ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JUNE 11, 1998
By Steve Newton
The one concert that got me foaming at the mouth last year was John Fogerty’s Orpheum gig, and I did everything within my power as a Media Slut From Hell to make the most of it. I wangled front-row-centre seats to get as close as possible to the swamp-rock king, then weaselled my way backstage and got Fogerty to sign my copy of CCR’s Chronicle.
The best singer in rock ’n’ roll even posed for a snapshot with me and my concert-scroungin’ buddy, Ferg.
Anyone else with a fondness for Fogerty’s raw brand of backwoods boogie should know that his new live LP, Premonition, is a riveting document of last year’s tour. With a crack band that includes guitarists Johnny Lee Schell and Mike Canipe, and John Mellencamp drummer Kenny Aronoff, Fogerty rips it up bayou-style on a mix of deathless Creedence gems and choice solo hits.
The only weak moments during Premonition’s sprawling 70 minutes come during the plagiaristic title track, which borrows too much from Mellencamp’s “Rain on the Scarecrow” and the Stones’ “Jumpin’ Jack Flash”.