CLEARWATER

                                     REVIVAL

\                                                                                USA - FANTASY - 8382

"FULL RADIAL" PRESSING - MACHINE STAMPED MATRIX

MEGA RARE 100% FIRST PRINT with NO mention of their HIT "SUZY Q on front cover ... trying to find this very first pressing has gotten to be extremely hard....rarely seen in THIS condition....

The very FIRST Creedence Clearwater album...BEFORE they became famously tamed by mass public adorned stardom....these were the swamp rockers with a gritty blues bite that turned a lot of heads back in '68 with their unique style...and apparently Creedence Clearwater Revival was from California... huh?... most anyone might assume the obvious that these guys were born in the swamps of the deep south. Guess...uh...not.

CCR burst out on the scene just as they were - loud, gruff, dirty and stinking of swamp mud. Indeed, few of CCR albums can boast this un-polished production (that's not an accusation). As it is, this record does feature the talents of JOHN FOGERTY the songwriter & guitarist. Side A of this album, with its three cuts, is near perfect. The very first cut, the CCR take on the classic soul number 'I Put A Spell On You', tells you more about the band than you should really know. The terrific instrumental passages in the lengthy solo break were apparently very carefully constructed - John really shows himself master of the guitar, brilliantly transforming one riff into another and finally bringing the solo section to a terrific rising climax. That's the style he'd been using ever since: dedicating himself to a careful analysis of the possible instrumental sections on his songs and making them as memorable and 'accessible' as possible. If ever there was something revolutionary in CCR's music making, it was John's approach to his instrumental work - as best evidenced on 'I Put A Spell On You' (and reprised on 'Walk On The Water' at the end of the record).

Next comes the 'original' - John's 'Working Man', about the hardship of the working class, but never mind the lyrics: there's one gruff and menacing guitar tone for you! Scary! And the way he soars on that first solo... man, you'll be hard pressed to hear anybody doing the same stuff. He really goes to show you that guitar solos which are carefully thought over can intoxicate people far more successfully than improvised ones. Of course, you also gotta have talent - and if you have talent, man, it doesn't really matter if you're a great improviser or a great 'musician-mathematician'.

The most famous number on here, though, is, of course, 'Suzie-Q'. That one sounds as if the boys have made a bet with somebody they would be able to turn this half-obscure short R'n'B number (see the Stones' version on "12 X 5" Lp for further reference) into a magnificent rock epic. And CCR manage to make all the eight minutes of it as enjoyable as possible: interspersing the lyrics (partly sung through some kind of gadget so as to render these vocals more variegated) with some more flaming guitar solos and finally bringing the whole story to yet another breath-taking all-instrument climax! Not to mention the mighty rhythm track, of course.

Side two's 'Gloomy' is very gloomy, and 'Ninety-Nine And A Half (Just Won't Do)' doesn't hold very well after the far superior 'Working Man.' The blues cover 'Get Down Woman' has its hooks... Fogerty delivers frantic bellowing on several of side two's tracks be it on 'Ninety-Nine', or the high-pitched, highly expressive guitar wail of 'Get Down Woman' and the backwards soloing on 'Gloomy'. Not to mention, of course, that, paradoxal as it might seem, the song structures on this album are far more twisted and complicated than on many of their subsequent efforts: only 'Working Man', 'Porterville', and 'Get Down Woman' are fully conventional. All the other numbers are 'multi-part', with shifts in tempos, clever gimmicks, and lots of stuff to distinguish the band's style from that of their less intellectually gifted competitors at the time. Side two's 'Walk On The Water' is the highlight as a terrific album closer complimented with a strong riff in the middle...

CONDITION: The Cover: the THICK cover is still clean, rated "EX" (excellent) sharp and stiff, there are really no problems! Has no bends, no writing and no split seams...bright original colors and still with the original store price sticker....

The Vinyl: is very shiny rated near M-  expect the deep "Full Radial" pressing to play TOP LEVEL excellent ~ enjoyable. Has clean Fantasy labels too