ON SONGWRITING
from a fairly simple idea: the
concept of writing a good song
that told a story. According to
Fogerty, it’s a very “concise and
pure” song, where he structured
each part to have its own
purpose. In addition to capturing
the dread of young Americans
being sent to Vietnam, he also
wanted to highlight the inequality
inherent in our country’s class
structure, which he notes was the
inspiration for the song in the first
place. With such a firm foundation
locked in, Fogerty fleshed out
the song’s arrangement on his
Les Paul Custom, which was sent
through his then trusty Kustom
amp setup in the studio.
Many players have been inspired
by the blues and Fogerty is
no exception. But he took that
influence one step further by
vocally turning certain phrases in
the songs he writes, which helped
in creating his own signature
sound in the process. For
example, in his best known song,
“Proud Mary” (from CCR’s other
1969 album Bayou Country),
Fogerty infamously sings “toining”
instead of “turning” and “boining”
instead of “burning” – both direct
callbacks to the style of blues
legend Howlin’ Wolf (“Smokestack
Lightning,” “Spoonful”). This
practice has continued all
throughout Fogerty’s career as he
sings “soichlight” in “Searchlight”
(Centerfield, 1985) and “noyce”
for “nurse” in “Longshot” (Revival,
2007).
“Well, I didn’t realize it at the
time, and I didn’t realize it until
many, many years later. It wasn’t
on purpose,” Fogerty confesses.
AUG/SEPT
DIGITAL EDITION
55