A master at songwriting, singing, and playing the guitar, John Fogerty was considered a triple threat in the music industry. And using his talents, he decided to create the iconic band Creedence Clearwater Revival with a little help. With Fogerty at the helm, the band produced hit songs like “Bad Moon Rising”, and “Down on the Corner.” Not only does the band’s legacy continue but CCR was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Although having a turbulent relationship with his fellow band members, Fogerty recently revealed why he decided to get back to the studio and re-record some classic CCR hits.
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Celebrating his 80th birthday with two concerts at New York’s Beacon Theatre, Fogerty revealed his newest LP, Legacy: The Creedence Clearwater Revival Years. Expected to hit shelves on August 22nd, the singer joked how he wanted to call it “Taylor’s Version”, but the record company had other plans.
Eventually settling on the name, Fogerty re-recorded a slew of his favorite hits like “Up Around the Bend”, “Porterville”, “Bootleg”, and “Proud Mary.” That was on top of the widely popular “Down on the Corner” and “Bad Moon Rising.”
With Fogerty already finishing the recordings, he waited to hear feedback from a select few. So far, that feedback came with high praise. “The first five or six people I’ve talked to who’ve listened to it all say it sounds ‘fresher.’ Maybe what they’re saying is it’s clearer, or the fidelity is better or something? That may be something I hadn’t even counted on, but there’s more dimension to it, more depth.”
John Fogerty Admits He Was “Hurt” And “Damaged” Over CCR
For fans of CCR, they might be somewhat confused given the turbulent past of the band. Throughout the years, Fogerty and his fellow bandmates were at odds. He even clashed with the head of Fantasy Records at the time, Saul Zaentz. “I was hurt. I was damaged.”
That all changed thanks to his wife, Julie Fogerty. Able to locate and buy Fogerty’s legendary Rickenbacker guitar, she gifted it to her husband. Receiving it on Christmas, the singer insisted, “I started as a kid full of joy doing music, but during the time of Creedence, and shortly after that, it became certainly not joyful. The idea [behind Legacy] was to reconnect and feel that way about everything again. The guy who couldn’t even stand to look at his own guitar in the Nineties or beyond would have never done that.”
Moving past the pain, Fogerty was excited to share his re-recorded hits with fans. Don’t miss the release of Legacy: The Creedence Clearwater Revival Years on August 22nd.
(Photo by Erika Goldring/Getty Images)
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