Creedence Clearwater
Revival
albums
Its not that CCR never made "an album that wasn't good", they never really made one that wasn't
spectacular. To say that John Fogerty wrote great songs was an understatement: he crafted great albums quicker
than anyone in the 60's, and he set a precedent that is almost impossible to reach (the only other 60's band's that
were this quick and consistent were probably early Rolling Stones, late Beatles, and Love). Yes, they were a great
singles act: some of the best songs ever written are in their discography: "Proud Mary", "Green River", "Bad Moon
Rising", "Lodi", "Fortunate Son", "Have You Ever Seen the Rain", "Up Around the Bend". I mean good lord! Also
they have plenty of album tracks to match their singles, and I am talking great music: "Effigy", "Don't Look Now",
"Keep on Chooglin", "Potersville", "Ramble Tamble", and "Tombstone Shadow". They take standard blues
influences and transform them into something unique. CCR is that unique band that created their own language of
music, some kind of New Orleans-blues rock-Bo Diddley hybrid and it is copied and parodied more than almost any
other rock music band after them, with good reason.
Band Members: John Fogerty - Guitar, Vocals
Tom Fogerty - Guitar
John Clifford - Drums
Stu Cook - Bass
Best Album: Willy and the Poorboys
Biggest Influences: Bo Diddley, Carl Perkins, countless blues musicians
1968
Creedence Clearwater Revival - 7/8
The first Creendence Clearwater record shows off all sides of the band extremely well. Making cover songs
their own shows off the band's love of their influences, and no band can make songs their own like CCR. "Susie Q"
is a CCR song to most people, though "I Put a Spell on You" is not as known but almost as good. The former song
shows off the band's tendency to create actually interesting jams (something they do better than any one form the
60's, Grateful Dead and Allman Bros. be damned). Also Fogerty's love for his favorite topics are present: the
working class on "The Working Man" and "Potersville"; darkness and despair through guitars on "Gloomy", the best
song on here; religion on "Walk on Water". The songs are more themes for the music instead of actual subject
matter and Fogerty's attention to how something "sounds" is always more important than what he is actually saying.
The guitar work is what is amazing on this first album, but for a band that is more known for singles CCR sure know
how to craft a record, and this debut is one of their most consistent listens. - Trevor e.y.
1.i put a spell on you- 4
2.the working man- 3
3.suzie q- 4
4.ninety nine and a half- 4
5.get down woman- 2
6.pottersville- 4*
7.gloomy- 4
8.walk on water- 3
1969
Bayou Country - 7/8
It's hard not to divide every CCR record into "singles" and "album tracks", but I will try to avoid that. The
band's trademark swamp sound is more inforced on this record. The gloom of "Graveyard Train", the albums only
weak track, sees to that. Seven minutes of slow dirge, mmm what fun! While it's tempting to hate that song, its
really not that bad and each other of the six songs on Bayou Country make up for it. "Born on the Bayou" shows off
Fogerty's emphasis on the New Orleans persona, and that song truly creates its own world. "Bootleg" gets the left
over French aspect, at least in words; it really just sounds like a pop song to keep the flow of "Born on the Bayou"
going but with enough musical tricks to make it a great song. "Good Golly Miss Molly" and "Penthouse Pauper" are
good songs, each with its own unique mystique. Honestly, Creedence Clearwater Revival is a stronger album song
by song than Bayou Country, though the reason history sees it differently I will now explain.
The band saves its best two songs for last, with "Proud Mary" being CCR's most known and respected song
and "Keep on Chooglin" being a song so ahead of its time it boggles the mind. In fact, the rest of this album PALES
in comparison to those last two songs, which really shows great album structure. To sound even more insane, I will
say "Keep on Chooglin" is my favorite CCR song, with its constant chug of one chord for almost eight minutes and
never getting dull, it is at once hypnotic and futuristic. That song alone sets a standard that rock music followed
(whether people realize it or not) just as much as "Proud Mary" did with pop music. Together those closing tracks
make quite the team though. Still, it is a close call between this album and they debut, both are about equally great.
I just want to dispel the rumor that this album was a leap forward for the band in song quality - unture you see, it
just had the break out hit of "Proud Mary". - Trevor e.y.
1.born on the bayou- 4
2.bootleg- 4
3.graveyard train- 2
4.good golly miss molly- 3
5.penthouse pauper- 3
6.proud mary- 4
7.keep on chooglin- 4 *
1969
Green River - 7/8
....and this next record had THREE huge hits instead of just TWO, so it is "even further of a step forward for
the band"! Is it that much different in consistency than the previous two records? No, it is almost exactly of the
same breed of greatness. It has some great tunes thats for sure - the classic singles "Green River" with its
"weeeeeeeeellllll" chours, the simple chords of but great tune of "Bad Moon Rising", and "Lodi", Fogerty's most
mature story yet ("Every song I've had to play while people sat there drunk" might be one of my favorite lines in any
song ever!). On par with those, you have "Tombstone Shadow" with its Neil Young inspired one note guitar solo
and "Commotion" which might be the band's most frantic song. "Wrote a Song for Everyone" is my dad's favorite on
here, and I can see how it would appeal to some with its country tinge. "Cross Tie Walker" and "Sinister Purpose"
are good songs, though maybe not up to the quality of the previously mentioned ones. The only song I don't like on
here happens to be the closer, a cover of Ray Charles "Night Time is the Right Time". I just don't think it fits and is
also kind of overdone. There are few bands that could rapidly release great albums like CCR, and Green River
stands out as something special in the band's discography now matter how you look at it. - Trevor e.y.
