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Creedence Clearwater Revisited - Oh Puh-lease!

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bigoldron

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I live about 100 miles from a theme park called Wild Adventures. For years, we'd buy season passes because A) they have 7 roller coasters, a water park and other pretty good rides, and B) their concerts. Admission is free with a park pass. Acts have ranged from Lynyrd Skynyrd to Merle Haggard to Casting Crowns to many, many others.

Coming up this weekend though has got to be one of IMO the biggest ripoffs I've seen lately. Apparently, the "rhythm section" from the former Creedence Clearwater Revival decided to form their tribute band called, appropriately enough, "Creedance Clearwater Revisited".

Is it just me? Or, is CCR NOT CCR without John Fogerty? Apparently, JF got screwed when the group broke up and hasn't been able to perform any of the material that HE WROTE until recently. Somehow justice hasn't been served, life isn't fair, etc. etc. It's just not right that somebody is making a living off of Fogerty's material, yet he himself couldn't perform his own stuff.

You can bet I won't be making this trip. Maybe I'm over-reacting, but sanity has never been one of my strong points. :whatever:
 
Fogerty was once sued by his former record company for "plagiarising" himself. The whole band suffered loss of earnings from the deal with Liberty Records (ironic, huh?) so I can't really blame any of them for trying to get some money out of the whole mess. An early example of the intellectual property waivers we all sign these days along with our job contracts.
 
A band without Roger Waters toured in the 90's under the name Pink Floyd and people went nuts over getting to see them even though they weren't really Pink Floyd. The living members of the Jerry Garcia Band still tour as "JGB" while surviving members of the Grateful Dead tour as "The Dead." It just illustrates that a large number of people don't really know or care who is playing the music they go to see live, they just care that they are familiar with the songs. Give the average crowd enough beer and some melodies they know with some rockin' licks and they'll declare each new show the best they've ever seen. Personally, I think it's pathetic. Without Fogerty, it isn't CCR.
 
When JF and CCR first signed their recording contract, the label owner, Saul Zantz, had it worded that he (Zantz) owned the copywright to all Fogerty and CCR songs. A dumb move on Fogerty's part, but he was young and wanted to get his stuff out on a label. He saw NONE of the composer's $ for any of CCR's heyday. He quit CCR.

The other CCR band members formed CCR Revisited soon after and have been touring ever since.

Just within the last 2 or 3 years has Fogerty gotten the rights back to his CCR songs, as, I believe, Zantz either died or retired, and lost his stranglehold on Fogerty. John Fogerty is finally seeing some royalties from CCR's heyday! And performing them live again!

All's well that ends well, but that Saul Zantz should burn in hell! I know Fogerty feels the same way!
 
Live performing is a TOUGH gig... and a rough life especially for non-superstars. Every working musician has a right to grab as much of the pie possible by whatever means ASIDE from infringing on each other.
Prod Co's, business atty's, & etc can all anal-rape each other for their slice as they seem to have no problem practicing that methodology on their clients.
(Heh-heh... no bitterness intended!)
 
JF refused to play his old songs for decades, and it finally bugged him so much NOT playing them that he started to so again, dispite whatever legal wranglings were finally worked out.
He should continue to forget the past problems and hook up with the remaining guys again and get back to kicking some serious *** like they used to.

He got sued royal for the song, Zantz Can't Dance.
 
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