Search - John Fogerty :: Revival (Dig)

Back In The Saddle

Thomas D. Ryan | New York | 10/02/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"
I think we have finally found the lost ingredient missing from today's pop music. For a while, John Fogerty provided the greatest pop songs in the United States of America. His recordings with Creedence Clearwater Revival represent some of the most universally beloved songs that ever hit the airwaves. They were simple, but they were damn good, and will probably still sound great in 3007. It is easy, though, to underestimate the talent that it takes to create something so pure and simple, and yet so fresh and unique. Eventually that is just what happened. Even his own band underestimated Fogerty's talents, and insisted on turning CCR into a democracy. Once everybody started submitting material, the band floundered and lost its true strength; what good is a Creedence song unless it features John Fogerty's magnificent voice and his addictive brand of swamp pop? Fogerty's band imploded, and then his record label turned against him, denying him royalties to the songs that made so many people happy.

"Revival" not only signals a return to form, it also represents a call to arms. Once again, it is time for the master to take control of the pop charts. John Fogerty has not played with this much conviction and focus since 1972. Even over his sporadic series of solo albums, Fogerty never played with such gusto. "Revival" represents a fresh start, and it does so by embracing the past that he kept so long in denial. "Don't You Wish It Was True" is simple as dirt, and yet it immediately evokes days when the radio was overflowing with soon-to-be classic melodies. It is so instantly appealing that it could have been the leadoff track for "Willy and the Poor Boys." "Creedence Song" takes that point head on, with Fogerty giving himself a well-deserved pat on the back for stocking jukeboxes all over America with songs that are worth your pocket change. "Summer of Love" is a timely throwback to an era when music truly mattered, and Fogerty sings the track like it still does. As for "It Ain't Right," I only hope that the latest generation of talentless hacks is paying attention, because he's having a ball at their expense.

"Gunslinger" had me thinking Fogerty was shying away from political confrontation, because it only implies discontent; "Fortunate Son" it ain't. A few tracks later, though, he starts naming names. In "Long Dark Night," he sings, "Georgie's' in the jungle...wants to have a war", and "Brownie's in the outhouse, Katrina on the line." "I Can't Stand It No More" is even more blunt, as Fogerty vents his rage directly at Bush, singing "You know you lied about the WMD's, you know you lied about the detainees", and rocks out all over the place for 1 minute, 50 seconds. Oh, and as for "Fortunate Son," he goes on to sing, "I bet you never saw the National Guard. Your daddy wrote a check and there you are, another `Fortunate Son'." From a musical perspective, it must suck to be a conservative, since all the really good protest music leans left. Can a red-blooded American claim to dislike Fogerty and CCR on idealistic grounds? Who would you prefer to hear, Ted Nugent or John Fogerty?

I've been waiting 35 years for John Fogerty to make an album like this. Better late than never, John. Now if only Sly Stone could get his act together... A Tom Ryan"

Back on the Bayou

John Carr | 10/07/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"John Fogerty's Revival is the best Classic Rock album since Paul McCartney's Band on the Run--hey, it only took 30 years, coming at a period where I've all but given up on music and most of my favorite acts. Fortunately, I've got over 3,000 CDs from the 1950s to 1990s to comfort myself with, but I've always loved getting a NEW disc with great music. And, Revival is one of the few discs (like Sticky Fingers, Green River, The Doors, Sgt. Pepper's) where I can listen to every song!



I've been a fan of the Fogerty sound since I picked up Creedence Clearwater Revival in 1968, where I fell in love with Susie Q and I Put A Spell On You -- John's first swamp rockers. John's always had one of the top five voices in Rock music right up there with John Lennon, Mick Jagger, Roger Daltry, Paul Rodgers and Paul McCartney. But it never hit me just how good it was until the wife and I heard him on one of the R&R Hall of Fame specials singing Be-Bop A Lula where he just blew Springsteen and others right out of their shoes! (John, manybe on your next release you can do a new version of it?) I loved the Premonition DVD, and it proved conclusively that John's voice is and was the Voice of Rock & Roll.



Yes, I loved the Centerfield and Blue Moon Swamp albums, but this new release is head-and-shoulders above those two wonderful albums. Revival ranks right up there with his best Credeence material, "Green River," Bayou Country" and "Cosmo's Factory." Frankly, I'm amazed at how rejuvenated Fogerty sounds; his voice still sounds like a man 30 years younger, and he plays guitar both tastefully and with restraint -- Rock music just doesn't get much better than this! And John can shred too, just listen to Summer of Love!



I've had Revival in the car CD player now for almost a week. I had to buy another copy for my office Bose deck; fortunately, I'd heard about the Wal-Mart CD with bonus DVD and picked up their last copy. The interview showcases a relaxed and confident John Fogerty; he's finally been able to bury the hatchet with Fantasy, get his song royalties back and he's clearly on top of the world -- and at the peak of his creativity and happiness! Good for you John, it's totally deserved. I only wish America, like Japan, had the designation of "Living Treasure," because John Fogerty richly deserves it.



