My name is Bob Robertson. I was the jury foreman in the famous 1988 copyright trial over "The Old Man Down the Road" and "Run Through the Jungle", which changed the music industry. Because there were musicology experts on both sides attempting to define which blues chords, sequences and blues melodies were copyrightable and which were not, and whether an artist could "copy oneself", it was one of most intellectually challenging times of my life. I am still proud of the outcome. I could relate many fascinating details of this trial, but after all these years I leave it to the history books. However, I will mention this little tidbit, the climax of the trial. On the witness stand, his lawyers asked John about the origins of many of his songs, and he would play them on his guitar. It was like a long interview with a songwriter, with his lawyer prompting him with "And what did you write next?" In the old days of tin pan alley, songwriters used to sit at the piano and perform a routine, "And then I wrote..." It was like that. I was sitting only a few feet away from the most amazing "unplugged" concert of my life! He was wailing away. The courtroom was rocking and there were gasps from the small audience allowed to attend. It lasted all afternoon. Furthermore, the history books don't record that Fogerty had recently broken his right forearm and it was in a cast. He didn't miss a beat on his acoustic guitar, regardless of this handicap. It was hard to remain objective as a jury foreman, but I had to dismiss my own feelings and remain steadfast and open-minded to Saul Zaentz' musicologist expert witness arguments, which were formidable -- but ultimately in error about what is copyrightable in blues music. One of Zaentz' musicologists was an elder professor from UCLA who was an expert on 20th century popular songwriting from the era of ragtime through the big bands and the Broadway musicals. I was fascinated by the history and I would have wanted to read his other work after the trial, but he wasn't convincing about the blues, a genre with elements which have been freely copied and improvised since slave times. I'm happy that John mentions me in his memoir.
Here I am in 2025 65 years old Still say today if your at a party with mixed age groups and don’t know what to play Put on CCR it’s timeless And it’s all down to this man What a legend
@gillianbrown7987 Yep, I still prefer the original by Glady's Knight and the Pips, but Fogherty's pronunciation of "I Hearyeard" is the best part of any version! Being from Cali, I guess that was his interpretation of a southern drawl. lol
Fogerty n PEtty same Wrote. eve ry song Sang lead vocals Ccr duders side guys Like Heartbreaaakers Back. Heartbreakkers LP writer. PETTY PETTY P5 EWT 5T T
I grew up listening to CCR. I've always believed there was no CCR without John Fogerty- the voice, the songwriter. So happy for him and his family that this incredible injustice has been resolved! I think John's story would make a fantastic movie.
So glad Fogarty got to enjoy the fruits of his talent. It was harder than it should have been , but he finally got his reward. Bravo John. You were CCR.
I had the opportunity to see John play live not long after he reclaimed his music. He was practically giddy. "I got my songs back!" he said. "And I'm gonna play 'em for you!" That man has an unbelievable energy level. He bounces all over the stage like a kid one-quarter his age. I just want to know what kind of vitamins he takes.... He's still got it.
I saw him in a ct casino, maybe 10 years ago. He played all his great songs. I took my father. We both loved the show. The guy is a super great song writer.
I have been to dozens of concerts over my life, but was thrilled beyond belief to hear him on stage in Melbourne, back in 2012, sing the whole Cosmo's factory LP, every song. Never seen that in a concert. The show was awesome, esp since my oldest son is a big JF fan. We both had a great night.
My grandson was 7 and I bought him a music player and I over heard him singing their songs and I asked who he was listening to ,like I didn’t know …and he filled me in on the history how he wrote the songs and the war. I was so impressed he’s 12 now and I still hear him humming their tunes !
I'm 72 and have always liked CCR and John, as a person. On a talk show, he mentioned how he had written the two words 'Proud Mary' in a diary. A year later, he looked at the words, and went on to write the great song.
The Fantasy Records deal required Fogerty to write and record a new song EVERY TEN DAYS for 5 years... insane... THEN he got sued for sounding like himself... just how mad does this world need to be before someone stops it to get off.
The absurd irony is that when John released "The Blue Ridge Rangers " album after CCR broke up Zaentz refused to count it towards his contractual obligations because it didn't sound enough like CCR
This is how the Money mon in Every industry work. It’s always about ownership and control. Anyone who trusts these kind of guys does so at their own risk
@bobinscotland - unfortunately, as with many young and upcoming musical stars, it seems he didn't read the contract very carefully. And he lost out because of it.
CCR was the 1st Concert I ever went to see in Hollywood, Florida in 1972. The band was fabulous then, and the songs they produced, still heard today, are still just as wonderful, all weathering the test of time.
I saw him on the same tour, at the O2 Arena in London. The audience was on its feet almost from the first song. He knew he was in front of a home crowd, and could just turn the songs over to them when he wanted. I went through the whole gig with a massive grin on my face, and it was so good to see him so happy. He told the story of how he was reunited with his beloved red Rickenbacker guitar (with the humbucker pickups) and that brought tears to my eyes. Just look at the back catalogue of songs that he has written, and how they have become classics. A seriously underrated talent.
Now that I'm older (hopefully wiser) I realize more than ever how talented he really was. He did his own thing and didn't follow any music trends of the day. His songs are timeless.
I just pictured the Supreme Court justices sitting around smoking pot and drinking beer while listening to CCR and now I can't get that out of my mind.
@@wickedcabinboy the distribution companies are playing dirty with distribution and with Publishing Administration Services. Many people need to go to jail for this.
i had the great pleasure of seeing john on his victory tour at Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut. it seems like i see Fogerty every year. never , ever have been disappointed.
I first got into CCR when I was 21, and they're still one of my favourite bands decades later. John Fogerty was one helluva brave man to take on the music corporation, but that is what you do when you're a principled man. Kudos to Fogerty.
