Introduction
As a CCR fan, I was excited to see John Fogerty play live in Toronto. Creedence Clearwater Revival was one of the biggest bands in the world during their heyday, and they still have millions of fans around the globe. There’s something about that sound that has endured over time: driving rhythms, catchy choruses and lyrics that speak truth to power. Although he hasn’t released anything new since 2005’s The Long Road Home (a collection of songs that date back as far as 2001), John Fogerty is still touring and playing with his bandmates from back in the day. If you love classic rock & roll music then this show is definitely worth checking out!
John Fogerty
John Fogerty is an American musician and singer-songwriter. He is best known for his work as lead singer, songwriter and guitarist for Creedence Clearwater Revival, which he led with his brother Tom Fogerty (1946–1990).
Fogerty was born in Berkeley, California in 1945 to parents who had moved from South Carolina to California’s Bay Area during World War II. The family returned there after the war when John was two years old; they lived on Bancroft Way until moving to El Cerrito where they stayed until he graduated high school in 1963 at El Cerrito High School where he had also played baseball and basketball as well as football until suffering a career ending injury during his junior year that later inspired some songs such as “Deacon Blues”.
June 19, 2019
On June 19, 2019, John Fogerty played the first night of a three-night stand at Budweiser Stage in Toronto. The show sold out quickly, but fortunately I was able to get tickets from an online ticket exchange site (look up SeatGeek).
The Silver Bullet Band opened for John Fogerty and they were fantastic! They played a bunch of Creedence Clearwater Revival songs including “Born On The Bayou” and “Green River”. They also did some cover songs like “Respect” by Aretha Franklin and Chuck Berry’s “Maybellene”. Their set ended with a cover of Tom Petty’s “Free Falling”.
After The Silver Bullet Band finished their set Bob Seger took the stage next. He played most of his greatest hits including “Night Moves”, “Against The Wind” and “Turn The Page”.
Budweiser Stage, Toronto
The venue is Budweiser Stage, located in Toronto, Ontario. It’s a large outdoor venue with a capacity of about 20,000 people who are primarily there to see music acts.
The stage is very low to the ground and there are multiple bars around it for people to hang out at before and after shows take place. The lighting rig is quite tall and has several different kinds of lights attached to it which can be used during performances in order to enhance the experience for audience members watching from afar as well as those standing right up against stage barriers where they’re close enough that they can reach out touch performers if they wanted too!
Bob Seger
Bob Seger is an American rock singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. His hits include “Night Moves”, “Against the Wind”, “You’ll Accomp’ny Me”, “Shame on the Moon”, and “Like a Rock”.
Seger’s songs have been covered by other musicians including The Isley Brothers (as “That Lady”), Aerosmith (as “Honey Don’t Leave L.A.”), and Lynyrd Skynyrd (“Get Out of Denver”). In 2004, his song “Old Time Rock & Roll” was ranked number 76 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 greatest songs of all time.
In 2008, Seger was inducted into both the Michigan Rock & Roll Legends Hall of Fame as well as the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
The Silver Bullet Band
The Silver Bullet Band is a band that has been with John Fogerty for over 20 years. The band is made up of some of the best musicians in the business and have played on all of his solo albums since 1993. They are a big part of the sound of his music and not only play onstage with him, but also write songs that Fogerty performs live.
Night Moves
The song “Night Moves” was released in 1975 and charted on the Billboard Hot 100 at #3. It was also featured on Fogerty’s third album, “Willy and the Poor Boys,” which reached #1 on Billboard’s Country Albums chart.
The song tells a story about a drifter who has had many hard times in his life. The chorus sings:
“There’s something that I’ve left behind me/I’m leaving out for sure this time/And I hope when it catches up with me/I’ll be somewhere else besides here.”
Mainstreet
The amount of people who know the words to this song will surprise you. The first time I saw John Fogerty play it live, there were more people singing along than any other tune he performed. It’s infectious, and it’s hard not to sing along with a song that has such a great chorus.
Fogerty wrote Mainstreet as the first single from his 1985 album Centerfield (the title track was actually released after Mainstreet). The song peaked at number one on both the Billboard Hot 100 chart and the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, becoming Fogerty’s first hit since “Rockin’ All Over The World” in 1977.
Her Strut
If you’re looking for a song to get your blood pumping, look no further. This is the one. John Fogerty’s “Her Strut” is an upbeat rock song that will make you want to dance and sing along. It’s a classic CCR tune, which means it has great rhythm and guitar riffs that are easy on your ears but still manage to be powerful. The lyrics are cautionary in nature: they warn people about picking up strangers who try to act like friends or lovers—but not before offering some advice about how you can spot such people (i.e., if they’re making their moves at night).
Hollywood Nights
John Fogerty
Hollywood Nights
Centerfield
1984
John Fogerty, David Paich and Joe Williams (producers)
John Fogerty was in fine form at a show that featured hits from both Creedence Clearwater Revival and his solo career.
John Fogerty was in fine form at a show that featured hits from both Creedence Clearwater Revival and his solo career. The setlist was well-paced, jumping from the upbeat “Rock & Roll Girls” to the slower “Long As I Can See The Light,” with the songs building naturally into one another to keep things interesting for the audience of about 6,000 people. Fogerty’s voice sounded great throughout all of his performances, even as he sang through some difficult notes on “You Don’t Owe Me Anything” from Wrote A Song For Everyone (2012), an album that featured contributions from several other big-name artists including Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl and Brad Paisley.
The crowd was enthusiastic throughout, singing along with many of the songs (“Ramble Tamble,” “Down On The Corner”). Even though there were plenty of younger people at this concert, who may not have been alive when CCR’s music first came out, they still seemed to appreciate it just as much as those who were around back then did!
Conclusion
John Fogerty was in fine form at a show that featured hits from both Creedence Clearwater Revival and his solo career. The band was solid, and the crowd was energetic as they sang along to songs like “Down On The Corner” and “Born On The Bayou.” This was also the first time I have ever seen Bob Seger perform live and he certainly did not disappoint! If you didn’t get a chance to see John Fogerty on this tour then maybe next time around will be better for you.
The Setlist is down below and don’t forget to leave a comment 🙂
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I’m Drew, the founder and editor of Front of the Stage. I have a strong love for music and photography, which started at a very young age. There’s just something I love about experiencing live music and capturing memories that will last a lifetime, and that’s how Front of the Stage came to be.