By the way, the DVD includes two live tracks from John's June 23, 2007 Glastonbury Festival concert; they're dynamite and worth the price of the entire package. He's reinvented two of my favorite songs, Ramble Tamble and Keep On Chooglin', and they're never sounded better -- nor have I ever heard Fogerty play this well! Damn life can be good.



Revival opens with Don't You Wish It Was True a hopeful song about what might be; it's a ballad with a light sprinkling of the Fogerty magic. It could have appeared on any Creedence album as a stand-out track. Next is Gunslinger, my wife's favorite cut; another ballad but with a growly undercurrent. The Creedence Song is tribute to his former band and to the wonderful songbook John created. After 35 years, John was finally able to bury the hatchet with Fantasy (who had screwed him royally, like some old Blues' label) and reconcile himself with his past glories! The song itself has that vintage Creedence sound that no one else in the world has ever been able to duplicate; it doesn't get much better than this. My favorite of the ballads is Broken Down Cowboy, a personal song that reflects John's own hard past and how he views his older self; he's too happy these days to wear that moniker -- thankfully! But the man can breathe life into a song to life with a turn of a phrase and the bend of a guitar string. The Rivers is Waiting is a wonderful ballad in the gospel tradition; I felt shivers running up and down my spine the first time I heard this song. Heartfelt, may be cliched, but it surely describes this song. Next we get to my favorite cut, Long Dark Night, which is as swampy and strong as anything John Fogerty has ever written; its universal theme, despite darkly topical political references, it's timeless. Summer of Love, with its references to Jimi and Cream, is the kind of song I expected to hear back in 1969 from Creedence; instead, Fogerty invented a whole new niche in Rock music. Still, it's great to hear John tear it up and prove that he's not only one of the most original guitarists of the 20th/21st Century, but one of the best, too!



Natural Thing is a mid-tempo song in the Creedence vein; something that only John could make work these days. It Ain't Right is a wonderful tribute to Sun Studios and validates Carl Perkin's observation that if John had suddenly appeared at 706 Union Avenue, he would have rocked the house, as a triple-threat songwriter, singer and guitarist! John's licks are straight out of the Scotty Moore playbook and amazing; it's lucky for those Hillybilly Cats that Fogerty didn't come along until some 10 years later! I Can't Take It No More is a pure Fogerty kick-out-the-jams, the likes of wich we haven't heard since Travelin' Band. It reminded me of The Last Man Standing DVD with Jerry Lee Lewis; John was the ONLY guest, out of a group which included Tom Jones, Chris Isaak, Ron Wood, and Willie Nelson, who sang a complete song by himself, a dynamite version of Good Golly Miss Molly! Highly recommended! Surely, a signal honor from one of Rock & Roll's founding giants.



The CD finishes with the swampy Somebody Help Me -- a cry John certainly no longer needs to make. It's a strong Fogery track with a snakey guitar line. I love the guitar tones he's pulling off on Revival; this cat just keeps getting better, like a fine wine. The official album ends with the up-tempo rocker, Longshot; classic John Fogerty. The Best Buy release contains the live Ride-It-Like-Hell version of Sweet Hitch-Hiker from the Glastonbury Festival -- buy it, if you can find it! It opens appropriately, with a Bo Diddley slide and from then is purely heavenly mayhem! I really hope that John releases a DVD/CD from Glastonbury; he's playing at the top of his game, which in today's sorry music scene is the fracking Penthouse!"

Can't go wrong if you play a lil' bit of that Creedence song

DanD | 10/02/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Fogerty takes his own advice on this album: the attitude of this album would fit snugly on an old Creedence record. Never fear, though--Fogerty isn't retreading old ground, but blazing new pathways. This is easily his best solo album since CENTERFIELD, and in many ways is superior to some of his Creedence work (though not all of it; I'm a CCR fan 'til the day I die, and I'm not the least bit ashamed to say it).



Fogerty's solo albums have been hit-and-miss; they've all featured some great songs, pasted alongside some truly regretful ones. There aren't any REAL regretful songs on here, though I think "Natural Thing" is a bit too hokey to be placed alongside the rest of the material (great rhythm, though). It surprised me to find that most of this album is a keeper. It IS a bit politically charged, of course, and that's something you'll have to grit your teeth and bear. No matter what your stance on politics in music is (I'm usually against it), or what your personal political viewpoints are, you have to admire Fogerty's honesty. The rage you hear in "I Can't Take It No More" is genuine, and this song is easily one of the album's best, politics aside. "Long Dark Night" and "Gunslinger," the other two majorly political tunes, are also standouts. "It Ain't Right" takes aim at celebrities, and you can hear true bitterness in Fogerty's vocals, as well as a little tongue-in-cheek sarcastic wit. That sarcasm is full-blown in "Creedence Song"--yet is melded with a heartfelt love for the music. And "Don't You Wish It Was True" just shines on so many levels, I can't even begin to go into it.



This is one of Fogerty's most rockin' records since his CCR days, and is easily his best solo effort since CENTERFIELD (some will even argue that it is superior; I'm not going to get involved in that debate). REVIVAL (I hate to admit it, but it took me a moment to "get" the title...in my defense, I was exhausted) is a truly great rock/folk/country record. It is John Fogerty, an American rock icon, singing, writing, and picking from the heart. He is one of music's best. Period."