John Fogerty
3Arena, Dublin
★★★☆☆
He is not the only rock star to fall prey to sharp practice in the music industry, but in January John Fogerty had the last word. After 50 years of trying he finally regained total control over his classic songs from his Creedence Clearwater Revival days. And to mark what is clearly a huge moment for him Fogerty has named his current series of concerts the Celebration Tour.
So there is a buzz of anticipation when the voluble Fogerty, now touching 78, bounds on to the stage of 3Arena in Dublin on Tuesday night, electric guitar in hand. But it is not quite the expected unbridled triumph. There certainly is encouragement from the audience, many of a similar vintage to Fogerty. And the indefatigable star and his excellent band, including his guitarist sons Shane and Tyler, give their all over the 90 minutes or so. Perhaps it is the preponderance of searing guitar solos from both Shane Fogerty and his father that tend to batter these great little songs into submission. Another off-putting note is the fact that the video screens are marginally out of sync with the sound.
Between 1968 and 1972 John Fogerty could do no wrong as hit after hit – Proud Mary, Green River, Born on the Bayou and many more – conquered the charts and the imagination of a generation
Those Creedence Clearwater Revival songs are not just sacred to their writer; their gritty sense of American working-class sensibility encased in bracing three-minute epics have touched millions across the world, not least in Ireland. For the years between 1968 and 1972 John Fogerty could do no wrong as hit after hit – Proud Mary, Green River, Born on the Bayou and many more – conquered the charts and the imagination of a generation.
Then it all went south. The band broke up in a fog of bitterness and recrimination and Fogerty’s muse deserted him. There was the occasional success, such as Centerfield, but it took his marriage to Julie Kramer to get him back on track. Now his manager as well, she receives a lavish tribute during the show, with a slew of images of their life together on-screen as her husband sings Joy of My Life. Yes it is a bit schmaltzy, if heartfelt, and Fogerty’s reference to 44 per cent of him being Irish also raises eyebrows in some and hollers of support in others.
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The show had kicked off with his sons’ band, Hearty Har, playing a short, blustery set high on energy and guitar solos. Shane, in particular, is a classy player. But their songs lack distinction. That could never be said of his father’s work. Still dressed in a plaid shirt, no doubt designer-made these days, Fogerty, belying his age, bounces around the stage. His voice is now more wiry, but his guitar playing is as nimble as his son’s. Indeed, on the penultimate song of the night, The Old Man Down the Road, the two trade extended incendiary licks before embracing. It is a lovely affectionate moment. A blistering Fortunate Son closes the set before they encore with Rockin’ All Over The World (made famous by Status Quo) and Proud Mary. It is a good show. But they will do better.
