Bad Moon Rising (song)
| "Bad Moon Rising" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Creedence Clearwater Revival | ||||
| from the album Green River | ||||
| B-side | "Lodi" | |||
| Released | April 1969 | |||
| Format | 7" 45 RPM | |||
| Recorded | March 1969, Wally Heider's Studio, San Francisco, California | |||
| Genre | Roots rock, swamp rock | |||
| Length | 2:21 | |||
| Label | Fantasy | |||
| Writer(s) | John Fogerty | |||
| Producer | John Fogerty | |||
| Creedence Clearwater Revival singles chronology | ||||
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"Bad Moon Rising" is a song written by John Fogerty and performed by Creedence Clearwater Revival. It was the lead single from their album Green River and was released in April 1969, four months before the album. The song reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart for three weeks in September 1969 (see 1969 in music). It was CCR's second gold single.[1]
The song has been recorded by at least 20 different artists, in styles ranging from folk to reggae to psychedelic rock.
In 2011, Rolling Stone ranked it #364 on its "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" list.
Contents |
Composition [edit]
Fogerty reportedly wrote "Bad Moon Rising" after watching The Devil and Daniel Webster. Inspired by a scene in the film involving a hurricane, Fogerty claims the song is about "the apocalypse that was going to be visited upon us."[2]
Mondegreen [edit]
The refrain in the chorus, "there's a bad moon on the rise," is commonly misheard as "there's a bathroom on the right". Fogerty has parodied the mishearing in live performances of the song.[3]
Cover versions [edit]
Jerry Lee Lewis released a version of the song on his 1973 album, The Session.[4] Fogerty and Lewis recorded a version together that was released on Lewis' 2010 album, Mean Old Man.[5] Emmylou Harris released a version of the song on her 1981 album, Evangeline.[6] A 1986 version by the Australian band the Reels reached number 11 on the Australian charts.[7] The Scottish traditional group Battlefield Band recorded a version for their 1987 album After Hours: Forward to Scotland's Past.
Soundtrack [edit]
The song has been used in a number of films, including An American Werewolf in London, My Fellow Americans, Twilight Zone: The Movie, Blade, Sweet Home Alabama, My Girl, Man of the House, Mr. Woodcock, and The Big Chill.
It has also appeared in many television programs, including Supernatural, Cold Case, Northern Exposure, and Alvin and the Chipmunks, in which it is performed by the titular characters.
A remixed version of the song can be heard in the video game Crackdown 2.
The song was available as a playable song for Guitar Hero 5 series of music rhythm video games as downloadable content.
Rock Band Music Gaming Platform [edit]
The song was made available to download on March 1, 2011 for use in the Rock Band 3 music gaming platform in both Basic rhythm, and PRO mode which takes advantage of the use of a real guitar / bass guitar, along with standard MIDI-compatible electronic drum kits / keyboards in addition to three-part harmony vocals. [8][9]
"Lodi" [edit]
"Lodi" was recorded in March 1969. Also written by the band's frontman, John Fogerty, it was released as the B-side of "Bad Moon Rising". The track also appeared on Green River.[10]
The song describes the plight of a down-and-out musician whose career has landed him playing a gig in the small town of Lodi (pronounced "low-die"), a small agricultural city in the Central Valley about 70 miles from John Fogerty's hometown of Berkeley. After playing in local bars, the narrator finds himself stranded and unable to raise bus or train fare to leave.[10] Fogerty later said he had never actually visited Lodi before writing this song, and simply picked it for the song because it had "the coolest sounding name."[11] However, the song unquestionably references the town's reputation as an uninteresting farm settlement, although the narrator does not mention any specific complaints about Lodi. The song's chorus, "Oh Lord, stuck in Lodi again," has been the theme of several city events in Lodi.[citation needed]
The song's arrangement includes a change of key in the final verse of the track, emphasising the melancholy drama of the lyric, "If I only had a dollar for every song I sung...."[10]
Cover versions [edit]
The song has been covered by many musicians including Emmylou Harris, Tom Jones, Bo Diddley, Buck Owens, The Flying Burrito Brothers, Ronnie Hawkins, Smokie, Dan Penn and The Blue Aeroplanes amongst others.[12] Since 2013, supporters of Boca Juniors, River Plate, Independiente, San Lorenzo and another football clubs in Argentina (as well as the political movement "La Cámpora") use the rhythm of "Bad Moon Rising" in orden to cheer their teams.[13]
Songwriter's assessment [edit]
Fogerty stated "On "Lodi", I saw a much older person than I was, 'cause it is sort of a tragic telling. A guy is stuck in a place where people really don't appreciate him. Since I was at the beginning of a good career, I was hoping that that wouldn't happen to me."[14]
References [edit]
- ^ Chronicle, Vol. 1 Liner Notes
- ^ Michael Goldberg (1993). "Fortunate Son: John Fogerty - The 1993 Rolling Stone Interview". In Jann S. Wenner. Rolling Stone (United States: Jann S. Wenner). Retrieved January 24, 2011.
- ^ CCR/John Fogerty FAQ. This can be heard on his 1998 live album Premonition.
- ^ Jerry Lee Lewis, The Session Retrieved April 7, 2012.
- ^ Jerry Lee Lewis, Mean Old Man Retrieved April 7, 2012.
- ^ Emmylou Harris, Evangeline Retrieve April 7, 2012.
- ^ McFarlane, Ian. "The Reels". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop. Archived from the original
|archiveurl=requires|url=(help) on June 15, 2004. Retrieved March 7, 2013. - ^ Gaddo, Kyle (2011-02-25). "Eleven Legacy Rock Band Tracks Getting PRO Upgrades March 1st". DualShockers. Retrieved 2012-11-09.
- ^ Snider, Mike (2010-06-10). "Rock Band 3: What's New, What's Notable". USA Today. Retrieved 2012-11-08.
- ^ a b c Janovitz, Bill. "Lodi". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-11-21.
- ^ Farrow, Ross. "Residents are proud to be ‘Stuck in Lodi’". Lodi News-Sentinel. Archived from the original on 2006-10-31. Retrieved 2007-06-07.
- ^ "Lodi - Search Results". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-11-21.
- ^ Youtube videos. Boca Juniors: [1]. River Plate: [2]. Independiente: [3]. San Lorenzo: [4]. La Cámpora: [5]
- ^ "Fogerty's Guide to Creedence Clearwater Revival". Johnfogerty.com. Retrieved 2012-11-21.
| Preceded by "In the Year 2525" by Zager & Evans |
UK number one single September 20, 1969-October 4, 1969 |
Succeeded by "Je t'aime... moi non plus" by Jane Birkin & Serge Gainsbourg |
