Ccr - Willy & The Poor Boys (Dig)

Is this just recycling old material?

After re-purchasing every Creedence album in the JVC 20 bit analog remaster format, I was upset when, lo and behold, the albums are released again with bonus tracks. First of all, I am still blown away by the sound of the JVC remaster, which I thought was vastly superior to any other method and actually tried to capture the "bottom layers" of vinyl that CD's simply lack. So is this the same, or did they re-remaster? Then I looked at the majority of the bonus cuts across the catalog and realized they're from Europe '71. Are these different versions than those on the already remasterd live disc, or are they the same? Should I buy the earlier albums again for the live '69 stuff only to find a new release of the entire Fillmore show down the road. What about the Booker T. stuff- why spread it across albums unless it's for profit? Should I feel like I'm being manipulated? November 17, 2008

BE SURE TO BUY THE 2008 REMASTERED VERSION!

The CCR catalogue has finally received the remaster (and bonus live tracks or alternate takes)! When you download this, make sure it's the version released Sept. 30, 2008. The sound quality is great. The album, without having to go into detail, is just flat-out a classic. I bought it as a teenager on vinyl when it came out and I was spending some time with my aging great-grandmother in Tennessee. She came to the door when I was playing Cotton Fields and ended up listening to the album with me -- and she was 80 years old at the time and LOVED IT! So do I, and I think I've had it in 8-track, cassette, and first-generation (muddy sound) versions. Now I have it in 256 kbs mp3!

The bonus material is great. Fortunate Son is, to me, the band's signature song. Included here is an alternate take that's played super-fast, as if the guys were on speed or something. It's an interesting listen, but if anything, it makes you appreciate the original version even more.

And, well, Effigy. What can I say? It's my personal favorite of all of CCR's songs, and I bought the Uncle Tupelo "best of" compilation (even though I had all their CDs!) just to get their take on Effigy.

This is one of those albums (excuse me, I mean CDs...) that I can listen to, track by track, in my mind. When something's playing, I know what's next, and what's after that, etc. I mean, I've heard this album SO MANY TIMES YOU'D THINK I WOULD BE TIRED OF IT! (Sorry for yelling...) But it's a timeless classic that has much better audio and some fun filler. Not to mention that it's even cheaper than the older versions! How can you go wrong...and why are you still reading this? Download it now!

October 30, 2008

The Great American Band notches their second classic

With Concord Music Group having purchased the Fantasy catalog, the fortieth anniversary of Creedence Clearwater Revival's debut LP provides a suitable opportunity for a fresh round of reissues. All six of the original foursome's albums (from 1968's Creedence Clearwater Revival through 1970's Pendulum) have been struck from new digital masters and augmented by previously unreleased tracks. Those who purchased the 2001 box set can pick up most of the bonus tracks separately as digital downloads (the two longest bonuses are CD-only). Those who didn't buy the box, and think they'll buy all six reissues may want to consider the box set for its inclusion of pre-Creedence work from the Blue Velvets and Golliwogs, the seventh CCR album Mardi Gras, the 1970-71 live recordings and several box-only bonuses. But for those just wanting to pick up a few favorite albums, these reissues are the ticket. Each is presented in a digipack with original front and back cover album art and a 16-page booklet with photos, credits and new liner notes.

Creedence's fourth album, their third full album for 1969, Willy & The Poor Boys, was even more of a classic than the preceding Green River. The band sounds even more at home with their sound and Fogerty's creativity was stoked by the blistering pace at which he was creating new material. One could be forgiving of a few album tracks that didn't measure up, but there weren't any. Fogerty's pen was overflowing with quality tunes and the band's covers of "Cotton Fields" and "The Midnight Special" are so thoroughly inscribed with the Creedence sound as to be their own. Even the instrumental confection "Poorboy Shuffle," with its wheezing harmonica and washboard skiffle, fits tightly into the album's sequence, providing a light introduction and crossfade to the Ike Turner styled "Feelin' Blue."

The darkness of Green River is mostly dispelled here, as "Down on the Corner" opens the album with a joyous shuffle that coasts on Creedence's potent rhythm section, and the paranoia of "It Came Out of the Sky" is played for rural laughs. Fogerty's not without his calluses though, and "Fortunate Son" opens with a low, throbbing bass and memorable guitar riff to accompany the blistering attack on masters of war and privileged souls who get others to fight their wars. The 2008 CD's bonus tracks include live versions of "Fortunate Son" and "It Came Out of the Sky" recorded by the three-piece Creedence on their 1971 European tour. The former is sung at a breakneck tempo that doesn't seethe as fully as the studio original, the latter, recorded in Berlin, features the same hot guitar mix as other tracks from this show. Closing the CD is a version of "Down on the Corner" recorded with Booker T. and the MGs. The mono audio of this last bonus is less than sparkling, but where else are you going to hear John Fogerty and Steve Cropper swapping guitar licks? [©2008 hyperbolium dot com] October 5, 2008

I Love Cotton Fields

I sing this song all the time - "When I Was A Little Bitty Baby My Mama Would Rock Me In The Cradle" - That might be a less popular song than others of theirs, but every time I think of them that's the 1st song that I want to hear - That song alone gets 5 stars from me!!!
October 1, 2008

BETTER THAN ANY BEATLE

The perfect mix of rock and country music, makes the old Clearance Clearwater better than the soft Beatles, even though the clearances don't have any stones rolling. March 9, 2008

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