Music Blog

How Green Was My River

Nancy's Notes 🖊️🎶

Today’s theme at Song Lyric Sunday is all about songs
that reached #2 on the charts but never got to #1.
Be sure to stop by and read Jim’s post, “Fell Short“.

On November 21, 1968, I had the pleasure of seeing the debut performance of Creedence Clearwater Revival at the Fillmore East in NYC; I was actually there for the headliners, Deep Purple, but that’s another story. This post is all about CCR.

Here’s one indisputable fact: Creedence Clearwater Revival was one of the biggest commercial successes of the late 1960s and early ’70s. During a time when psychedelic rock, R&B, Motown soul, funk and metal were all on the rise, CCR’s unique blend of driving ’50s-style R&R and classic Americana imagery made them one of the biggest standouts of the era. With John Fogerty’s singular voice and songwriting skill, CCR was in a league all its own, and audiences on both sides of the Atlantic responded by making them a huge draw for albums, singles, and live performances.

Here’s another indisputable fact: Creedence Clearwater Revival has had the most #2 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 without ever having a #1 hit. Somehow, the band that defined their generation wasn’t able to ever sit atop the singles mountain. If nothing else, CCR’s lack of #1 singles is a testament to how fickle the Hot 100 chart can be and how lucky an artist has to be in order to score a #1 hit. Month after month for years on end, CCR would throw classic song after classic song out into the world, scoring nine top ten hits and five #2 singles without ever cracking the top of the chart.

The lack of a #1 hit never seemed to affect the band’s popularity, however, as they landed two #1 albums with Green River and Cosmo’s Factory. The band continued to sell out large venues as a live act, and its last top 10 hit ‘Sweet Hitch-Hiker’ came even as the band was falling apart. No one could say that CCR wasn’t popular enough to get a #1 song, but for whatever reason, they could never quite scale the mountain.

After Proud Mary and Bad Moon Rising stalled out at #2, John Fogerty believed he had the perfect answer: the title track to the band’s upcoming album Green River. But while the album went all the way to #1, the song “Green River” once again got stuck at #2.

To add insult to injury, CCR was beaten out at #1 by a group that wasn’t even a real band! The Archies were based on the characters from the Archie Comics series, which had its own cartoon series on CBS at the time. Manager Don Kirshner originally created The Monkees but was frustrated that the members began taking control of the project. Cartoons couldn’t talk back so Kirshner got session musicians and songwriters to fill in the rest. Just in case you’re wondering, The Monkees have three #1 hits with ‘I’m A Believer’, ‘Last Train To Clarksville’, and ‘Daydream Believer’.

FYI – the remaining two CCR songs that stalled at #2 were both double-A sides: “Travelin’ Band/Who’ll Stop The Rain” and “Lookin’ Out My Back Door/Long As I Can See The Light”. They were beat out by Simon & Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Waters” and Marvin Gaye/Tammi Terrell’s “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”, respectively.

From July 1969 this is Credence Clearwater Revival with “Green River’ from the album of the same name.

LYRICS

Well, take me back down where cool water flows, y’all

Oh, let me remember things I love

Stoppin’ at the log where catfish bite

Walkin’ along the river road at night

Barefoot girls dancin’ in the moonlight

I can hear the bullfrog callin’ me, oh

Wonder if my rope’s still hangin’ to the tree

Love to kick my feet way down the shallow water

Shoo fly, dragon fly, get back to your mother

Pick up a flat rock, skip it across Green River

Well

Up at Cody’s camp I spent my days, Lord

With flat car riders and cross-tie walkers

Old Cody Junior took me over

Said, “You’re gonna find the world is smoldering

And if you get lost, come on home to Green River”

Well

Come on home

WRITERS: John Cameron Fogerty
PUBLISHERS: Lyrics Š CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC

Although the band members were only together for four years, they managed to accomplish more than many artists do in their entire career – releasing seven studio albums (five of which were on the Billboard Top Ten), and a seemingly endless string of memorable singles (including nine Top Ten hits). The group also performed a historic headlining set at Woodstock and toured the world before disbanding in 1972.  In 1993 they were inducted into the R&R Hall of Fame. CCR’s music endures today, on the radio and regularly in films and TV shows. Having sold over 30 million albums in the US alone, Creedence received a rare Diamond certification from the RIAA in 2016, marking 10 million units in sales for their 1976 compilation album, Chronicle: The 20 Greatest Hits.

Big thanks to Jim for hosting another great Song Lyric Sunday.

Fell Short

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my posts here on Song Lyric Sunday.

See you on the flip side. 😎

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33 thoughts on “How Green Was My River”

    1. Times were different then, KK. Ticket prices for concerts were much cheaper and we could go more frequently. Also there were multiple performers at most concerts, especially for the great Fillmore East where we “cut our teeth” going to live gigs. It was a great time and I’m fortunate to have been a part of it.

      Thank you so much!

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      Reply

      1. You’re welcome, Nancy. And you’re there was a time when we used to see the first show of a movie on the first day itself. I think today’s youth miss such thrills.

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  3. As a bubblegum fan I have to say something in defense of The Archies! 🙂 The cartoon might not have been a real band, but the session musicians (who were pretty good) were and the music was. Ron Dante has had a pretty good career and is still going strong today. Long live bubblegum! 🙂

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      1. 😲😲😲

        Noooooo! Much as I like CCR – and I do have a couple of LPs – I think the Status Quo version is one of the few ‘covers’ that better the original.

        (And just to upset you more, another is Lulu’s version of David Bowie’s ‘Man Who Sold The World.) 😂😂😂

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  11. One of a whole host of great songs by a great band, whose music still sounds vibrant today. They did manage a #1 here in the UK, though, with Bad Moon Rising. I think they were robbed over there!

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    1. Being stalled by Simon & Garfunkel’s brilliant song is understandable but The Archies? That is the biggest and cruelest joke of all! We call that highway robbery!

      I didn’t know they reach #1 in the UK. That must minimally ease the sting of consistently being an also-ran.

      Thanks, Clive.

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      1. That has happened here many times. I blame kids and their pocket money!

        They were popular here, though that was their only #1. I’m guessing that a US #2 sold a lot more than a UK #1 so their bank balances would have been some comfort to them 🤣

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