Chestnut Street Incident
by Stephen Thomas ErlewineJohn Mellencamp began his career as Johnny Cougar, on the advice of his manager, Tony DeFries. Cougar's debut, Chestnut Street Incident, was released in 1976 in a whirlwind of hype, which the album simply didn't deserve. At best, the record is a competent collection of Stonesy rockers, infused with a blue-collar Bruce Springsteen/Bob Seger attitude, but Cougar's music and lyrics aren't memorable and are often laughable.