Give him credit — John Fogerty knows there was so much more to 1969 than the three seminal albums he and his band released that year.
Much was remembered during the video on that iconic year that preceded the Fogerty concert on Friday night at Interior Savings Centre as he reminisced about Woodstock, a man landing on the moon, The Beatles recording their last album and Richard Nixon being elected president of the U.S.
It was also the year Creedence Clearwater Revival released Bayou Country, Green River and Willie and the Poor Boys — and with them came the hits: Proud Mary, Born on the Bayou, Bad Moon Rising and Susie Q.
That wasn’t the whole discography from the year that saw the band really start to make it big, but they were all on the set list when the video ended, the stage lights came up and Fogerty walked out to an almost full house that was up on its feet almost immediately and continued that way, dancing in the aisles and singing along for the two-hour show.
This was more than just a walk down memory lane for many of us.
It was a visit with an old friend who had stories to tell about those songs, about moments in the past that led to them, about how just one year after then-band members Fogerty and Doug Clifford were released from military service, CCR released Born on the Bayou on Jan. 1, 1969, and started a ride that led the band to the top of the charts.
This wasn’t just about Fogerty, though.
He ensured each of his band members had solo moments, with drummer Kenny Aronoff, bass guitarist James LoMenzo, Devon Pangle on rhythm guitar and keyboardist Bob Malone taking over the spotlight.
But, some of the most touching moments were when Fogerty stepped back for son Shane to shred his guitar and then joined him for some wailing duos.
It’s music that transcends generations.
The audience had representation from almost every decade and it seemed like everyone knew every song and was there to sing along.
And can the man ever perform. Joking about his collection of guitars and his need to bring many of them along for every show, Fogerty made his way through a Les Paul — his signature CCR guitar — a Rickenbacker, a Gibson and even one in the shape of a baseball bat for Centerfield, running from one side of the stage to the other, then jogging back to his mic.
There’s a saying that if you remember the 1960s, you really weren’t there.
But, CCR in 1969 — that was music worth remembering and celebrating.
There really never has been another band like Creedence Clearwater, nor a singer/songwriter like Fogerty.
Liner notes: It was nice to see the stage at the end of the arena so the audience capacity could be bigger.
It would be great to see that done more often . . . Fogerty brought the full deal with him, from pyrotechnics to smoke to glow-in-the-dark bits of paper cascading from overhead to a decade-appropriate video-show backdrop.
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