My Gen X Playlist: Fortunate Son – Creedence Clearwater Revival

My uncle lives in Northern California and we see him once every few years. When he was down visiting last time, we got to chatting about his military service. Growing up, I remembered seeing a picture of him in uniform. I’d never thought to ask him about it until now.

I was curious to know what it was like to be drafted into the Vietnam war. He didn’t know. It turns out he enlisted instead. That took me by surprise. Why would he do that?

By enlisting, he was able to decide which military branch to join and also a possible chance he might have some say of what job assignment he received. He ultimately was stationed in Vietnam and served in the communications corps. Fortunately, he was away from the front line and even reenlisted to serve a second tour of duty. Even though I’d seen his picture in uniform at my grandparent’s house, I never connected him as a veteran. I’m not sure why. I definitely see him in a different light now. I’m thinking about him today on Veterans Day.

When I think of Vietnam era music, I think of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s Fortunate Son. Apparently, John Fogerty had a similar idea as my uncle.

This is an antiestablishment song of defiance and blue-collar pride, both anti-Washington and against the Vietnam War. John Fogerty and Doug Clifford both enlisted in the Army Reserves in 1966 (to avoid being drafted and shipped to Vietnam) and were discharged in 1968 after serving their military commitments. “The song speaks more to the unfairness of class than war itself,” Fogerty said. “It’s the old saying about rich men making war and poor men having to fight them.”

Songfacts

I don’t have a deep connection to CCR, they were a little before my time. I always liked this song, though. It’s difficult not to get swept away with its energy.

I’ve often wondered what Creedence Clearwater Revival meant. The name itself has a vibe I can’t quite articulate. Maybe I just like the alliteration and the dramatic stamping as a revival on the back end. I was curious enough to look it up and this is what I found.

So where did the name Creedence Clearwater Revival come from? Was there a preliminary Creedence Clearwater that was then revived?

The earliest version of the band actually started in the late 1950s as the Blue Velvets . . .

In 1964, they signed a contract with Fantasy Records, who renamed them the Golliwogs and attempted to model them after English bands driving the British Invasion, with little success.

In 1967, the band renamed themselves Creedence Clearwater Revival, a name inspired . . . by three different sources. “Creedence” came from an acquaintance of the band, a man named Creedence Newball. “Clearwater” came from a beer commercial, and “Revival” apparently “signified a rebooting of their youthful ambitions and a return to ’50s rock’n’roll values.”

Grunge

Not what I expected, but interesting nonetheless. Thank goodness they were able to change their name after the record company drafted them into the Golliwogs. Not only does the name suck, I looked it up, it’s offensive, too. Who would want to be stuck with that? There’s something to be said about personal choice, even if it’s a mishmash of three unrelated words. But then again, are they really unrelated? A buddy, a beer and rock and roll. It actually sounds pretty good to me.

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For a complete playlist, please click here.

For the Spotify playlist, please click here.

Some folks are born made to wave the flag
Ooh, they're red, white and blue
And when the band plays "Hail To The Chief"
Ooh, they point the cannon at you, Lord

It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no senator's son, son
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, no

Some folks are born silver spoon in hand
Lord, don't they help themselves, oh
But when the taxman come to the door
Lord, the house lookin' like a rummage sale, yeah

It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no millionaire's son, no, no
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, no

Yeah!
Some folks inherit star-spangled eyes
Ooh, they send you down to war, Lord
And when you ask 'em, "How much should we give?"
Ooh, they only answer, "More! More! More!" Yo

It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no military son, son
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, one

It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no fortunate one, no no no
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no fortunate son, no no no
It ain't me, it ain't me