Fogerty has a great soulful voice and his guitar playing is highly underrated. Everybody loves Creedence! When my son was six he would do his homework listening to either Creedence or Jim Croce, two all time greats.
As now, a 69 y/o & a musician- I lived in El Cerrito in the 70s - a couple blocks away from Cosmos Studio (CCR's mom's house garage) and a couple miles from Fantasy Records. Stunned by the predatory greed of the label - I've stayed indie my whole life. If said label stayed only w their jazz roots... -well I'll just say some musicians are more about the music than "pushing a camel through the eye of a needle" if you get my drift. - CCR the soundtrack of the Vietnam war and so much more. Great music that lives on and on and on.
I'm glad to see John come out the other end of this whole thing on top. I'm so proud of John & his legacy. Here's to many, many, many more years of good health to you and your family John. Cheers!
✊️Never give up, Never give in. Bravo John Fogerty👏 Thank you Norman Lear for your hand in the business handling within the business underhandedness to rectify this atrocity
I saw Him this Summer in Gilford NH. I’ll never forget him saying “ I finally got all My Songs back. I out lived all those Bastards “. Everyone, including Myself, was yelling “ Piss on Saul Zaentz “. He was a thieving Bastard”. God Bless You John. One last thing , Thanks Julie. 🙏
John Fogerty, George Thorogood, my go to bands I still listen to daily in my vehicle. You can't have a playlist without a bunch of CCR in it! Back ion the day I'd collect their 45's, LP's, 8-tracks, cassettes, and later on CD's and now everything's on a memory stick! Thanks Mr. Fogerty for the sound of the 70's, if you weren't in the 1970's, you sure missed a good party...filled with awesome music, real muscle cars and of course, the babes😁😉
He still did really well without his catalog in those days. I saw his tax returns for a two year period. I cannot give any specifics but his musical skill set is huge and he is always handsomely paid. I just saw him last year with his sons as CCR, he hasn't missed a step. He was a happy boy.
I'm glad John got what he wanted, but everyone needs to see that the destruction of the promoters has made it so that there will never be bands like Zep, G n R, CCR, and many more, ever again. I used to go to concerts for less than $20. Now it's $200 to sit so far away you can't even see the band members. If this younger generation doesn't wake up, rock and roll is gonna die, and they'll never know what they're missing. Maybe, pay attention to what you are signing so you don't have to go through this kind of treatment.
If there was a writer or artist that would compare to John, i would be interested in knowing what name would come up. Sorry this all happened, but in the end , John and the fans are the true winners . Thanks for the memories, i glad i was alive to see and hear it all. Thank you John. Godspeed, and a long life!!!!!!
I saw John Fogerty during the Centerfield & Eye of Zombie tours, it was well known that John Fogerty wasn't playing CCR songs, the Concerts were Great, Sold Out & nobody was disappointed, just sayin.
I was present at the Indianapolis show in 1986 when Julie Kramer got backstage, and shortly after the 2 were married. it was a great show, no CCR material. But his work as the Blue Ridge Rangers is some of his best music ever.
I have seen a live video of John Fogerty playing his then new composition of "Sail Away" from Eye of the Zombie. That song alone seems worth the price of admission.
I don’t know on which planet an unknown artist would receive 18-25 points on their first album; when I was in the game, they usually started at 12 to 12.5 points, which would increase with each release. But the deal CCR got was par for the course during that era - even the Beatles got screwed out of part of their catalog. Best advice when dealing with the beast: hire a good lawyer.
Back in the late 1960's Paul mcCartney was discussing business with Mick Jagger and Paul was amazed when he learned how much money the Stones were making, far more than the Beatles ! but Jagger had attended the LSE, (London School of Economics), and he drove a hard bargain for everything. It was then that the Beatles realized just how royally they were being shafted.
He didn’t spend his time or money on fast cars partying it away he spent it taking the Corporations down He paved the way for musicians to own and control there creative rights 🙏
A LOT of bands got into bad deals when they were young and hungry. Van Halen's first contract with Warner Bros. was one of the worst too. WB reserved the right to essentially own the band's ability to record music, as long as they renwed the contract. This could last an entire lifetime. They fired their first managed and hired a guy that got them out of it by flooding the WB offices with any and all paperwork regarding the band. It was a constant stream of mail. And just like he hoped, the renewal contract went unnoticed past the deadline date, and Van Halen, one or WB's biggest live acts, was now a free agent.
This was a reply to another comment, but I decided to pull it out from the indent. See my main comment about my experience on this trial in this thread, because I talk about his concert on the witness stand. *** I was the jury foreman at the trial. I was 37 years old at the time. I listened to CCR when I was 18-20 when they were at their peak. On the jury we had several retired folks who were not much aware of CCR, but they were intelligent and open-minded. I carpooled to San Francisco Federal Court with one of them, a Korean War veteran. There was one young Silicon Valley engineer, I remember, maybe 30. He was very familiar with CCR music. There was a young black lady in her early 30s who knew a lot about music, but it was mostly Motown and funk. She knew blues better than the rest of us, but CCR was out of her orbit. She was funny! During jury selection I openly admitted that I had been a fan of CCR in college, had collected some of their records, but I was unaware of John Fogerty's recent solo career (which was true). I had stopped listening to mainstream rock in the 1980s. The Saul Zaentz team selected me because they believed I would be knowledgeable but unbiased and objective -- and I was. During the trial, they had their eyes on me all the time, to check my reactions, because I was taking a lot of notes. The rest of the jury wanted to acquit Fogerty immediately after the trial concluded, but I insisted that we debate some of the evidence, which we did, for about 30 minutes.
