Does Creedence Clearwater Revival get the credit they deserve? That’s the question I pose to you. I love them. Not just because El Duderino liked them. I really do back the shit out of CCR.
You don’t hear them mentioned in most the ‘great bands’ discussions. At least I don’t. I’m not saying they’re the Stones or Beatles, but are they not a ‘great’ band? Fogerty wasn’t as prolific of a song writer as, say Dylan or Neil Young obviously, but he could write a tune that got the head bobbin’ and the feet tappin’. Feel good songs. A lot of people like them, I know that…but do people really respect them?
They’re certainly a brahsome band. That fact is indisputable. Would Doug Clifford play drums for an unbrahsome band? Methinks not.
I’ve been poking around the innerwebs just to make sure, and it’s clear that CCR was pretty successful back in the day. In 1969 Bayou Country was released and went platinum, with “Proud Mary” getting to #2 on the Billboard chart. Soon thereafter (also in ‘69) they dropped Green River which went gold, with “Bad Moon Rising” reaching #2. “Lodi” is also on Green River and might be my favorite CCR song. So that’s a solid year.
It’s hard to say they weren’t in the game long enough. They were together from like ‘67 to ‘72, which was a great time to be a band in America.
They were from California. Which usually scores heady points with the kids.
They played Woodstock. Again, heady points with the kids. A fun fact I just learned is that they had to play a 3am set because the Dead went over their allotted time. No respect even in their own day apparently.
“Fortunate Son”, off of Willy and the Poor Boys, is a solid rock and roll song, a fantastic anti-war anthem and was great on the Forrest Gump soundtrack. Rolling Stone ranked it #99 on their list of the “500 Greatest Songs of All Time.”
John Fogerty, their lead singer, has a very distinguishable voice. He’s no Van the Man or anything like that, but when he’s bringing his A game on “Long As I Can See the Light” or “Wrote a Song,” it’s pretty tough to beat.
Are they too cheesy? Or “de queso” as my 7th grade Spanish teacher would say. “Hay Paco, es de queso.” Oh Señora Falco. Anyway, where was I? Were they too cheesy? Maybe…but I don’t really think so. They had the blues thing going to even out some of the honky tonk sound. Sure, there are some moments where he maybe let the bayou, hillbilly persona get a little think, but that was their deal. Their steez if you will.
It can’t be their terrible hair cuts. Every rock star worth his salt goes through a terrible hair phase. When you can have your choice of any hussy in the house, no matter what city you’re in, I think maybe you just have to see how bad you can look and still pull it in. Who knows? Not this guy.
Long story long, what I’m saying here is that, if you’re a CCR fan like I am, be proud and stand tall. No one ever gets pissed when a Creedence song comes on. Especially if it’s in the summer. At a bar-be-que. With beer. Cold beer.
Below are a few CCR numbers to get you through the day.
Mucho take it easy.
Fortunate Son
I Put a Spell On You (triiiippy)
Lookin’ Out My Back Door
Have You Ever Seen the Rain?
Born On the Bayou
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Awesome article. And yes, CCR is heavily underrated as a whole, even though stuff like Fortunate Son has probably played them out. Personally, my favorite CCR vehicle was their 16 minute cover of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine”.
Also, I saw Creedence Clearwater Revisted in Chattnooga in high school. It was cool but a little disappointing to see how easily they found a singer that sounds just like Fogerty.
I wasn’t aware of a CCR backlash, but I definitely consider them a “great” band. Either way, and I know it’s a bit of a faux pas to discuss “Greatest Hits” albums and the like, but in terms of a retrospective, if there’s a bad song on “Chronicle, Vol. 1″, I don’t know what it is. 20 tracks deep, no skipping. Beyond strong…
Fogerty may not have been as prolific as Dylan or Young, but he was almost certainly more efficient. Not saying he’s “better”, no point in that anyway, but I have no qualms about calling Fogerty one of the greatest (North) American song writers of all time. Probably don’t even need the geographical qualification…