Review by Shawn Perry
If you want to talk about John Fogerty, you need to talk about his songs. That’s what he did in between playing them when he performed before a packed amphitheater in Franklin, just south of Nashville.
It was a “Celebration” of those classic hit songs John Fogerty wrote and recorded, the bulk with Creedence Clearwater Revival, and a few solo gems, too. He and his band, which includes his two sons, Shane and Tyler, on guitar, ran through the songbook and pulled out the best of the best.
Shane and Tyler Fogerty pulled double-duty tonight as both members of opener Hearty Har and their dad’s band. To their credit, they cranked through without breaking a sweat (considering the warm evening temperatures, that’s really saying something). The six-piece group’s half-hour set was a blissful ramble of psychedelic-fused garage rock, filled with songs from their 2021 album, Radio Astro. You could certainly pick up on the subtle inflections of their dad, along with a slew of other influences.
A blast through a range of 60s incidental music later, the lights finally fell on the embedded amphitheater and a short montage of classic Fogerty/CCR footage segued right into “Bad Moon Rising.”
There were any number of landscapes and environments shared on the backdrop — be it a moon-lit night, a rollicking river (“Green River”), swamp land (“Born On The Bayou”), the jungle (“Run Through The Jungle”), the road (“The Old Man Down The Road”), and plenty of rain (“Who’ll Stop the Rain” and “Have You Ever Seen the Rain?”).
Fogerty was only too happy to be playing these songs now that they’re “home where they belong,” as he has said. Anyone following the singer’s story knows that for years, long-running disputes with his former record company prevented him from actually performing his own songs in concert. After years of legal wrangling, he finally won his royalties. And thanks to his wife Julie, he now owns the global rights and publishing. “I’m playing songs I now own,” he announced to the FirstBank crowd.
Even more impressive is how well Fogerty can still sing and play guitar on these songs. Together with his five-piece band, the 78-year-old Rock And Roll Hall of Famer delivered a rousing 19-song set.
While the hits kept coming, there were a couple pleasant detours as well. Fogerty and his son Shane duetting on “Effigy,” a deep Creedence Clearwater Revival track, was a major treat for longtime fans. The singer also paid tribute to his wife with “Joy Of My Life.” A film montage of their life together accompanied the song, and featured footage from their wedding, vacations, raising their kids, and living, what appears to be, a peaceful and happy existence.
Saxophonist Rob Stone turned up to blast a solo on Fogerty’s 1985 “Rock And Roll Girls,” as well as on “Joy Of My Life” and during the encore. The guitar interplay among the three Fogertys really came to a fore during the extended jam passage of “Keep On Chooglin’.” Speaking of guitars, Fogerty broke out his baseball bat guitar for “Centerfield” and provided the expected grand slam.
For the encore, John Fogerty and his band filled champagne glasses and toasted the crowd. “You didn’t think we were finished, did you?” he asked before launching into a sizzling “Travelin’ Band.” That left perhaps his biggest, most well-known song, “Proud Mary.” FirstBank lit up with red, white and blue as those familiar notes rang out. The warm air became electric as cell phone flashlights winked in response. Nothing could be more appropriate in a place where rolling on the river is a way of life.