If anyone has a right to be bitter at the music industry, it's John Fogerty. Not only did Zaents rip-off John and the band, John's brother Tom turned against him in favor of Zaents. CCR's songs have been radio mainstays from the time of their first releases and have been licensed to too many movies and TV shoes to count. Praise to Norman Lear for his decency, and congratulations to John for persevering and coming out on top. It's too bad this low-effort, AI generated video's creator didn't try to have enough talent to do something worthy of Fogerty's.
I remember a documentary decades ago of music being stolen from the writers. Some of it concerned Chuck Berry who allegedly said some of his songs had credits of music executives who had nothing to do with his songs but had pull.
Original fan of John Fogerty's music, and am glad he achieved a big victory of owning much of his catalogue. The sad thing is, music industry greed. Just because one has the experience and deep pockets to take advantage of an artist; does that mean they should. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that the music industry was acting on sheer greed in this case; and had they chosen to treat Fogerty fair; instead of fleece him; they still would have made out like bandits.
The other CCR band members knew they were nothing without John and plotted with the record label to cheat him out of his music including his brother, so glad John got his music back. CCR continues to tour today because they got the rights to the band name. Max Carl has been the singer for years and is a great singer who some of you may remember was in 38 Special he wrote The Heart Needs A Second Chance. CCR will never be CCR without John.
Onr key to his success was all the songs were incredibly simple musically. Every garage band could play their music easily. Those covers spread John's writing everywhere. The songs were payable by near beginners on guitar. His work was genius.
His own brother stabbed him in the back by joining with the otter two members to form an evil trio of traitors to sell their souls to the Devil Zaentz! But, he got even with them when the Rock N Roll HOF inducted CCR and he refused to play with them. He brought his own group of fellow musicians and played with them instead; thus leaving Cook & Clifford high and dry on the sidelines with egg in their faces!
Or just maybe. John Fogerty played right into Zaentz hands by signing idiotic contracts. Then spent decades blaming his brother and band mates for his GIGANTIC MISTAKES. To cover his own ignorance and arrogance. There are always two sides to every story.
@@dadeo8957 Gee... gigantic mistake... trusting the wrong people. How stupid could you be? Ask Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Elvis, Mike Nesmith, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Billy Joel... pretty much every musician who you've ever heard of... and many you haven't. Fogerty wrote every hit Creedence had and saw none of it for 50 years. Mr Zaentz, however, used Fogerty's royalties to bankroll films that became Oscar winners. Fogerty saw none of that either. Keep your dark opinions to yourself.
@@dadeo8957You don’t know what you’re talking, about! They all signed the contract, not just, John! They all trusted Saul Zaentz! He was like a “father” figure to them! There were lots of promises made that never, materialized! Zaentz promised to rip up the contract if they were successful. Were they successfully? I will let you answer that one, Einstein!
@ OK. Either you are John Fogerty or one of the surviving members of CCR. Or you were invited to witness the actual signing of the contract between the two parties. Or you are some type of corporate attorney specializing in the late 1960s music industries contracts. Or you are most likely just an imbecile that thinks you know what you’re talking about. Have someone read a book to every now and then. Genius.
My dear friend and godfather to my son, Bob Krogstadt wrote, orchestrated, conducted and produced a tremendous amount of music during his life. His beginnings in Christian religious music opened many doors. He did all these tasks on twenty Hallmark Christmas Cd’s. These featured many top recording stars of the time. He created the duet of Nat and Natalie Cole for one of them. Then he was courted by Disney. It began with many of the soundtracks that you hear at all the parks. Then he was asked to write, compose, orchestrate, conduct and mix the soundtrack for Frozen. Sadly, he passed away as the movie was released. Credit for the score was given to two guys I never heard of. I had told Bob that I wanted a sheet of his hand written music but over the years we never got around to the exchange. When he died I wanted to find a sheet of his music. Eventually I tracked down a music broker of middle eastern descent who had purchased the materials and rights to Bob’s music. I explained but he refused to sell me just one sheet. Can you believe that there are “businessmen” out there who buy music royalties as a profession. Even though Bob was the next John Williams he was just becoming well known in the industry. His catalogues are still sold to hundreds of church music directors and a royalty is paid when his creations like the Hallmark songs are played through the holidays. It may not be enough to live off of but when you “own” the work (lives) of 10,000 artists it adds up. Never delay something that you believe strongly in.God bless you Bob. Keep the angels in tune and on time.
I saw them in a bar in 1970-72 era. Never knew that he had to fight with industry giants. I'm glad those giants lost their fight with John Fogerty. His talents and determination paid off in the end.
I was booking bands back in the late 1960s. I booked bands in a small club in Davis, California. On the wall was a picture of a band called the Golliwogs. I said to the owner that looks like CCR. "Yep, they played here when they were the Golliwogs". Lots of history of CCR in the Sacramento area, such as "Stuck in Lodi", reference playing at the Cherokee Lanes Bowling Alley.
I worked on the tech side of the music industry for 10 years and I can tell you it is such a shitshow that it's incredible that anyone can make a living from it. The early days of exploitive contracts praying on the desperation of talented people really set the stage for the craziness this video goes into. For every success story like Fogerty's there are 100s (maybe 1000s) of others who have been screwed out of their creative output by a dysfunctional industry. Good on JF for having the guts to stand up for what is rightfully his.
Yeah, the "swamp music" style and all the bayou stuff was about Louisiana, but CCR were inspired by exploring the delta of the Sacramento River as it empties into San Francisco Bay.
Always respected JF's musical skills and abilities but hearing this story just elevated him into legendary status for me. the contrast between the creative genius of JF and the sinister motives of the record company is a stark lesson regarding the dual nature of our world. I chose the path of creation.
