Bayou Country

'Born On The Bayou' followed Creedence's debut album, and became the first in a string of immaculate, classic & fastly created classic albums, that Creedence unleashed during 1969 and 1970.
The album opens with 'Born On The Bayou', a steady rocker, that, at the same time, is both as familiar as anything Creedence, but also has a great amount of indecipherable strangeness to it, like the kind that would later surface on the 'Pendulum' album in 1970.
It is followed by the almost-excellent 'Bootleg', that sounds very much like a blueprint for the later 'Run Through The Jungle' (itself a blueprint for Fogerty's later solo hit, 'Old Man', though 'Run Through The Jungle' must be said to be the best of those three).
After the slow & bluesy 'Graveyard Train', the band rocks on with their more-than-merely-perfect cover of 'Good Golly Miss Molly', which is arguably better than Little Richard's original.
'Penthouse Pauper' is a great song of underrated brilliance, that follows much in the vein of 'Born On The Bayou', in that it sounds Creedence, but is inhabited with some very disturbing strangeness.
Then comes the smash hit of the album, & arguably the best track here, 'Proud Mary', which, together with 'Down On The Corner', is probably Creedence's best known song today (even rap fans know it). It resides over a divine intro & an equally divine chorus, one of the best singalong choruses ever.
To finish the album off, Fogerty reveals the good but not brilliant 'Keep On Chooglin''. Perhaps better used as a mid-album track than as a closer, it still works very well in just that place because of its tremendous lenght (seven minutes), and the strangeness of its position. Generally the album is wrapped in a veil of strangeness, that gives even the weaker songs a massive foundation. It is not Creedence's best record, but it is up there along with them, even if some of the songs here don't match the wonders to come.
And for everybody who thinks Creedence is just some golden oldie, then I can tell you, that this music is so living & vibrant this very day, as anything else, & that music doesn't have to rage like the Sex Pistols to survive through the decades. This music was made by young men for a young generation, and all the wonders, fears & emptiness of youth is delivered here in these magnificent songs. I know. I'm sixteen years old, and this music really means something to me. More than it does to my parents. For them it's nostalgia. For me, this is life in its purest form, rock'n'roll, which has all the colours of youth in it, in its purest form. And no passing suns can take that away!

John C. Fogerty is the Huck Finn of rock n' roll (and for as long as he cared to, brother Tom served as his Tom Sawyer foil on rhythm guitar). If Samuel Clemens were alive today, he no doubt would be toe tapping to 'Born On the Bayou' and laughing about Huck "runnin' through the backwoods bare" with his "old hounddog barkin'... chasing down a hoodoo there". And J.C. delivers the vocals on 'Born...' with more gusto than even John Lennon summoned for his gravel-voiced marvel, 'Twist and Shout'.

This to me is the finest CCR album. It doesn't have the most hit songs ('Proud Mary' was [and still is] mercilessly overplayed as a number two hit), but this set hit me square between the eyes between my freshman and sophomore years in high school. I don't know if humans imprint, but indelibly etched in my brain cells is the memory of this album being played while I soaked up a warm summer evening at a beach on Lake St. Clair. Some freaks in the parking lot had 'Born On the Bayou' blaring from their car stereo, and it was one of those moments in early adolescence when you savor your budding sense of autonomy. Of course, in the early 1970's, all manner of freedom was breaking out everywhere, helping to frame this as a touchstone experience for me.

That's not to say there isn't great music on this album which speaks for itself. 'Born On the Bayou', 'Good Golly Miss Molly' (comparing it to Mitch Ryder's #4 hit version is like comparing apples and oranges, so I won't go there... suffice it to say that it rocks every bit as much, and features a driving lead guitar that cannot be denied), 'Bootleg', 'Penthouse Pauper', and 'Keep On Chooglin' (I guess they go chooglin' instead of truckin' down South) hold their own with any other highlights from Creedence albums.

Even more than their first album, 'Bayou Country' is a blues recording, with a thick overlay of the 'pop/swamp sound' that became their signiture. 'Bootleg' and 'Chooglin' are up-tempo blues, while 'Graveyard Train' (the only weak link in this set, and the primary reason this album is being denied 5 star status) and 'Penthouse Pauper' are more laid back. Fogarty's lead guitar solo's bend, fold, and mutilate, and several songs also include John belting out mouth harp (I call it a harmonica) solo's as well. Ironically, the 'odd-song out' is 'Proud Mary', the only composition (aside from 'Good Golly...') with enough 'pop' to make it a Top-40 candidate.

At under 35 minutes (8 1/2 claimed by 'Graveyard Train') this CD won't strain how you budget your time, so take the time to strain your budget to own it. The album declared CCR to be a major playa, and together with 'Green River' and 'Cosmo's Factory', solidified their status as an elite band in rock n' roll's glory years.

