Fogerty Returns To Fantasy
Although his bitter legal battles with Fantasy Records are the stuff of music business legend, John Fogerty has signed a new deal with the label. Fantasy, which issued the entire recorded output of the Fogerty-led Creedence Clearwater Revival in the late 1960s and early ’70s, was purchased in November 2004 by the Concord Music Group.
In celebration of the reunion, Fantasy will on Nov. 1 issue the first Fogerty career retrospective, “The Long Road Home.” A live DVD, to be recorded Thursday (Sept. 15) at Los Angeles’ Wiltern Theater, will be released early next year. A new solo studio album and other projects are also in development.
“I’m very happy to be back in touch with a part of myself,” Fogerty says. “It’s surreal. For 35 years, I never thought I’d be reunited with the music I wrote during the Creedence Clearwater Revival years… I’m happy to say that the new Fantasy is very enthusiastic about my body of work. All the people there have been delightful. They are honoring my songs that hold an important place in the history of American music. And, they are honoring me.”
After CCR split in 1972, Fogerty released one solo album for Fantasy, a self-titled 1973 set of covers under the name the Blue Ridge Rangers on which he played all of the instruments. He issued one album on Asylum, 1975’s “John Fogerty,” before a nine-year studio lapse while legal disputes with Fantasy played out. He returned in 1985 with “Centerfield” on Warner Bros., and last year inked with Geffen for “D√àj‚Ä° Vu All Over Again.√Æ
Throughout his solo career, Fogerty not only battled Fantasy, but also his former CCR bandmates Stu Cook (bass) and Doug Clifford (drums) to prevent them from using the band’s name. The pair adopted the moniker Creedence Clearwater Revisited in the mid-’90s for their nostalgia act, which also included former Cars guitarist Elliot Easton and singer John Tristano. (Tom Fogerty, John’s older brother and CCR co-founder, left the band in 1971 and died in 1990.)
Featuring 25 tracks, “The Long Road Home” will mix CCR classics with solo material, including live renditions of “Hey Tonight,” “Bootleg,” “Keep on Chooglin'” and “Fortunate Son” recorded while on tour earlier this year.
“I’ve always wanted to create a greatest hits collection that represented my entire career, but it was always painfully impossible to do so,” Fogerty says. “Now I can combine the Creedence songs, all of which I wrote, with my solo material. It’s great that I can finally document the various changes I’ve gone through musically over the years without having to follow any artificial lines.”
Fogerty only recently began performing CCR songs again. During last year’s pre-election Vote for Change tour, he played several each night, backed by Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band.
The artist has been on the road this summer with John Mellencamp, with shows remaining tonight (Sept. 9) in Dallas, tomorrow in Woodlands, Texas, and Monday in Bonner Springs, Kan.
Here is “The Long Road Home” track list:
“Born on the Bayou”
“Bad Moon Rising”
“Centerfield”
“Who’ll Stop the Rain”
“Rambunctious Boy”
“Fortunate Son”
“Lookin’ Out My Back Door”
“Up Around the Bend”
“Almost Saturday Night” (live)
“Down on the Corner”
“Bootleg” (live)”Have You Ever Seen the Rain?”
“Sweet Hitch-Hiker”
“Hey Tonight” (live)
“The Old Man Down the Road”
“Rockin’ All Over the World” (live)
“Lodi”
“Keep On Chooglin'” (live)
“Green River”
“Deja Vu (All Over Again)”
“Run Through the Jungle”
“Hot Rod Heart”
“Travelin’ Band”
“Proud Mary”
“Fortunate Son” (live)
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