It also happened because the other members wanted to write song material which later proved to be a failure..which goes to show the dumb asses.. if it ain’t broke.. then don’t fix it
The main evil thing was Saul Zeants the ceo from Fantasy Records. He killed this band with an absurd contract. By the way John was also the manager of the band, he saw this not coming. Look on wikipedia for the artist: Vince Guaraldi also had a contract with Fantasy, you get a little idea how it worked.
Oh well Saul.. you were trusted and look what you done.. you made millions off of John’s songs but now the songs are back where they belong to the rightful owner and soul composer..Saul what a wasted Life you lived.. and now you’ll die one day.. you can’t take all of those ill gotten millions with you to Hell
I was a kid during CCR. I used to have nightmares from some of Fogerty's screaming. It was great! Still is. Glad this rock music giant finally enjoys his own success after so many decades. Of screaming good rock songs.
I was 13 in 1970 and remember everybody with an 8 track in their car or had a record player at home all had CCR ALBUMS as popular as the Beatles most would agree. John folgertys songs were songs that people loved and could relate to plus the music was like no others...they were so unique the first few seconds of a song on the radio you knew it was JF and CCR NEVER GONNA BE ANOTHER GREAT BAND LIKE CCR.❤️❤️
Fogartys problem was trusting Stu, John gave Stu the contract before signing it, Stu’s father was an attorney who Stu gave the contract to look over. Weather or not he did, Stu said to go ahead and sign it….the rest is history, and the reason when Creedence was inducted into the Hall of Fame, he refused to play with his original band, put played with his traveling band! God Bless John Fogerty for his endurance and patience and wonderful wife that got him back into doing what he does best! CCR will be played long after he and his generation (mine too) have turned to dust!
This video was really great but 7 minutes too long. I was so lucky to see it. Thanks for putting this together. Mr Fogerty also plays on UA-cam with his family which is so cool to watch.
Despite the popularity of CCR songs at the time, they never had a #1 song on the Billboard charts. Five of their singles only got as far as #2 on the charts. An unusual distinction to say the least.
My name is Bob Robertson. I was the jury foreman in the famous 1988 copyright trial over "The Old Man Down the Road" and "Run Through the Jungle", which changed the music industry. Because there were musicology experts on both sides attempting to define which blues chords, sequences and blues melodies were copyrightable and which were not, and whether an artist could "copy oneself", it was one of most intellectually challenging times of my life. I am still proud of the outcome. I could relate many fascinating details of this trial, but after all these years I leave it to the history books.
However, I will mention this little tidbit, the climax of the trial. On the witness stand, his lawyers asked John about the origins of many of his songs, and he would play them on his guitar. It was like a long interview with a songwriter, with his lawyer prompting him with "And what did you write next?"
In the old days of tin pan alley, songwriters used to sit at the piano and perform a routine, "And then I wrote..." It was like that. I was sitting only a few feet away from the most amazing "unplugged" concert of my life! He was wailing away. The courtroom was rocking and there were gasps from the small audience allowed to attend.
It lasted all afternoon. Furthermore, the history books don't record that Fogerty had recently broken his right forearm and it was in a cast. He didn't miss a beat on his acoustic guitar, regardless of this handicap.
It was hard to remain objective as a jury foreman, but I had to dismiss my own feelings and remain steadfast and open-minded to Saul Zaentz' musicologist expert witness arguments, which were formidable -- but ultimately in error about what is copyrightable in blues music.
One of Zaentz' musicologists was an elder professor from UCLA who was an expert on 20th century popular songwriting from the era of ragtime through the big bands and the Broadway musicals. I was fascinated by the history and I would have wanted to read his other work after the trial, but he wasn't convincing about the blues, a genre with elements which have been freely copied and improvised since slave times.
I'm happy that John mentions me in his memoir.
Cool story
Dude, you're literally talking to an AI robot channel. Probably someone from China or India
thats the best lawyer double talk bullshit i've ever heard -
Thanks man,you had a great experience,thank you for sharing.
Wow, this was a 40 yr old lesson he learned. Read the contract before you sign. Or better yet, get a good music lawyer first!
Here I am in 2025
65 years old
Still say today if your at a party with mixed age groups and don’t know what to play
Put on CCR it’s timeless
And it’s all down to this man
What a legend
From South Africa: I absolutely agree, go to a wedding, and the older folks will request CCR to get the party started.
Hi! Also from South Africa. For me, John Fogerty's video, Heard It On the Grapevine, my all time favourite CCR song.❤
@gillianbrown7987 Yep, I still prefer the original by Glady's Knight and the Pips, but Fogherty's pronunciation of "I Hearyeard" is the best part of any version! Being from Cali, I guess that was his interpretation of a southern drawl. lol
Fogerty n PEtty same
Wrote. eve ry song
Sang lead vocals
Ccr duders side guys
Like Heartbreaaakers
Back. Heartbreakkers LP
writer. PETTY
PETTY
P5 EWT 5T T
I hung around with punk rockers, metal heads, country music people and blues people.....they all loved CCR
John Fogerty was Creedence Clearwater Revival!!! Nobody ever copied their style. And nobody could ever copy his voice!! Good on you, John!❤❤❤
Especially when John Fogerty composed most of CCR songs!
It sickens me at how much is never enough for most record labels.
We r watching this hunger in real time now with tech bros. They never have enough. Gross people
True that , it's disgusting the greed some corporations will go too .
That goes for all the wealthy. Wealth almost always begets greed. Keanu Reeves is a wonderful exception.
🎉@@sbkenn1Hear hear...
The shekel counters never have enough....
I grew up listening to CCR. I've always believed there was no CCR without John Fogerty- the voice, the songwriter. So happy for him and his family that this incredible injustice has been resolved! I think John's story would make a fantastic movie.
