Commotion (John Fogerty) (LP 898 - 899)

John Fogerty  The Blue Ridge Rangers (CD, Fantasy, 1974) ***  

John Fogerty  On Stage 2007 (CD, Immortal, 2013) **** 

Genre: San Francisco rock

Places I remember: The Warehouse

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Good Golly Miss Molly

Gear costume: Longshot 

Active compensatory factors: The Blue Ridge Rangers was his first solo album. It effectively breaks from Creedence Clearwater Revival tradition as it contains covers of country songs written by others and Fogerty plays all the instruments. The ultimate expression of control freakery for a musician.

It's good, John Fogerty is incapable of anything bad, but it's a holding/ clensing/ transitional album. It's played well, sung well, songs are well chosen. But it's not a classic. Enough said. 

The live On Stage 2007 is more like it. A mixture of solo and Creedence hits makes for a great combination. His vocals are instantly recognisable and brilliant throughout. What a voice!

Where do they all belong? It's back to the vinyl now and so next up is a continuation of the George Harrison albums.

It came out of the sky (Creedence Clearwater Revival) (LP 737)

Creedence Clearwater Revival  Willy And The Poor Boys (Vinyl, Fantasy, 1969) ****

Genre: pop/rock from San Francisco

Places I remember: The Warehouse (Hastings)

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Fortunate Son 

Gear costume: Feelin' Blue

Active compensatory factors: I have neglected Creedence Clearwater Revival unfairly over the years. Like every music fan on the planet I love the singles the band cranked out so for many years I contented myself with their Greatest Hits album - wall to wall amazing songs!!

Aside from Green River which I got early on, it has been a gradual catching up. This one is hailed by many as a classic but for me it's a near miss.

And the problem is that the big hits stand out on their albums, and so that means there is a tendency to view the other songs as lesser quality. 

That's the potential case here as familiar hits like Down On The Corner, Fortunate Son, and The Midnight Special rule the roost. Other songs are in the shade but listening to them fifty years later reveals some true gems: It Came Out Of The Sky; Feelin' Blue (great swampy rocker); Cottonfields.

The inclusion of Poorboy Shuffle and Side Of The Road feel a little too much like filler - hence the four star rating.

Where do they all belong? Alongside the Greatest Hits in the vinyl collection (rest are on CD).