1.green river- 4
2.commotion- 4
3.tombstone shadow- 4
4.wrote a song for everyone- 3
5.bad moon rising- 4
6.lodi- 4
7.cross tie walker- 3
8.sinister purpose- 3
9.the night time is the right time- 2
1969
Willy and the Poor Boys - 8/8
There are two reasons this is my favorite CCR record. First, I think it is the most consistent. There are no bad
songs at all! While it's still a low 8/8 for me, there are more great songs then merely good ones. Huge singles
"Down on the Corner" and "Fortunate Son" are the most recognizable of course, the former setting the tone for the
album while the latter is one of the all time great protest songs. Album tracks are where this excels: "Effigy", "Feelin'
Blue", "Don't Look Now" and "It Came Out of the Sky" are all GREAT songs that are easily the equals of the
singles. The second great thing about Willy and the Poor Boys is the way it has a unity to it. The album has a
familiar story all the way through about the poor man's outlook on life, just look at the songs titles! Also there is a
certain flow that always works and is never boring that no other CCR album has, which makes songs like "Poorboy
Shuffle" and "Side o' the Road" not seem out of place or lame in comparison to the real stand outs. This is not an
easy thing to do, and the band pulls it all together well. Last but not least, CCR makes some great cover songs with
"Cotton Fields" and "Midnight Special". The album comes off as more than it seems at first and everything ties
together very well into the closer "Effigy", which is one of the most despairing songs off all time by any band; at the
end the lyrics descend to a simple "Why.....why.....effigyyy...." followed by some great, demented guitar work. If your
looking for the best CCR album experience, this is their masterpiece . - Trevor e.y.
1.down on the corner- 4
2.it came out of the sky- 4
3.cotton fields- 4
4.poorboy shuffle- 3
5.feelin' blue- 4
6.fortuneate son- 4
7.don't look now- 4
8.the midnight special- 3
9.side o' the road- 3
10.effigy- 4
1970
Cosmo’s Factory - 7/8
If there ever was an example of a minor masterwork, it would be Cosmo's Factory. Most people point to this as
the band's best, though I think Willy and the Poor Boys beats it by quite a bit. There are a whopping SEVEN hit
singles off of here, each of them great, and there are also some perfect album tracks. The problem is that there
are four cover songs where there should be maybe two (hell, maybe one). "Before You Accuse Me", "Ooby Dooby",
and "My Baby" cannot compare at all to any other CCR song on this record. I understand the desire to express
songs that influenced you and all that, but Fogerty made a huge error I believe in putting these songs on here.
They are not bad songs but to reemphasize my point, they can't touch the originals on here. They also interrupt
any flow of the album, being at positions 2, 4, and 8.
But with all the negative aside, there is so much to praise about this great record. "Ramble Tamble" marks a
daring band that is willing to experiment despite their popularity, and it is one of the best songs they ever did
(mabye more then any other CCR song, this one has a direct link to another one who ripped it off: Pearl Jam's
"Even Flow"); the seven minute running time only enhances everything. "Up Around the Bend" is another all time
classic that mixes emotion and guitar riffing to heavenly extents. I'm not gonna go through trying to describe
"Travlin' Band", "Run Through the Jungle", "Who'll Stop the Rain", "Long as I can See the Light", and "Run
Through the Jungle" with words; each transports you to its own sonic universe for the lengths of the song and are
infinitely relistinable. "I Heard it Through the Grapevine" is the only great cover on here and the band completely
transforms it from a little soul song to a guitar epic, preceding Television's "Marquee Moon" by seven years (no
joke, they are of the same caliber). Eleven minutes of pure glory. In all, I really do love this album, and it is the
band's second best. That on its own is enough to see through the over-excess and pretensions I think, more often
than not Cosmo's Facotry delivers the great rock n' roll. - Trevor e.y.