So glad Fogarty got to enjoy the fruits of his talent. It was harder than it should have been , but he finally got his reward. Bravo John. You were CCR.
they left out the part where the rest of the band got screwed and remain screwed to this day. one of them is his own brother.
@@mw4zombieWrong! They screwed themselves by being greedy, jealous pricks. Do your homework!😡
John Fogarty WAS CCR. Wrote all the material, sang lead and played lead guitar as well as harmonica. Anybody could have filled those roles.
FOGERTY.
@ well I can spell your name at least : WANKER.
I had the opportunity to see John play live not long after he reclaimed his music. He was practically giddy. "I got my songs back!" he said. "And I'm gonna play 'em for you!" That man has an unbelievable energy level. He bounces all over the stage like a kid one-quarter his age. I just want to know what kind of vitamins he takes.... He's still got it.
I saw him in a ct casino, maybe 10 years ago. He played all his great songs. I took my father. We both loved the show. The guy is a super great song writer.
The vitamins are called: 'Love of Music.'
Vitamin Lysergicide
@@wahid-lg1kk Lysergic Acid? Yeah, the real stuff - LSD !
I have been to dozens of concerts over my life, but was thrilled beyond belief to hear him on stage in Melbourne, back in 2012, sing the whole Cosmo's factory LP, every song. Never seen that in a concert. The show was awesome, esp since my oldest son is a big JF fan. We both had a great night.
My grandson was 7 and I bought him a music player and I over heard him singing their songs and I asked who he was listening to ,like I didn’t know …and he filled me in on the history how he wrote the songs and the war. I was so impressed he’s 12 now and I still hear him humming their tunes !
Good on you John, you are a champion
This story took most of his life and ours. The fans are grateful to and proud of John for his resolve and tenacity. God bless you John Fogerty.
I'm 72 and have always liked CCR and John, as a person. On a talk show, he mentioned how he had written the two words 'Proud Mary' in a diary. A year later, he looked at the words, and went on to write the great song.
The Fantasy Records deal required Fogerty to write and record a new song EVERY TEN DAYS for 5 years... insane... THEN he got sued for sounding like himself... just how mad does this world need to be before someone stops it to get off.
The absurd irony is that when John released "The Blue Ridge Rangers " album after CCR broke up Zaentz refused to count it towards his contractual obligations because it didn't sound enough like CCR
and sued for 'zanz cant dance' yes?
This is how the Money mon in Every industry work. It’s always about ownership and control. Anyone who trusts these kind of guys does so at their own risk
The hateful energy and greed of a saul knows no bounds
@bobinscotland - unfortunately, as with many young and upcoming musical stars, it seems he didn't read the contract very carefully. And he lost out because of it.
CCR was the 1st Concert I ever went to see in Hollywood, Florida in 1972. The band was fabulous then, and the songs they produced, still heard today, are still just as wonderful, all weathering the test of time.
I saw Fogerty in concert a couple of years ago, and he was still fantastic! Big fan here since the late 60’s!
I saw him on the same tour, at the O2 Arena in London. The audience was on its feet almost from the first song. He knew he was in front of a home crowd, and could just turn the songs over to them when he wanted. I went through the whole gig with a massive grin on my face, and it was so good to see him so happy. He told the story of how he was reunited with his beloved red Rickenbacker guitar (with the humbucker pickups) and that brought tears to my eyes. Just look at the back catalogue of songs that he has written, and how they have become classics. A seriously underrated talent.
Now that I'm older (hopefully wiser) I realize more than ever how talented he really was. He did his own thing and didn't follow any music trends of the day. His songs are timeless.
I just pictured the Supreme Court justices sitting around smoking pot and drinking beer while listening to CCR and now I can't get that out of my mind.
Lord I hate AI narrators.
Why you here ?
I already know their history. I just want to know how he got his revenge.
Hey, it's only once or twice that the voice says "Fugerty" ; )
@@raulescobar7433 - For the story, not the narrator's qualities.
The voice is unsettling. It’s a scam. Waiting for the flare to set us all free
My little girls are in their 40's now, they grew up hearing Creedance Clearwater Revival everyday.
MAKING the money for THAT slime* record Company owner , etc
I've been fighting for the rights to my catalog for TEN years. Thank you for this fuel to my fire.
@thewonderdawgmusic - How is this still happening to musicians even now?
@@wickedcabinboy the distribution companies are playing dirty with distribution and with Publishing Administration Services. Many people need to go to jail for this.
i had the great pleasure of seeing john on his victory tour at Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut. it seems like i see Fogerty every year. never , ever have been disappointed.
My sentiments exactly.
John Foggerty was an incredible song writer, and had 1 great voice ❤
Fogerty.
John you're a fantastic man,such a great talent,good on you for your victory.
Whenever someone requests these old CCR songs, I'll play them live thinking of this story. Much respect!
Incredible story ...! I can't even imagine the pain this man went through...
I first got into CCR when I was 21, and they're still one of my favourite bands decades later. John Fogerty was one helluva brave man to take on the music corporation, but that is what you do when you're a principled man. Kudos to Fogerty.
Seen John last year, after he got his songs back. Best gig I’ve ever been to.
There needs to be laws in place to protect artist from unfair contracts.
Fogerty has a great soulful voice and his guitar playing is highly underrated. Everybody loves Creedence! When my son was six he would do his homework listening to either Creedence or Jim Croce, two all time greats.
His crying guitar solo on Goin' Back Home is the best guitar work ever.
As now, a 69 y/o & a musician- I lived in El Cerrito in the 70s - a couple blocks away from Cosmos Studio (CCR's mom's house garage) and a couple miles from Fantasy Records. Stunned by the predatory greed of the label - I've stayed indie my whole life. If said label stayed only w their jazz roots... -well I'll just say some musicians are more about the music than "pushing a camel through the eye of a needle" if you get my drift. - CCR the soundtrack of the Vietnam war and so much more. Great music that lives on and on and on.
