when released as a single from his '' John Cougar'' album.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

reviewer

Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and former senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of multiple artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance ...

described "I Need a Lover" as Mellencamp's "first good song." ''A Biography'', along with all Mellencamp's other Riva Records/Mercury Records albums, were remastered and re-released in 2005, marking the first time ''A Biography'' was released in the United States. Mellencamp has often spoken negatively about his early albums, and ''A Biography'' is no exception. He stated in Tim Holmes’ 1986 biography: “''A Biography'' is so bitter. I mean I don’t even like to listen to it. I can’t believe it’s me. The songs were written in ’76 or ’77. The lyrics were real awful. They were real ‘I hate you. I hate this.’ And that’s the way I felt at that time."

Track listing

Personnel

* Johnny Cougar –

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked, its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

background vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are u ...

* Brian BecVar – keyboards, background vocals * Larry Crane –

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

s, background vocals * Robert "Ferd" Frank –

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

, background vocals * Tom Knowles –

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

, background vocals *

Andy Mackay Andrew Mackay (born 23 July 1946) is an English musician, best known as a founding member (playing oboe and saxophone) of the art rock group Roxy Music. In addition, he has taught music and provided scores for television, while his work as a se ...

–

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...

s * Ann Odell –

string String or strings may refer to: *String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...

arrangement on "Taxi Dancer" * David Steen – photography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Biography, A John Mellencamp albums 1978 albums Albums produced by John Punter Riva Records albums