A band is like a family, but certain bands are really a family, with two or more members who are related. Creedence Clearwater Revival is one of those cases. John Fogerty (Vocalist and guitarist) and Tom Fogerty (Guitarist) were brothers. Due to lack of vocal and songwriting opportunity and the long-standing animosity with John, Tom Fogerty left CCR in the beginning of 1971, just after they finished the album Pendulum.
After he left the band he began his solo career, having minor hits like “Goodbye Media Man” and “Cast The First Stone”. The musician was with the same record company as Creedence, Fantasy Records. His debut solo album named Tom Fogerty reached #78 on the Billboard 200 chart.
In the second solo album Excalibur, he had Jerry Garcia (Grateful Dead) and Merl Saunders playing. Meanwhile, Creedence became a power trio. Stu Cook, Doug Clifford and John Fogerty recored the only album of the band as a trio, that was their last one, Mardi Gras.
On Tom Fogerty’s third solo album Zephyr National was a Creedence happened on “Mystic Isle Avalon”. John Fogerty played on the album, but recorded his parts separately from former CCR band members Doug Clifford and Stu Cook.
Tom Fogerty and John Fogerty cold relationship
Even though John was on Tom’s solo album, the relationship between the two remained cold soon before Tom’s death in 1990. John Fogerty said he wanted to resolve all the problems with his brother for the sake of their mother.
“Tom ended up over the years evolving mentally into some sort of weird Patti Hearst syndrome,” said John. “That’s what I call it when they kidnap you and you end up siding with your captors, and that’s what Tom did. In some trick of mental agility, he ended up befriending Saul Zaentz against me. By the end of his life Tom was saying ‘Saul is my best friend’. He even wrote me nasty letters saying things like ‘Saul and I will win’. It was very unresolved and very sad.”
Saul Zaentz was the head of Fantasy Records. John found himself bound to Fantasy as a solo artist. “I felt like I was their little prisoner in their dungeon, their little mouse in a cage that they played with. To take somebody that was at their height, like Elvis or The Beatles, and then treat them so badly is really a horrible thing.” The singer didn’t played CCR’s songs live so that he wouldn’t have to pay the record company nothing, since they “highjacked” the band’s songs written by him.
“I have very confused feelings for my brother because there was a time when things were happy. The best I can say in Tom’s case is he was the older brother and the younger brother had a lot more talent, therefore he was jealous even to a greater degree than the other two in Creedence Clearwater Revival.”
John wrote in his memoir book Fortunate Son: My Life, My Music, saying:
“I’d think about Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey, how they had a feud for years, but they reunited and their mother was so happy. I wanted to do that with Tom for our mother. So I started a dialogue. I think I wrote him a letter. We talked on the phone at least once.”
John suggested that they wrote the issues they had against each other. In that way they could work out one by one. John’s lists had eight issues. The first one was that his Tom had sued him over song ownership in 1978. But Tom denied it had happened.
Fogerty said:
“On the morning of the trial, he walked up to my attorney and said, ‘I’m not suing John any more.’ That was in 1983. But I’d already had to deal with the lawsuit since 1978. Many thousands of dollars later Tom decided to drop the lawsuit. In his mind that meant he didn’t sue me.”
“So I sent him the cover page of the filing, which said, ‘Tom Fogerty vs John Fogerty.’ I don’t think we got any further than that. Unfortunately, our mom passed away.”
After that John saw Tom sometimes before his death from AIDS-related tuberculosis.
About his brother’s death, John said:
“I was sad that life had been taken from Tom. That sadness was mixed with other emotions. But I’ve forgiven Tom. I’m not angry any more. I love my brother. I sure loved the old family days, the way we were as kids. It’s resolved, and somehow Tom knows it’s alright, wherever he is.”
FAQs
Despite their shared success and familial bond, the ongoing animosity between Tom and John Fogerty ultimately remained unresolved, leading to Tom's departure from the band in 1971. The feud between the two brothers had been simmering for years, fueled by personal animosity and creative differences.
What happened to John Fogerty's brother? ›
In 1990, Tom Fogerty died of complications from AIDS at the age of 48, survived by his second wife and six children. Tom contracted HIV from blood transfusions during surgery for a back ailment. Specifically, he died from a tuberculosis infection.