I'm glad to see John come out the other end of this whole thing on top. I'm so proud of John & his legacy. Here's to many, many, many more years of good health to you and your family John. Cheers!
✊️Never give up, Never give in. Bravo John Fogerty👏
Thank you Norman Lear for your hand in the business handling within the business underhandedness to rectify this atrocity
It's interesting that the AI voice narrator can pronouce everything perfectly except "Fogerty" & "Zaentz"
I saw Him this Summer in Gilford NH. I’ll never forget him saying “ I finally got all My Songs back. I out lived all those Bastards “. Everyone, including Myself, was yelling “ Piss on Saul Zaentz “. He was a thieving Bastard”. God Bless You John. One last thing , Thanks Julie. 🙏
I saw him in 2001 or2 at music midtown and John was so happy he could sing his songs again !
good for him, and us who still play his music!
I saw him at Farm Aid in 1985....didn't play CCR.................But he is still a favorite of mine...............
John Fogerty, George Thorogood, my go to bands I still listen to daily in my vehicle. You can't have a playlist without a bunch of CCR in it! Back ion the day I'd collect their 45's, LP's, 8-tracks, cassettes, and later on CD's and now everything's on a memory stick!
Thanks Mr. Fogerty for the sound of the 70's, if you weren't in the 1970's, you sure missed a good party...filled with awesome music, real muscle cars and of course, the babes😁😉
Saw him and his kids play last summer... So good. One of the best to ever do it imo.
He still did really well without his catalog in those days. I saw his tax returns for a two year period. I cannot give any specifics but his musical skill set is huge and he is always handsomely paid. I just saw him last year with his sons as CCR, he hasn't missed a step. He was a happy boy.
I'm glad John got what he wanted, but everyone needs to see that the destruction of the promoters has made it so that there will never be bands like Zep, G n R, CCR, and many more, ever again.
I used to go to concerts for less than $20. Now it's $200 to sit so far away you can't even see the band members.
If this younger generation doesn't wake up, rock and roll is gonna die, and they'll never know what they're missing.
Maybe, pay attention to what you are signing so you don't have to go through this kind of treatment.
I love how short that amp cable was.
I was struck by that as well.. Do you suppose he was trying to limit signal interference ?
@@MarinCipollina back in the day, no one worked the stage, they just stood there and played and never moved.
If there was a writer or artist that would compare to John, i would be interested in knowing what name would come up.
Sorry this all happened, but in the end , John and the fans are the true winners .
Thanks for the memories, i glad i was alive to see and hear it all.
Thank you John.
Godspeed, and a long life!!!!!!
I saw John Fogerty during the Centerfield & Eye of Zombie tours, it was well known that John Fogerty wasn't playing CCR songs, the Concerts were Great, Sold Out & nobody was disappointed, just sayin.
I was present at the Indianapolis show in 1986 when Julie Kramer got backstage, and shortly after the 2 were married. it was a great show, no CCR material. But his work as the Blue Ridge Rangers is some of his best music ever.
I have seen a live video of John Fogerty playing his then new composition of "Sail Away" from Eye of the Zombie. That song alone seems worth the price of admission.
he helped me fall in love with southern music = and inspired millions to play - form a band and - enjoy real home blood heart southern music !
I don’t know on which planet an unknown artist would receive 18-25 points on their first album; when I was in the game, they usually started at 12 to 12.5 points, which would increase with each release. But the deal CCR got was par for the course during that era - even the Beatles got screwed out of part of their catalog. Best advice when dealing with the beast: hire a good lawyer.
Back in the late 1960's Paul mcCartney was discussing business with Mick Jagger and Paul was amazed when he learned how much money the Stones were making, far more than the Beatles ! but Jagger had attended the LSE, (London School of Economics), and he drove a hard bargain for everything. It was then that the Beatles realized just how royally they were being shafted.
Jogn Fogerty is one of Rock's true great Geniuses. And all around Decent Human Being.
You go John, LOVE CCR!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He didn’t spend his time or money on fast cars partying it away he spent it taking the Corporations down He paved the way for musicians to own and control there creative rights 🙏
Fortunate Son is one of the greatest rock & roll anthems there is.
A LOT of bands got into bad deals when they were young and hungry. Van Halen's first contract with Warner Bros. was one of the worst too. WB reserved the right to essentially own the band's ability to record music, as long as they renwed the contract. This could last an entire lifetime. They fired their first managed and hired a guy that got them out of it by flooding the WB offices with any and all paperwork regarding the band. It was a constant stream of mail. And just like he hoped, the renewal contract went unnoticed past the deadline date, and Van Halen, one or WB's biggest live acts, was now a free agent.
I have an original copy of Zanz can't danz.
I am listening to "Proud Johnny" rolling, rolling on a river.... still sends chills down my spine..
Good old Saul just loved that money, didn’t he? What a surprise.
Go figure
If you dont name the jew your message isn't true
This was a reply to another comment, but I decided to pull it out from the indent. See my main comment about my experience on this trial in this thread, because I talk about his concert on the witness stand.
***
I was the jury foreman at the trial. I was 37 years old at the time. I listened to CCR when I was 18-20 when they were at their peak.
On the jury we had several retired folks who were not much aware of CCR, but they were intelligent and open-minded. I carpooled to San Francisco Federal Court with one of them, a Korean War veteran.
There was one young Silicon Valley engineer, I remember, maybe 30. He was very familiar with CCR music. There was a young black lady in her early 30s who knew a lot about music, but it was mostly Motown and funk. She knew blues better than the rest of us, but CCR was out of her orbit. She was funny!
