55 Years Later: Revisiting Creedence Clearwater Revival’s Freewheeling Self-Titled Debut Album

With over a half-century of hindsight, Creedence Clearwater Revival’s debut album (released 7/15/68) stands as the epitome of the early declaration of distinctive musical style by a fledgling artist. The San Francisco Bay area quartet had not yet honed the elements of soon-to-be vibrant simplicity that would earmark their heyday as one of the most commercially-successful rock and roll bands of their time, but the essential components were all here and readily evident, in their interpretations of outside material like “Ninety-Nine and a Half (Won’t Do)” as well as the originals composed by John Fogerty.

The latter cover is a statement of roots if there ever was one too. Co-authored by guitarist Steve Cropper of Booker T & The MGs and iconic soulman Wilson Pickett (plus Stax Records’ r&b staple Eddie Floyd), it is an early depiction of the gritty rock and roll CCR mastered within just two years. Like the take on Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ “I Put A Spell On You,” it foreshadows the foreboding that would come to pervade later compositions by Fogerty such as “Effigy” (from Willie and the Poor Boys released late the next year)

More than merely hinting at the atmosphere of its title, “Gloomy” radiates its own share of foreboding too. But, like “The Working Man”–a distinct precursor to “Lodi” in its blue-collar theme–it is a bit too literal-minded. As is “Get Down Woman,” its musical authenticity is hampered by its title conceit as much as it’s elevated by boogie-woogie piano in the background. 

A similar conflict resides within “Walking On The Water.” The faux mysticism in the lyrics is no match for the ominous air wafting through the music. However, by the end of this 8:35 of rendition of “Susie Q,” the pervasive mood of danger is inescapable, further accentuated as it is via the heavy echo and spiraling feedback; at least on that experimental front, the judicious use of those effects placed CCR well within the realm of its otherwise more freewheeling West Coast contemporaries the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane.

That said, the quartet did stretch the boundaries of the 45-rpm format in releasing the extended track in two parts as a single. As such, it’s one of the longest recorded tracks in the Creedence oeuvre–along with “Graveyard Train” and “Keep On Chooglin'” from the very next album Bayou Country–and the aforementioned subtle touches highlight the main components of this band’s sound at its best. 

Titular leader John Fogerty’s often raw vocal drawl corresponds to the ringing twang of his lead guitar work. Meanwhile, the deep, swinging rhythm groove of bassist Stu Cook, drummer Doug Clifford and rhythm guitarist Tom Fogerty alternately mesmerized on the extended instrumentals and drove home the themes of the topical material as it evolved (see “Fortunate Son” and “Who’ll Stop The Rain,” among others). 

The latter’s insistent chording is one of the most indispensable earmarks of Creedence, but it can too often go virtually unnoticed in original songs of his brother such as “Porterville.” As also often the case with the background vocals that otherwise contribute out of proportion to their prominence. The native California band’s first album covered much more ground than its rough half-hour duration would seem to allow, but that perception has only arisen from the hindsight of more than five decades and a half. 

The bitter dispute between John Fogerty and Fantasy Records no doubt accounts for the paucity of archiving on this or the other original titles. High-tech remastered versions did come out in 2000, but no expanded CDs were issued til Concord acquired the label in 2004. 

Yet it’s well to keep in mind too that, mainstream popularity aside, this eponymous debut by Creedence, unlike the first Doors album, did not garner popular acclaim or even suggest that great things were eventually to come. Nor could the LP foreshadow the aforementioned dispute that kept John Fogerty from playing his most famous songs for nigh-on fifteen years (much less the bitter dissolution of the quartet a mere four years after it came out). 

The self-appointed leader of the group has remedied that deliberate omission by concentrating on CCR songs in recent years and, in doing so, regained recognition for the material and the sound he and his three bandmates were in the early stages of creating all the way back to that album released fifty-five years ago.