Who owns the rights to Creedence Clearwater Revival songs? ›
Following a 50-year legal battle, the founding member of Creedence Clearwater Revival now owns the global publishing rights to the iconic rock band's songs. It came after Mr Fogerty, 77, bought a majority stake in the rights to the band's catalogue from Concord Records, which has owned the rights since 2004.
Did John Fogerty see combat? ›
John Fogerty- Before his band The Golliwogs became Creedence Clearwater Revival, the singer was in the Army Reserve, serving at Fort Bragg, Fort Knox and Fort Lee during the Vietnam War. He didn't see any combat and was discharged in 1967.
Did John Fogerty serve in Vietnam? ›
John Fogerty wrote the song "Fortunate Son" in response to the Vietnam War. The Vietnam War had a deep impact on John Fogerty. Drafted into military service in 1967, he never got deployed to Vietnam but as a stocking clerk at Fort Knox the conflict was close enough for him.
How many members of Creedence Clearwater Revival are still alive today? ›
Are all the original members of Creedence Clearwater Revival still alive? Tom Fogerty died in 1990. The other three are all still alive at 76 (yes, they were all born in 1945 except the late Tom Fogerty (1941–1990).
What's John Fogerty doing now? ›
John Fogerty is currently touring across 6 countries and has 40 upcoming concerts.
Did John Fogerty get his music rights back? ›
“John Fogerty is one of music's greatest treasures. Now, finally, after decades of suffering, I'm thrilled to see John regain ownership of his music,” Azoff said in a statement. “And kudos to Concord for understanding that doing the right thing for artists is great for their business as well.”
Who ripped off CCR? ›
In addition to taking his artist royalties for decades, in 1985, Zaentz sued Fogerty for $144 million, alleging the artist's then current hit, “The Old Man Down the Road,” ripped off CCR's “Run Through the Jungle.” Even though Fogerty had written both songs, Zaentz claimed Fogerty was now plagiarizing a song Zaentz ...
What caused the demise of Creedence Clearwater Revival? ›
CCR disbanded acrimoniously in late 1972 after four years of chart-topping success. Tom Fogerty left the previous year, and John was at odds with the remaining members over matters of business and artistic control, all of which resulted in lawsuits among the former bandmates.
When Tom looked to have sided with Zaentz and Factory after a number of legal court cases, it widened the rift between the two Fogerty brothers. Later, John admitted his conflicted feelings about his relationship with Tom.
When did John Fogerty come out? ›
Fogerty has released ten studio albums between his debut album The Blue Ridge Rangers in 1973, to his most recent release, Fogerty's Factory, in 2020. He has also released 26 singles, including the Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 single, "The Old Man Down the Road".
Was John Fogerty a smoker? ›
By 1986, Fogerty laments: “I was a freight train of sorrow. I only weighed about 120 pounds, drank too much, smoked too much.”
What did Tom Fogerty pass away from? ›
Tom Fogerty, the rhythm guitarist for Creedence. Clearwater Revival, died of respiratory failure due to. tuberculosis on September 6, 1990.
Why did John Fogerty's brother leave the band? ›
This lack of vocal and songwriting opportunity, along with festering, long-standing animosity with his brother, led him to leave the band in early 1971, after finishing the recording of Pendulum. After leaving the band, Fogerty began performing and recording as a solo artist.
What is the tragic story of CCR? ›
Artistic and financial control over the songs had caused a rift to widen, and over the years, several lawsuits came in from all directions throughout the CCR camp. The true tragedy of CCR, though, lies in the sad death of Tom Fogerty.
What caused the rift between the Fogerty brothers? ›
Saul Zaentz headed Factory Records, who CCR signed with, and the label was another reason why tensions first arose. When Tom looked to have sided with Zaentz and Factory after a number of legal court cases, it widened the rift between the two Fogerty brothers.
How many brothers did Tom Fogerty have? ›
There were five Fogerty brothers living in the working class suburb of El Cerrito near San Francisco. John was the middle brother born in 1945.
What is the meaning of hoodoo in Creedence Clearwater Revival? ›
"Chasing down a hoodoo." Hoodoo is a magical, mystical, spiritual, non-defined apparition, like a ghost or a shadow, not necessarily evil, but certainly other-worldly.