"Give me a year and I'll show you what we can do", declared John Fogerty. With BAYOU COUNTRY he proved he wasn't just blowing steam. "Proud Mary" has the distinction of being THE song that put CCR "on the map", Bob Dylan said it was HIS favorite song-- and my Dad, a part-time musician, got sick of getting REQUESTS to play it! (Many, MANY years later, he finally started to LIKE it.) Also here is "Born On The Bayou", the unforgettable album opener that to this day Fogerty opens his live shows with. (Hard to believe it was issued as a "B" side! ) And there's a rousing cover of Little Richard's "Good Golly Miss Molly" where CCR makes it their own! The album closes with the lengthy "Keep On Chooglin'", which, until "Travelin' Band", had been CCR's show-closer as well. As an album overall, I actually like their debut more than this one-- but it's a close call. (Now, um-- what exactly IS "chooglin'", anyhow?)

..., "Born On the Bayou" (which they continued to open with on gigs until they disbanded--and this was only their second album!), and the blues dirge "Graveyard Train". This one's deceptively repetitive--the same two-measure riff for nine minutes--but over top of it is a man's cry of anguish over an argument with his wife which ended with her roaring off in the car and smacking into a bus. Listen to this song and you'll agree--Our Hero ain't in no shape to deliver the eulogy. Take Johnny Cash's talent for a tale of woe, add Jim Morrison's emotional overdrive, and you've got it. The rest of the album's great, too. This era of music was the high-water mark of the album meant to be listened to a work in its own right instead of half-a-dozen singles glued together.

Now, at 50 years old, I still get out my CCR and marvel at most of the songs on this album. Sure, everyone's heard Proud Mary and Born on the Bayou, but who can sit still when it gets to that final track: "Keep On Chooglin'"? And "Penthouse Pauper"!!! Awesome!!! Thank God Mr. Fogerty is still with us and still rockin' as great as ever!!!

THE great ccr album.It will always be best known for being the home of "Proud Mary",but even better stuff is here."Born On the Bayou""Bootleg""Penthouse Pauper".Still sounds as good today as it did when my friends and I were wearing the 8-track tape out over 30 years ago.

A very under-rated, intense swampy-bluesy, album which I appreciate now even more than when it was first released. Contains some outstanding material.

Proud Mary, the most popular song, was a deserved big hit but Born On The Bayou is the best song. An intense, brooding, swampy - occasionally even slinky - masterpiece with scowling vocals that John Fogerty does better than any other man alive. Play it loud and get into the mood of the song. Magnificent. One of the greatest songs of the era.

Bootleg is an excellent, catchy tune which also is typically swampy while being laid back and ultra cool. Very under-rated; few people have heard it but when they do for the first time it is an instant success. I'm surprised they didn't promote that song better. Is noteworthy that JF still does it in his concerts - he knows the good lesser known ones! Keep on Chooglin' (a term Fogerty says he made up himself) is also a great addition to the album.

Penthouse Pauper reveals some fine Fogerty blues guitar and is an interesting mood change. Speaking of guitar, Fogerty does some neat work on Good Golly Miss Molly, which rolls along at pace compared to the slow, harp orientated, blues number Graveyard Train, which adds some darkness and tension to an excellent and varied album. I've bought a DCC version because the fine collection deserves to be heard at its best. A must have.

Bayou Country was the first huge break through for CCR. Technically they only had on single that was popular, but two of their very best songs appear on this collection. Every group has a break through album and this is theirs.
Proud Mary is of course one of the top R&R songs ever recorded and has been covered by numerous artists including Tina Turner.
This album also had Born on the Bayou, which to this day is my favorite CCR song of all times.
This is one of the classic albums of R&R and belongs in any library.

If you buy ANY Creedence Clearwater Revival CDs, look for a release date of September 30, 2008. After FINALLY making peace with Fantasy records, the CCR catalog has gotten the remastering treatment, along with several live bonus tracks. In addition, these new downloads are actually CHEAPER than the others!

Bayou Country was MY introduction to CCR, and as such it and my second purchase, Willy and the Poorboys, will always remain my favorites. I downloaded this, then Willy, then said "what the heck" and went ahead and got Green River, the self-titled debut, and Cosmo's Factory. ALL FIVE are great and come highly recommended. Trust me, if you get one, you're gonna want all five...

GREAT STUFF! And much improved audio!

When the first guitar notes of BORN ON THE BAYOU rise from out of the mud,it is definitely clear you are smack dab in the middle of BAYOU COUNTRY. This is the second release of Fogerty and co.,and what an improvement there has been.Close your eyes and you are there on the PROUD MARY riverboat;or chooglin' on down to New Orleans on a fast freight train.The playing on this album is exceptional,and (with the exception of GRAVEYARD TRAIN,which is repetitive and boring)tight.Creedence Clearwater Revival was the American band for many in the late '60s-early '70s;this release shows you why.