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John Mellencamp had a title running through his head.
He knew it would be a Great Song, but it needed to be written, so he mentioned it to his childhood friend and occasional collaborator George Green.
Together, they tossed some lines back and forth, and in short order, they had finished the lyrics. John then picked up his guitar and wrote the music for "Hurt So Good."
At that point, John thought the song was just a big joke!
In 1982, under his stage name John Cougar (which he hated, by the way), he released his "American Fool" album, and "Hurt So Good" was the first single.
And the reaction by fans and radio listeners was...no joke!
It topped the Billboard's Mainstream Rock Chart, and reached #2 on the Hot 100. In Canada, it peaked at #3 on the Top 40.
"Hurt So Good" was on the charts for 16 weeks, the longest stay for ANY song in '82, and it won the Grammy for "Best Rock Vocal Performance.
The video was just the kind of thing MTV was looking for: a swaggering American rock star in a video with motorcycles and girls. They played it in heavy rotation, which no doubt added to its popularity.
"Hurt So Good" by John Cougar (Mellencamp) is a classic, and definitely a Great Song of the '80s!
Tomorrow: A pigeon from Hell.
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