John Mellencamp Shares Previously Unreleased Song “Smart Guys”

John Mellencamp shares the previously-unreleased track from Scarecrow, “Smart Guys.”

Mellencamp’s 1985 album Scarecrow will be having an extended version this coming November 4. In line with this, Mellencamp shared a previously-unreleased track, “Smart Guys,” which will be included in the upcoming version of the album.

The Mercury/UMe will reissue the record in a range of series which includes a super deluxe box set containing a 2CD version of the remastered LP. Outtakes and alternative versions, a 2022 Atmos mix on Blu-ray, a 180g LP, a picture-sleeve “Small Town” single, a photo book, lithographs, a poster, and an essay will also be expected on the set.

In 2017, Mellencamp said:

“The reason we made that record was because we were noticing that the landscape of Indiana was changing.

“All the small towns were going out of business. Why? … Because everybody went to live in the city? No. It was because that corporate farming had moved in and run the small family farmer out of business. Which is why we started Farm Aid.”

Mellencamp also explained that he’d had no choice but to move away from his sound because “the critics in the beginning hated me. … There was no place for John Mellencamp in the music business. I had to create my own job and create my own genre, and consequently do what I think they now call Americana.”

Starting February 5, Mellencamp will do a 76-date tour in North America. Stream his newly-released song below.