John Mellencamp — Dance Naked

Thirteen studio album from the artist. Released in part as a response to his label, Mercury, who contended that his previous album, Human Wheels, didn’t “fit the format”. In an attempt to demonstrate the lack of creative effort necessary to produce what they were asking for, Mellencamp got to work at his Indiana recording studio and put out a handful of  radio-friendly songs in a span of two weeks, including a Van Morrison cover for good measure. Most of the tracks were recorded in only one or two takes, & lack the lush production of previous albums. Perhaps as a result this album is Mellencamp’s shortest, at just under 30 minutes. Regardless the album was well received, reaching 13 on the Billboard 200 as well as a platinum certification.