John Fogerty

The Rock n Roll Legend

gazpacho

John Fog... hornwho?

John Fogerty was one of the greatest songwriters of the rock n
roll era, recording many singles that would reach the top 20
charts and five that would each reach #2. He was the sole
songwriter and lead vocalist for Creedence Clearwater Revival.
The band had a short lived but wildly popular musical career. You
may recognize some of the bands more popular hits such as
Fortunate Son, Proud Mary, Bad Moon Rising, Up and Around
the Bend, I Heard It Through the Grapevine, among others not only for their
popularity as original songs but for their popularity as countless covers by other
famous artists such as Ike and Tina Turner, Bruce Springsteen, Nirvana, and others.

A Short (Early) Life Summary

John Fogerty was born on May 28th, 1945 in Berkeley, CA.
He started his first band, the Blue Velvets, with his older
brother Tom Fogerty, and his friends, Doug Clifford and Stu
Cook. The band changed its name in 1964 to The
Golliwogs after signing a record deal with Fantasy
Records. John Fogerty was drafted into the Army and
served in reserve units at Fort Bragg, Fort Knox, and Fort
Lee.

The Era of Success

After an honorable discharge in 1967, he reunited with the
band and they changed their name once more to Creedence
Clearwater Revival. In the late 60s, CCR seemed
unstoppable. The band released hit album after hit single
after hit album.

In 1972 though, the group broke up, leaving John

Fogerty to pursue his own solo career. This short
period was followed by a period of legal trouble with
Fantasy Records and heavy alcohol abuse and
depression. Fogerty has made quite a comeback since
then, starting in the 80s and lasting until today. He is
now 70 years old.

Hit Song Samples and Their Meaning/Impact

Fortunat
e Son (1
969)

CCRs most famous

song was written by
John Fogerty as not
only a Vietnam Protest
song at the peak of antiwar sentiment at home
in the US, but also as a
criticism of the classist
draft system that
Fogerty experienced
first hand.

Proud
Mary
(1969)

Another hit with classist

critical undertones,
Proud Mary hit #2 on
the top singles chart in
1969.

Bad
Moon
Rising

Bad Moon Rising takes

the fear of nuclear
apocalypse that every

Bibliography
Shmoop Editorial Team. "Fortunate Son Meaning." Shmoop.com. Shmoop University, Inc., 11 Nov. 2008. Web. 21 Apr. 2016.
Nelson, Maxine. "Creedence Clearwater Revival's Top 10 Songs." AXS. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2016.
"Proud Mary by Creedence Clearwater Revival Songfacts." Song Facts. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2016.
"Bad Moon Rising by Creedence Clearwater Revival Songfacts." Song Facts. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2016.
"John Fogerty." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2016.