During jury selection I openly admitted that I had been a fan of CCR in college, had collected some of their records, but I was unaware of John Fogerty's recent solo career (which was true). I had stopped listening to mainstream rock in the 1980s.
The Saul Zaentz team selected me because they believed I would be knowledgeable but unbiased and objective -- and I was. During the trial, they had their eyes on me all the time, to check my reactions, because I was taking a lot of notes.
The rest of the jury wanted to acquit Fogerty immediately after the trial concluded, but I insisted that we debate some of the evidence, which we did, for about 30 minutes.
Well done John,
John Fogerty , What a Legend.
Thank God that John stood tall for all Musicians and CCR Songs , Right on :) QC
If anyone has a right to be bitter at the music industry, it's John Fogerty. Not only did Zaents rip-off John and the band, John's brother Tom turned against him in favor of Zaents. CCR's songs have been radio mainstays from the time of their first releases and have been licensed to too many movies and TV shoes to count. Praise to Norman Lear for his decency, and congratulations to John for persevering and coming out on top.
It's too bad this low-effort, AI generated video's creator didn't try to have enough talent to do something worthy of Fogerty's.
Indeed, thank you Norman Lear
All my sympathy for John.
In 2024 CCR was the biggest selling rock band in the world. That is pretty impressive.
I remember a documentary decades ago of music being stolen from the writers. Some of it concerned Chuck Berry who allegedly said some of his songs had credits of music executives who had nothing to do with his songs but had pull.
Isn't it something when Col. Tom Parker appearred to be relatively honest?
Without John there wouldn't be any CCR.🤑🤑🤑
Original fan of John Fogerty's music, and am glad he achieved a big victory of owning much of his catalogue. The sad thing is, music industry greed. Just because one has the experience and deep pockets to take advantage of an artist; does that mean they should. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that the music industry was acting on sheer greed in this case; and had they chosen to treat Fogerty fair; instead of fleece him; they still would have made out like bandits.
He still goes down as a greatest songwriter and singer. His art was on another level. Cheers
Greatest american song writer, love you John.
Best of the best.✌️🖖 live on John.
The other CCR band members knew they were nothing without John and plotted with the record label to cheat him out of his music including his brother, so glad John got his music back. CCR continues to tour today because they got the rights to the band name. Max Carl has been the singer for years and is a great singer who some of you may remember was in 38 Special he wrote The Heart Needs A Second Chance. CCR will never be CCR without John.
Thank you JOHN !!!!
Why the AI voice? Incredibly distracting. Use a real voice, it isn't that difficult.
Unfortunately this is what we’re gonna have to put up with
Onr key to his success was all the songs were incredibly simple musically. Every garage band could play their music easily. Those covers spread John's writing everywhere. The songs were payable by near beginners on guitar. His work was genius.
His own brother stabbed him in the back by joining with the otter two members to form an evil trio of traitors to sell their souls to the Devil Zaentz!
But, he got even with them when the Rock N Roll HOF inducted CCR and he refused to play with them.
He brought his own group of fellow musicians and played with them instead; thus leaving Cook & Clifford high and dry on the sidelines with egg in their faces!
Or just maybe. John Fogerty played right into Zaentz hands by signing idiotic contracts. Then spent decades blaming his brother and band mates for his GIGANTIC MISTAKES. To cover his own ignorance and arrogance. There are always two sides to every story.
@@dadeo8957 Gee... gigantic mistake... trusting the wrong people. How stupid could you be? Ask Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Elvis, Mike Nesmith, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Billy Joel... pretty much every musician who you've ever heard of... and many you haven't.
Fogerty wrote every hit Creedence had and saw none of it for 50 years. Mr Zaentz, however, used Fogerty's royalties to bankroll films that became Oscar winners. Fogerty saw none of that either. Keep your dark opinions to yourself.
No @@dadeo8957
@@dadeo8957You don’t know what you’re talking, about! They all signed the contract, not just, John! They all trusted Saul Zaentz! He was like a “father” figure to them! There were lots of promises made that never, materialized! Zaentz promised to rip up the contract if they were successful. Were they successfully? I will let you answer that one, Einstein!
@ OK. Either you are John Fogerty or one of the surviving members of CCR. Or you were invited to witness the actual signing of the contract between the two parties. Or you are some type of corporate attorney specializing in the late 1960s music industries contracts. Or you are most likely just an imbecile that thinks you know what you’re talking about. Have someone read a book to every now and then. Genius.
When the notorious Allen Klein told Fogerty it was a bad contract that even HE couldn’t help John… you know it was BAD!
Why was the original advisor/counsel not named? Usually the loser in civil litigation pays the winner's costs. Why was the music industry different?
@@howardsimpson489 I'm guessing you are not in the USA, where "loser pays costs" is not generally the rule, though the judge will sometimes order it.
My dear friend and godfather to my son, Bob Krogstadt wrote, orchestrated, conducted and produced a tremendous amount of music during his life. His beginnings in Christian religious music opened many doors. He did all these tasks on twenty Hallmark Christmas Cd’s. These featured many top recording stars of the time. He created the duet of Nat and Natalie Cole for one of them. Then he was courted by Disney. It began with many of the soundtracks that you hear at all the parks. Then he was asked to write, compose, orchestrate, conduct and mix the soundtrack for Frozen. Sadly, he passed away as the movie was released. Credit for the score was given to two guys I never heard of.
I had told Bob that I wanted a sheet of his hand written music but over the years we never got around to the exchange. When he died I wanted to find a sheet of his music. Eventually I tracked down a music broker of middle eastern descent who had purchased the materials and rights to Bob’s music. I explained but he refused to sell me just one sheet.
