Stu Cook and Doug “Cosmo” Clifford may not have intended it, but their band Creedence
Clearwater Revisited has taken on a startling life of its own. The Rock and Roll
Hall of Fame rhythm section (bass and drums respectively) from the legendary Creedence
Clearwater Revival launched the Revisited project in 1995 to play live Creedence
Clearwater Revival hits - touchstones of a generation. Though the pair initially
planned to play private parties, Revisited is now performing up to 100 shows a year
at venues like the Greek Theater in Los Angeles and has announced the release of
a double live album, RECOLLECTION.
“We never really had any intention of playing in the public,” says Cook, “but a
friend wanted to promote a couple of concerts. We got talked into it but didn’t
know how it would go over.”
The reaction to those shows was astoundingly positive, Cook observed, and driven
in part by a generation of kids “who weren’t even born when the music came out.”
Likewise, the release of RECOLLECTION - a 22- track double CD on Universal's Hip-O
Records label, which features passionate, authoritative versions of classic Creedence
Clearwater Revival hits - was the result of public demand. “It was generated by
requests of the people who came to the shows, “Clifford acknowledges. “Over and
over they would go to the concession stand and ask ‘Do you guys have a CD?’” Having
now performed all over North America, Europe and Asia knocking out crowds who have
missed the experience Creedence Clearwater Revival members performing the songs
that are still repeatedly played on the radio and are a staple in films, Creedence
Clearwater Revisited has come a long way.
“We thought if we could find the musicians that could capture the sound and recreate
what the music was about, we’d do it,” recalls Cook. “If we couldn’t we wouldn’t.
”But they found the musicians, one in particular, in a surprising place. “Every
interview we do, people say ‘Well isn’t this a weird combo’”, says Cook referring
to Revisited lead guitarist Elliot Easton. Though Easton gained famed playing lead
guitar in the cool detached New Wave band The Cars, “his guitar had the bluesy rock
feel,” Cook says, “In fact, Elliot has the same musical roots and grew up in the
same stuff we did.” Cook and Clifford also found a lead singer, John Tristao, with
the energy to power the songs. The group is rounded out by talented multi-instrumentalist
Steve Gunner.
“I couldn’t imagine [the band] coming together and staying together better than
this organization,” offers Cook who likens Revisited’s intraband rapport to that
of early Creedence Clearwater Revival, when the band was slugging it out in Central
California as the Golliwogs.
RECOLLECTION captures that sense of teamwork and joy. Vigorous and agile takes in
classics like “Susie Q,” “Born on the Bayou,” “Run Through The Jungle,” “Bad Moon
Raising,” “Fortunate Son” and “Who’ll Stop the Rain,” RECOLLECTION is clearly the
work of a tight, muscular band that brings authenticity and authority to the Classics
Rock standards. RECOLLECTION celebrates the music that earned a three-decade long
following that continues to grow. Creedence Clearwater Revival Albums are among
the best selling catalogs of the rock era.
Creedence Clearwater Revival’s distinctive rock captured the imagination of the
pop world - the songs made great three minute radio gems - and the more politicized
subculture, and the successfully bridged the gap between the underground and mainstream
audiences. Writer Greil Marcus wrote that “rarely in rock and roll history has there
been so close a relation between creative achievement and audience response. ”Creedence
Clearwater Revisited’s RECOLLECTION adds a new chapter to that legacy with the vibrant
American spirit and exhilarating energy inherent in the songs. “People don’t want
to be involved in an endless debate,” Clifford sums up about the Creedence Clearwater
Revival break-up. “They want to hear music. Creedence Clearwater Revisited is an
experience they’re not going to get anywhere else.
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