Heartland duo rock Nissan

If the humidity didn’t knock you out Tuesday night, the combination punch from two guys named John would have finished the job. A murderous double billing of John Fogerty and John Mellencamp at Nissan Pavilion united two of the greatest songbooks in American rock, and neither performer penny-pinched on hits.

So what if Mr. Fogerty and Creedence Clearwater Revival weren’t really from the bayou but rather from the Bay Area or that Mr. Mellencamp keeps a home on ritzy Hilton Head? Tuesday night’s near-four-hour rockathon was also a great big hug for the heartland.

There was no talk of politics or war (unless you count the pointed lyrics to songs such as CCR’s “Fortunate Son” and Mr. Mellencamp’s pro-farmer anthem “Rain on the Scarecrow”). Mr. Fogerty and Mr. Mellencamp had nothing but high-fives and winks and the occasional booty shake for the less-than-capacity, but still respectable, audience.

Mr. Fogerty, who played first, was the only one promoting a new album, last year’s better-than-average “Deja Vu All Over Again.” Playing in front of the same band with which he scorched the 9:30 Club in November — and a giant new swamp-themed backdrop — Mr. Fogerty presented a mix of CCR must-dos such as “Travelin’ Band,” “Around the Bend,” “Bad Moon Rising” and “Proud Mary” as well as 1980s-era solo hits including “The Old Man Down the Road” and “Centerfield” that was as powerful as it was predictable. (He would later join Mr. Mellencamp for hoedown versions of “Green River” and “Rain on the Scarecrow.”)

With eyes squeezed shut and feet hopping madly, Mr. Fogerty tore through fuzzy guitar solos on a gold-topped Les Paul (and several other jewels from the Gibson guitar line) and looked as if he was having as groovy a time as the audience. Ditto Mr. Mellencamp, who was dressed in a blue suit that must have felt like burlap in the heat.

Showing his 53 years, Mr. Mellencamp slipped in a lyrical amendment during “Small Town” (“My wife was 13 years old when I wrote this song”) and took a brief intermission, during which an amusing montage of the singer’s various TV clips from the past two decades played on video screens.

He also was content for much of the evening to let the crowd assume his singing duties.

And sing it did. On “Jack & Diane,” “Hurts So Good,” “Pink Houses,” “Lonely Ol’ Night,” “Authority Song,” “R.O.C.K. in the USA,” “Crumblin’ Down,” “I Need a Lover” — Mr. Mellencamp’s 90-minute set played like, well, the compilation album he released last year, “Words and Music — John Mellencamp’s Greatest Hits.”

Surprisingly, and somewhat disappointingly, Mr. Mellencamp didn’t play a note of his considerable 1990s output. A new song, “Walk Tall,” was the only deviation from the ’80s-dominant playlist. Nips and tucks were kept to a minimum, such as when Mr. Mellencamp abruptly cut short “Small Town” to segue into the rarity “Minutes to Memories.”

Still, as far as hit parades go, it’s hard to equal Mr. Mellencamp, whose galvanizing seven-piece band played material that’s some 20 years old with freshness and gusto. Michael Ramos, who looks like a buffer version of actor Antonio Banderas, played a ragbag of instruments including accordion, organ and trumpet. Miriam Sturm capably handled the violin licks that have been so crucial to Mr. Mellencamp’s sound ever since 1987’s Appalachian-flavored “Lonesome Jubilee” album. Percussionist and longtime Mellencamp hand Pat Peterson doubled as the singer’s dance partner. Guitarists Andy York and Mike Wanchic added subtle contours to Mr. Mellencamp’s basic, three-chord attack.

The only slip-up Tuesday was semantic.

Introducing “Rain on the Scarecrow,” Mr. Mellencamp said its subject matter (cash-strapped family farms) was “more prevalent” today than when he wrote the song in the mid-’80s.

Prevalent? Not quite.

But we knew what he meant.