About the Song:
John Mellencamp was at his commercial peak in the 1980s, reaching the top 10 multiple times with memorable songs like “Jack and Diane,” his only #1 hit. Some of his hits, like “Hurts So Good” or “R.O.C.K in the U.S.A.” were slabs of good ol’ rock and roll while others, like “Pink Houses” and “Small Town,” dared to infuse pop radio with some doses of social commentary.
By the 21st century, Mellencamp hadn’t lost his talent for writing a good hook, but his top-40 days were behind him. He continued to make music regularly, leaning even more heavily on political commentary (“Rodeo Clown,” “To Washington”) or his grumpy old man status (“If I Die Sudden”). He defiantly shone a spotlight on the social ills of society (“Jena,” “Rural Route”), refusing to back down from exposing what he saw as just plain wrong. As he said, “I cannot tell you how fuckin’ important it is to speak out if you’re an artist…Silence is complicity.” UCR
“The Eyes of Portland,” his second single from his 2023 studio album Orpheus Descending, put homelessness in the crosshairs. Lizzy Acker, a commentator from OregonLive.com, acknowledges that Portland has problems but also gets defensive, saying “it might be the best major city in the entire country” OL and that “homelessness is not just a Portland problem.” OL
She clearly missed the point. Mellencamp sings, “All of these homeless, where do they come from? / In this land of plenty where nothing gets done / To help those who are empty and unable to run / Your tears and prayers won’t help the homeless.” Clearly Mellencamp is merely using Portland as a stand-in for any major American city, citing a national problem that – with a not so subtle dig at Republicans’ answer to gun violence – requires action, not thoughts and prayers.
As if she weren’t off-base enough, she also says “the funniest or saddest or best or worst part of this song” OL is that the video isn’t even shot in Portland, but Los Angeles. Uh, shouldn’t that make it even more obvious Mellencamp isn’t targeting Portland?
The song does lean on some cliches such as in lines like “Some are mentally ill, some are higher than kites” which Acker amusingly says, that if she were teaching a high school poetry class, “I would probably just cross it off with a big red marker and write, ‘Do better.’” OL
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First posted 2/15/2024.
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