1.ramble tamble- 4
2.before you accuse me- 3
3.travlin’ band- 4
4.ooby dooby- 2
5.lookin’ out my back door- 4
6.run through the jungle- 4
7.up around the bend- 4 *
8.my baby- 2
9.who’ll stop the rain- 4
10.i heard it through the grapevine- 4
11.long as I can see the night- 4
1971
Pendulum - 7/8
While considered a step down in quality from the previous two records, Pendulum is more akin to Bayou
Country then any of the other CCR albums. Still experimenting and transforming their sound, some of the stuff
Fogerty does on here is more ambitious then successful; the closer "Rude Awakinging #2" is a prog rock epic with
no lyrics for goodness sakes! Usually Fogerty sticks to his CCR formula and when it works it's great. "Chameleon"
is a great rock song that is either talking about the way to go about rock music in general, sultry women, or making
fun of sellouts in the music world. I can't tell which one, any of them make the song great. Have I ever mentioned
the production on CCR records? Every album has a great sound to it, and "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?" (one of
the this band's most famous songs) is one of the best "sounding" songs of their entire existence. "Hey Tonight",
"It's Just a Thought" and "Hideaway" have that same emotional intensity and the latter has a unique mystery. I've
mentioned the best half of the album, really there is nothing too bad or too good on the rest of it. Some songs are
good but too long ("Pagan Baby" and "Rude Awakening #2) and some never really take off or could have been
scraped ("Born to Move", "Monlina", "Sailor's Lament"). They could have killed two of these songs and had
something of a more high 7/8 like Creedence Clearwater Revival but who is really complaining. With six albums that
are all masterworks of some sort in four years, CCR still remians one of the most unique band's in rock history
while also being one of the most popular. That is a rare feat indeed, but they deserve it all. - Trevor e.y.
1.pagan baby- 3
2.sailor's lament- 3
3.chameleon- 4
4.have you ever seen the rain- 4
5.hideaway- 4
6.born to move- 2
7.hey tonight- 4
8.it's just a thought- 4
9.molina- 2
10.rude awakining #2- 3
1972
Mardi Gras - 2/8
You know, I would actually say this album is overrated. People say "its not that bad" but they are wrong. This
is bad music. You see, the other guys in CCR wanted to write some songs too, so Fogerty said "we'll probably
break up anyways, why not". Even Fogery's songs on here suck, but they are nowhere as bad as Clifford's and
Cooks. It is actually pretty funny, so the die hard fan might want to pick it up to see how horrible it is. It is dated,
boring, overlong, cliched, and anything else bad you can think of. Funniest moments are probably the vocals on
"Sail Away" (though it's the best song on here by a long shot), the exciting school boy tale of "Tearin' Up Country",
the glam rock sounding "Door to Door", and the horrible cover of "Hello Mary Lou". The main problem is Clifford
and Cook's biggest influence is Fogerty himself, so it just sounds like a bunch of CCR imitators. Really it is just
lame though, and ends up making me more mad then wanna laugh. Rarely do bands bottom out as much as Mardi
Gras, comparisons being the Velvet Underground's Squeeze and Clash's Cut the Crap, but that's life for you. I
don't really count this as a CCR record, more like something they had to put out to get out as closure - Trevor e.y.
1.lookin for a reason- 2
2.take it like a friend- 1
3.need some one to hold- 2
4.tearin' up the country- 1
5.someday never comes- 2
6.what are you gonna due- 1
7.sail away- 3
8.hello mary lou- 1
9.door to door- 1
10.sweet hitch hiker- 3
Non Album Things
1976
Chronicle Vol. 1 - 9/8
The thing about this, and why I initially didn't put it on my CCR page, is I mean... what am I doing: saying how I
would change Chronicle Vol.1? Yeah, it's pretty much a perfect greatest hits, which ain't surprising 'casue it's
damn CCR! Twenty flawless tracks, no problem. What gets me is that they include stuff form Mardi Gras here
over more from Bayou Country, and there might be just a little much from Cosmo's Factory (7 out of 20). Ok, Ok,
here I go - if I could change something, I would put "Pottersville" and "Born on the Bayou" on here instead of "I Put
a Spell on You" (not nearly the definitive version of that song) and "Someday Never Comes" (a bad song, it was
on Mardi Gras for goodness sakes). It would beef it up a tad, but it is still fine the way it is. I'm not complaining
about how they put "I Heard it through the Grapevine" on here, thought I do think it is kind of distracting being the
only song of that length; while we are on it I wish they wouldn't have shortened "Susie Q", the album version is
much longer. So, is this fun to read? Because there ain't that much you can change about a
band-made-greatest-hits. We are spoiled in the 00's because we can make our own CCR compilation, back in
1976 this is all people could buy. Is it the best introduction to the band? Well undoubtedly. Should you get
Chronicle Vol. 1 if you plan on getting the first 6 albums? No, you'll have everything on here anyway. Unless you
have money only for one record of course, because then you definitely should get this first. - Trevor e.y.
1.suzie q- 4
2.i put a spell on you- 3
3.proud mary- 4
4.bad moon rising- 4
5.lodi- 4
6.green river- 4
7.commotion- 4
8.down on the corner- 4
9.fortuneate son- 4
10.travlin band- 4
11.who'll stop the rain- 4
12.up around the bend- 4
13.run through the jungle- 4
14.lookin' out my back door- 4
15.long as i can see the light- 4
16.i heard it through the grapevine- 4
17.have you ever seen the rain- 4
18.hey tonight- 4
19.sweet hitchhiker- 3
20.someday never comes- 2
 |  |  |  |  |