Can you believe that there are “businessmen” out there who buy music royalties as a profession. Even though Bob was the next John Williams he was just becoming well known in the industry. His catalogues are still sold to hundreds of church music directors and a royalty is paid when his creations like the Hallmark songs are played through the holidays. It may not be enough to live off of but when you “own” the work (lives) of 10,000 artists it adds up. Never delay something that you believe strongly in.God bless you Bob. Keep the angels in tune and on time.
Ask Sir Paul McCartney about owning other musician's music rights...
@ did he get any back after MJ died?
Loved all the images of Kustom tuck and roll upholstered amps!
So without John Fogerty Ed Sheerhan might be broke. Thank u John. For saving creative musicians
I saw them in a bar in 1970-72 era. Never knew that he had to fight with industry giants. I'm glad those giants lost their fight with John Fogerty. His talents and determination paid off in the end.
Well done, John good on ya
I was booking bands back in the late 1960s. I booked bands in a small club in Davis, California. On the wall was a picture of a band called the Golliwogs. I said to the owner that looks like CCR. "Yep, they played here when they were the Golliwogs". Lots of history of CCR in the Sacramento area, such as "Stuck in Lodi", reference playing at the Cherokee Lanes Bowling Alley.
I worked on the tech side of the music industry for 10 years and I can tell you it is such a shitshow that it's incredible that anyone can make a living from it. The early days of exploitive contracts praying on the desperation of talented people really set the stage for the craziness this video goes into. For every success story like Fogerty's there are 100s (maybe 1000s) of others who have been screwed out of their creative output by a dysfunctional industry. Good on JF for having the guts to stand up for what is rightfully his.
Dealing with a guy named Saul explains it all.
Better cal Saul 😂
There's a reason for stereotypes
No kidding he’ll rot in hell
WTF
@@a34rwl Because there's truth in all stereotypes
About a year ago at 40 I learned that CCR was from Berkley California and not Louisiana.
Yeah, the "swamp music" style and all the bayou stuff was about Louisiana, but CCR were inspired by exploring the delta of the Sacramento River as it empties into San Francisco Bay.
I have always love CCR i got my teen kids hooked and their friends ,then my grandkids and now my great grands!
He is a one of a kind, great
Always respected JF's musical skills and abilities but hearing this story just elevated him into legendary status for me. the contrast between the creative genius of JF and the sinister motives of the record company is a stark lesson regarding the dual nature of our world. I chose the path of creation.
Just look at the Mega hits John fogerty wrote .. but his 3 band members got jealous of him which destroyed the existence of the band and break up
The break up really happened do to a feud with his brother.
It also happened because the other members wanted to write song material which later proved to be a failure..which goes to show the dumb asses.. if it ain’t broke.. then don’t fix it
You've swallowed the oh poor me, everyone else is evil Fogerty koolaid. Obstinacy is a curse
The main evil thing was Saul Zeants the ceo from Fantasy Records. He killed this band with an absurd contract. By the way John was also the manager of the band, he saw this not coming. Look on wikipedia for the artist: Vince Guaraldi also had a contract with Fantasy, you get a little idea how it worked.
Oh well Saul.. you were trusted and look what you done.. you made millions off of John’s songs but now the songs are back where they belong to the rightful owner and soul composer..Saul what a wasted Life you lived.. and now you’ll die one day.. you can’t take all of those ill gotten millions with you to Hell
One of the best acts at Woodstock. Hands down.
I was at his concert in Atlanta in 1998 (I think) and he was singing Creedence songs.
Speaking as a 69 year old CCR is definitely one of my favourite bands. Fogerty is a legend. And how good was the album "Blue Ridge Rangers"?
They instilled a rhythm in my brain that never faded...boom boom bap boom boom bap boom boom bap boom boom bap
I was a kid during CCR. I used to have nightmares from some of Fogerty's screaming. It was great! Still is. Glad this rock music giant finally enjoys his own success after so many decades. Of screaming good rock songs.
Thank you John I’ve loved your music for as long as you have been making it. Keep On Trucking
Wow! I've learnt so much from this video. THANK YOU! John Fogerty is a real hero for all musicians.
I was 13 in 1970 and remember everybody with an 8 track in their car or had a record player at home all had CCR ALBUMS as popular as the Beatles most would agree.
John folgertys songs were songs that people loved and could relate to plus the music was like no others...they were so unique the first few seconds of a song on the radio you knew it was JF and CCR
NEVER GONNA BE ANOTHER GREAT BAND LIKE CCR.❤️❤️
Fogartys problem was trusting Stu, John gave Stu the contract before signing it, Stu’s father was an attorney who Stu gave the contract to look over. Weather or not he did, Stu said to go ahead and sign it….the rest is history, and the reason when Creedence was inducted into the Hall of Fame, he refused to play with his original band, put played with his traveling band! God Bless John Fogerty for his endurance and patience and wonderful wife that got him back into doing what he does best! CCR will be played long after he and his generation (mine too) have turned to dust!
It's FOGERTY.
@ my mistake, fingers moving faster than brain! Thank you!👍
Love ya John, thanks for the music my friend
This video was really great but 7 minutes too long. I was so lucky to see it. Thanks for putting this together. Mr Fogerty also plays on UA-cam with his family which is so cool to watch.
So many groups got screwed over the years. The music industry got rich and the groups got poor.
Despite the popularity of CCR songs at the time, they never had a #1 song on the Billboard charts. Five of their singles only got as far as #2 on the charts. An unusual distinction to say the least.
Their music may have been too simple as it became boring quickly.
I went to that High School in 1966..saw a weird band called the Warlocks play a high school dance...
Well, they're Dead to us now...
😉
there are those who lay down and die....and those like me, who will never........rock on John.....