John Mellencamp still rocks, but ages gracefully

CONCERT REVIEW | Classic rocker, Lucinda Williams both sing of redemption, reflection BY DAVE HOEKSTRA Staff Reporter It’s been said that by age 50 you get the face you deserve. So on Tuesday at Charter One Pavilion on Northerly Island, John Mellencamp and opening act Lucinda Williams graced the stage like that grim couple from the American Gothic painting — each of the accomplished singer-songwriters sticking a pitchfork into middle age. They sang of redemption, reflection and the open wounds of love. Mellencamp is on the road to promote “Life, Death, Love and Freedom,” his most critically acclaimed album in years. Performed live, the new songs lacked the rustic ambiance of the album’s producer, T-Bone Burnett (think “O Brother, Where Art John?”), but the trade-off was how deeply they cut to the bone. Mellencamp sounded as... [read full story]