Almost Saturday Night

Folks, the Zoo Crew is laying down some pure rock and roll heat right now with John Fogerty's "Almost Saturday Night," pulled straight from that 1975 album simply titled John Fogerty. This one is a real gem that captures that restless feeling when the week is winding down and the good times are just about to roll in. You hear the radio outside the window, that motor wagon ready to fly, and some good old boys heading for the rodeo, all set to the beat of a night train bringing you home. It is pure anticipation, the kind of tune that makes you want to push the clouds away and let the music steal your heart. Critics over the years have sung its praises, with AllMusic's Mark Deming calling it one of Fogerty's best and a gloriously passionate hymn to the promise of the weekend. Rolling Stone's Dave Marsh pointed out the Beatles-like guitar part and those double-tracked vocals that break the album's more predictable pattern, while Billboard tagged it as top notch rock and Record World praised the gravelly vocals and that distinct Creedence Clearwater sound. Even Cash Box noted the loose guitar strings lending a sitar-like hook to this pure rock tune from the master of simplicity. Fogerty himself has ranked this song right up there with Fortunate Son as one of his very finest, and fans have long agreed it is a cult favorite that never got the full chart love it deserved.

The single only climbed to number 78 on the Billboard Hot 100, coming after "Rockin' All Over the World" which fared better at number 27, but that modest chart showing never dimmed its shine among those who dig the rootsy, freewheeling spirit. It has been covered by a whole bunch of artists who recognized its magic, from Dave Edmunds whose rockabilly take on his Twangin album charted higher in both the US and UK, to Rick Nelson on Playing to Win, The Searchers, Gene Clark with Carla Olson, the Flying Burrito Brothers who took it into country territory, and others who keep the flame burning. Years later Fogerty revisited it on his Wrote a Song for Everyone project, teaming up with Keith Urban who brought banjo, guitar, and a blast of energy that Fogerty called the work of an incredible monster musician. Urban spoke of the magic of hearing Fogerty's voice in the headphones during the session, and Fogerty has shared that he wrote this cheerful number right in the middle of a really dark time in his life, after the Creedence years had ended amid legal battles and creative frustrations. That contrast makes it all the more special, a song of weekend freedom born out of struggle. He even put out a live version on the Premonition album, and it remains a fan favorite that gets the crowd moving whenever the Travelin' Band fires it up. For more on the man and his catalog, head over to his official website at johnfogerty.com where the discography lists that 1975 John Fogerty album right alongside the classics.

Now, talking about how John Fogerty got started takes us way back to a working-class kid in the Bay Area who was hooked on music from the start. Born John Cameron Fogerty on May 28, 1945, in Berkeley, California, he grew up in nearby El Cerrito with his mom Lucile and four brothers after his father left the family when John was young. Music was in him early; his mom used to say that when she was pregnant she went to a Beethoven concert and he kicked up a storm. As a youngster he heard Elvis Presley's "My Baby Left Me" on a jukebox during a vacation and knew right then that the guitar sound was what he wanted to chase. He scraped together paper route money and put his first guitar on layaway at Sears, with his single mother co-signing, paying it off over months until he could bring that axe home. In junior high he would sneak into the school music room after classes to play piano and pick out blues and radio hits, and that is where he crossed paths with Doug Clifford and Stu Cook. By 1959 the three of them formed the Blue Velvets, a covers band playing rock and roll inspired by Little Richard, Bo Diddley, Carl Perkins, and the early rockabilly cats. John's older brother Tom, already a guitarist, joined up soon after, and the group gigged around Northern California, even cutting a few singles.

Things evolved when they signed with Fantasy Records in the mid-sixties and the label renamed them the Golliwogs without much say from the boys. They released several singles that got some local airplay but never broke big, all while John was honing his voice by recording their sets on a reel-to-reel and studying what worked. He enlisted in the Army Reserves knowing the draft was coming, served his active duty, and came back ready to make a real go of it. In late 1967, with a new owner at Fantasy, they got the chance to pick a fresh name. Fogerty has told the story of sitting around on Christmas Eve brainstorming; Creedence came from a friend's name, Clearwater from a clean-water commercial he had seen, and Revival for the return to real rock and roll roots. Thus Creedence Clearwater Revival was born, with John stepping up as lead singer, lead guitarist, principal songwriter, arranger, and producer. Their debut album and the cover of Suzie Q started the run, and then the hits poured out: Proud Mary, Bad Moon Rising, Fortunate Son, Green River, and so many more that defined an era. The band burned bright and fast, releasing album after album until the internal tensions and business fights led to the breakup in 1972. Fogerty went on to solo work, starting with the Blue Ridge Rangers project of country and traditional covers, then this self-titled 1975 album that gave us "Almost Saturday Night" and showed he could still craft those simple, powerful rock tunes on his own.

You can follow all the latest from the man himself on his official Facebook at facebook.com/johnfogerty, Instagram at instagram.com/johnfogerty, and X at x.com/John_Fogerty, where he shares tour news, family band stories, and that ongoing celebration of reclaiming his songs after decades of fighting for the rights. For the dedicated fans there is the unofficial John Fogerty Swamp community page at facebook.com/johnfogertyswamp that has been connecting folks through the mailing list for years, plus active Creedence Clearwater Revival fan groups on Facebook where Zoo Freaks can swap stories and photos from the old days. Fogerty has always stayed true to those roots, from the flannel shirts and the Sears guitar to the bayou-inspired sound that somehow came out of Northern California, and songs like this one keep proving the fire never went out. So crank it up, Zoo Freaks, and ride that weekend wave with the rest of us right here on THE ZOO, where the deep cuts and the stories keep spinning free and commercial-free for listeners all over the world.