John Fogerty- Blue Moon Swamp
The Grammy Award-winning Blue Moon Swamp by John Fogerty emerged from the backwater bayou of his fertile imagination in May 1997. For a variety of reasons, some notorious and others more nuanced, legendary singer/songwriter John Fogerty released solo albums in the twentieth century on an almost cicadian schedule. Extended periods of more than a decade would go between them: wars were won and lost, governments toppled, industries boomed and busted before another John Fogerty album would emerge. And the public’s response seemed to have no bearing on the release schedule, either. 1985’s Centerfield was a certified hit and return to form for the legendary leader of hit machine Creedence Clearwater Revival, but the following year Eye of the Zombie felt like out-takes from those sessions. Then quietly, I got the call in May 1997 that John Fogerty had emerged from his shadowy virtual swamp with a backpack full of new songs, including “Walking in a Hurricane”,”Blueboy”,”Hot Rod Heart”,”A Hundred and Ten in the Shade”,”Swamp River Days”, and “Bring It Down to Jelly Roll”. And Fogerty was willing to talk to me about all of it.
1970’s Cosmo’s Factory may have gotten its title from drummer Doug “Cosmo” Clifford, but that veritable greatest hits package was, like the four preceding albums Creedence Clearwater Revival , Green River, Bayou Country, and Willie and the Poor Boys, the artistic vision of John Fogerty. Even as he wrote all of the original songs, sang every note, and provided the chunky lead guitar, John Fogerty also produced the distinctive “swamp rock” sound of every CCR album. And while Fogerty wasn’t the first to be entrusted with the then-new trend toward allowing the bands to produce themselves, he certainly was the most successful, truly remarkable when you realize that, at least in North America, Creedence rivaled The Beatles for consecutive Top 5 hits from 1967-1970. And that was without the expert guidance of a George Martin. Jimi Hendrix and The Doors made equally indelible impacts upon rock history in the same inconceivably brief span of time as Fogerty and Creedence, but they each had help (Hendrix from ex-Animals member Chas Chandler, The Doors from veteran producer Paul Rothschild ). John Fogerty’s sound and vision were completely self-contained and, to this day, never duplicated. Here is John Fogerty with me In the Studio for the Blue Moon Swamp World Premiere North American radio broadcast about what became the 1997 Grammy Rock Album of the Year. The Blue Moon Swamp World Premiere was written, hosted, and interview conducted by Redbeard.
