Saturday, December 1, 2007
Fogerty Testifies
Pitchfork has a great interview with John Fogerty up. I think of Fogerty as a litmus test songwriter: if you don't like his music, I don't have much to say to you other than "De gustibus non est disputandum." Knowing that Fogerty has found peace brings a bit of peace to me as well.
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It's nice that the interviewer noticed what we've always noticed: that Fogerty did a great job producing the Creedence tracks. It's also interesting that Fogerty is still aware of the chart positions of Creedence songs and the overall arc of their career (some '60s rockers seem like they have no idea).
I wouldn't really want to hear his new album though, even though he keeps talking about how great and easy it was to make it. It's called Revival and there's a track called "Creedence Song"? Spare me. And he spends his whole time railing about Bush and the war? I mean, I probably agree with him politically, but the truth is it's just not a very interesting subject for music, unless the songwriter takes a more subtle direction I guess. Maybe it makes Fogerty feel better but I don't think it's going to change anybody's mind. I think I can understand why most of the '60s rock stars feel pretty pissed about the last seven years though. They've watched the future they thought they had built for their children get flushed down the toilet, so I guess they want to have their say about it before they croak. It still doesn't mean it's going to be up there with "Bad Moon Rising."
Really? The interview made me want to listen to the album a lot. I don't know how you could be a political songwriter and not write a song about GW. Where would Creedence be without "Fortunate Son"? I'm much more interested in these new songs than some crappy ode to baseball. Hell, even the Dixie Chicks look halfway respectable after taking a political stand.
I don't know, I'm probably as excited about a new John Fogerty album as I am about a new Paul McCartney album. Even though Fogerty was the main songwriter, lead singer, lead guitarist, and main producer of that band, and you think it would be accurate just to say, "Fogerty was that band" the way you could say "Trent Reznor was Nine Inch Nails," the truth is that Creedence, at least musically, really was a BAND with a separate aesthetic, and solo Fogerty is just not the same. I actually haven't heard too much of his solo material but my guess is that the guy is simply not in his creative prime at this point. It's sort of like solo Morrissey. Sure it might be tasteful and well-done but it's missing the cultural weight.
I think my favorite political song of the past few years might be Elliott Smith's "A Distorted Reality Is Now A Necessity To Be Free," particularly the lines "So disappointed/First I'll put it all down to luck/ But God know why my/Country don't give a fuck." followed by a spaced-out, overdubbed background vocal of "Fuu-uu-uuck."
How about "Where is the love?" from Black Eyed Peas? Now THERE'S a song with a great political message... go buy the new Justin Timberlake album with your happy meal and french fries... mmm, I'm lovin' it! (tm)
Honestly don't have much to say. I recently acquired CCR's Chronicle, mainly for it providing me with the sensation that I'm driving through rural Arkansas again with my dad. Can't say much about Mr. Fogerty otherwise.
Naw, naw, what you need is Little Earl's "Ultimate Creedence Mix," featuring 20 stone-cold Creedence classics, and only seven songs overlapping with Chronicle. Bereft of so many of the overplayed warhorses on Chronicle, the "Ultimate Creedence Mix" better captures the true spirit of this ageless American band. Chronicle doesn't even have "Born on the Bayou" on it, for crying out loud!
(A song featuring, of course, one of the most unintelligeable Creedence verses ever:
"Wish I was back on the bay-ouah!
A-rollin' with some cajun queeaaah
A-whooshah mah way up fash freih meah
A-jop-a-joobin' on down to Nuu-aw-line")
Besides, isn't Creedence a little too modern for your dad?
Yes it's a little modern for my dad, but listening to it gives me the sensation, not the memory, of driving through rural Arkansas.
It was a little weird listening to Chronicle for the first time, I was only familiar with the Natacha Atlas version of 'I put a spell on you', basically a 'middle-eastern belly dancing' interpretation. It was a bit jarring to say the least.
It's actually an old blues/rock 'n' roll song that's been covered by a zillion bands (check out the Wikipedia entry).
And yes, I remember my brother and I played Chronicle while we drove through Louisiana and Mississippi on our road trip. It turns out that CCR's version of the swamp is actually much cooler than actual swamps.
You think swamps are going to be smelly, dirty, and gothic in a cool way. Then when you get there they just turn out to be smelly, dirty, and filled with bugs. However, there are some neat places with lots of wildlife swimming and flying around.
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