John Fogerty
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John Fogerty in Stockholm Globe Arena 2005. |
This article is about the singer, John Fogerty. For the American racing driver, see Jon Fogarty.John Cameron Fogerty (born
May 28,
1945) is an
American singer and
songwriter, best known for his time with the
southern rock band
Creedence Clearwater Revival. He was born in
Berkeley,
California.
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John Fogerty singing in foreground on Creedence Clearwater Revival Chronicle cover. |
John and his brother,
Tom Fogerty, formed the band in
El Cerrito, California in the late
1950s as Tommy Fogerty and the Blue Velvets. The name was changed to
The Golliwogs in the mid
1960s, but the band remained unpopular.
By
1968, things were starting to pick up. The band released its first album, the self-titled
Creedence Clearwater Revival, and also had their first hit single,
Susie Q. Other hit singles of Creedence Clearwater Revival were
Proud Mary,
Fortunate Son,
Up Around The Bend,
Green River,
Down On The Corner,
Travelin' Band,
Lookin' Out My Back Door,
Bad Moon Rising, and
Who'll Stop The Rain. Tensions flared in
1971, causing John's brother, Tom, to leave the band. John demanded that Stu Cook and Doug Clifford write and sing one third each of the next album,
Mardi Gras. They protested, saying it wouldn't be a CCR album, and that the fans would not understand. John replied, "my voice is a unique instrument and I will not lend it to your songs." He threatened to quit the band immediately if his ultimatum was not met;
Mardi Gras turned out to be their last album as Fogerty bought himself out of his contract and officially left the band.
However, his influence was not forgotten with his departure. His
guitar playing with CCR would later lead
Rolling Stone to name him the 40th greatest guitarist of all time.
John Fogerty began a solo career, originally under the name the
Blue Ridge Rangers for his
1973 debut, on which he played all of the instruments and
covered others' hits, such as
Jambalaya (which was a Top 40 hit) and some Gospel-Songs like
Have Thine Own Way,Lord and
Working On A Building.
John Fogerty was released in
1975 (see
1975 in music). Sales were slim and legal problems delayed a follow-up, though it yielded two minor hit singles,
Rockin' All Over The World, later covered much more successfully by
Status Quo, and
Almost Saturday Night, later a minor UK hit for
Dave Edmunds. Creedence Clearwater Revival's former management filed a suit against Fogerty, claiming that his new, solo compositions sounded too much like his former work as songwriter for Creedence.
Fogerty's solo career emerged in full force with
1985's
Centerfield, which went to the top of the charts and included a Top Ten hit in
The Old Man Down The Road and a title track frequently played on classic rock radio and at
baseball games to this day. But that album was not without its legal snags either; two songs on the album,
Zanz Can't Dance and
Mr Greed, were believed to be attacks on Fogerty's former boss at
Fantasy Records,
Saul Zaentz. When Zaentz responded with a lawsuit, Fogerty issued a revised version of
Zanz Can't Dance (changing the lead character's name to Vanz). Another lawsuit claimed that
The Old Man Down The Road shared the same chorus as
Run Through The Jungle (a song from Fogerty's days with Creedence). Fogerty ultimately won his case when he proved that the two songs were whole, separate and distinct compositions. Bringing his guitar to the witness stand, he played excerpts from both songs, demonstrating that many songwriters (himself included) have distinctive styles that can make different compositions sound similar to less discerning ears.
The follow-up was
Eye of the Zombie in
1986, which was less successful. In
1993, his group Creedence Clearwater Revival was inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but Fogerty refused to perform with his former bandmates, thus claiming his revenge against them for having sided with Fantasy Records in his disputes with the company. He retired until returning with
1997's
Blue Moon Swamp, which won a Grammy for the best rock album in 1998.
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John Fogerty on Premonition cover |
He had a very successful tour in
1998 in the
United States and
Europe. He released a
live album from that tour titled
Premonition.
In 2004 John Fogerty released
Deja Vu (All Over Again).
Rolling Stone wrote: "The title track is Fogerty's indictment of the
Iraq war as another
Vietnam, a senseless squandering of American lives and power." On the album, Fogerty succinctly squeezed ten songs into only 34 minutes.
In
October 2004 John Fogerty appeared on the
Vote for Change tour, playing a series of concerts in American
swing states. These concerts were organized by
MoveOn.org with the general goal of mobilizing people to vote for
John Kerry and against
George W. Bush in that year's
presidential campaign. Fogerty's numbers were played with
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
The sale of Fantasy Records to
Concord Records in
2004 ended the 30+ year estrangement between Fogerty and his former label as the new owners took steps to restore royalty rights Fogerty gave up in order to be released from his contract with Fantasy in the mid 1970s.
On
June 9,
2005, Fogerty was inducted into the
Songwriters' Hall of Fame alongside
Bill Withers,
Steve Cropper,
Robert B. Sherman,
Richard M. Sherman,
Isaac Hayes and
David Porter.
In
September 2005, Fogerty returned to Fantasy Records. The first album released under the new Fantasy contract was
The Long Road Home, a compilation CD combining his Creedence hits with solo material which was issued on
November 1,
2005. A new studio album is planned for
2006 release. On June 13th 2006 will be released a live dvd named
The Long Road Home - In Concert including live versions of his biggest solo hits and hits of Creedence Clearwater Revival.
This summer Fogerty will be touring the USA with
Willie Nelson. On
June 29, he played his first headlining British concert since 1972, at the
Hammersmith Apollo theater in London, as part of the European leg of the tour.
*The Fogerty family name is Irish, an Anglicized form of the
Irish personal name
Fógartach, from
fógartha, meaning 'banished, outlawed' (Hanks & Hodges,
A Dictionary of Surnames [Oxford UP, 1988], p. 187).
*He wrote the CCR hit "Who'll Stop the Rain" to express his views about the
Vietnam War. Likewise, he wrote "Deja Vu (All Over Again)" to express his views about the second
Iraq War.
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Blue Ridge Rangers (1973)
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John Fogerty (1975)
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Hoodoo (1976) unreleased
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Centerfield (1985)
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Eye of the Zombie (1986)
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Blue Moon Swamp (1997)
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Premonition (1998)
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Deja Vu (All Over Again) (2004)
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The Long Road Home (2005)
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The Long Road Home - In Concert DVD (2006)
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Official website*
John Fogerty lyrics*
Deja Vu (All Over Again), annotated*
Creedence-Online*
Fogerty's unreleased album, Hoodoo*
Pictures of John Fogerty in concert
