Customer Reviews

The Blue Ridge Rangers

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

From the first twang of that banjo, I knew I was in for something different here. While some artists in 1973 were rediscovering 50's rock & roll, John Fogerty looked back and paid tribute to 50's country western & gospel! My faves include "Blue Ridge Mountain Blues", "You're the Reason", "California Blues", "Workin' On A Building", "Please Help Me, I'm Falling", "I Ain't Never" and "Today I Stared Loving You Again" (there's one I can relate to way too much). But they're ALL good ones. Some have become standards, done by many artists over the years, like "She Thinks I Still Care" (George Jones, Cher, Michael Nesmith) and "Jambalaya (On The Bayou)" (Hank Williams, Jo Stafford, Carpenters-- probably my favorite, Buzz Zeemer, and Dash Rip Rock-- probably the WILDEST) but Fogerty does each in his own style. I'd love it if he did another one like this, as I can listen to this over and over-- and have been.

In my teen years, I was a Creedance fanatic. I loved to listen-to and play (I will never be that good) all of the early with-the-band music. Somehow this one slipped through my fingers when it came out during my frugal college days, maybe I was afraid that Fantasy had squeezed some half-baked garbage out to fulfill a contract requirement. What a surprise to find John Fogerty playing the stuff I like to listen to and play now. I have always appreciated his interest in themes and styles from traditional/folk/country and love "Blue Moon Swamp", but had not realized that gospel/bluegrass was part of the mix. It is unfortunate that radio does not know what to do with gifted musicians who do not "fit the mold". Although this is all well known material, the interpretation is classic Fogerty and well worth owning. If you are a fan of classic country or classic rock, this is an important link between the two.

As stated by many reviewers and by the title of the album, this is John Fogerty's legendary One Man Band (meaning he played all the instruments and sang all the vocals) album from 1973 entitled "Blue Ridge Rangers." Back when it was released in 1973, Creedence Clearwater Revival had just broken up and he had to fulfill his contract with Fantasy with 1 more album and this is the album that he not only recorded to do that and that he couldn't sing the Creedence hits legally at the time, but it also is an album that pays tribute to his influences by singing covers of many country classics with gospel and blues mixed in for good measure. The Top 20 hit, Jambalaya, is performed here in a rousing arrangement. Some of the other highlights include the top 40 minor hit cover of "Hearts of Stone" which had been recorded by a few country artists and in the pop world, the Fontaine Sisters, The Webb Pierce/Mel Tillis classic "I Ain't Never", Working on a Building, Merle Haggard's "Today I Started Loving You Again," Blue Ridge Mountain Blues, the George Jones hit "She Thinks I Still Care," Jimmie Rodgers's "California Blues (Blue Yodel #4)" and You're The Reason. If he would have recorded "Blue Moon of Kentucky" (appears on the Big Mon tribute to Bill Monroe) at the time this was recorded, it would also appear on this album. The sound quality is excellent and the music is timeless. Country fans, Fogerty fans, CCR fans, folk fans, blues fans, gospel fans, rock and roll fans should definitely pick up this album.

I've always had a soft spot for this album.
Not a genuine rock song among the lot, this is all country and spirituals, yet Fogerty makes the whole thing sound sincere and appealing.
I'm a rock and blues fan myself, and I own very little in the way of traditional country, but I've always liked "The Blue Ridge Rangers".
The lead-off track is a real banjo-pickin' clog-stomper, the traditional "Blue Ridge Mountain Blues", yet Fogerty's characteristic baritone voice (no twang there) makes it into something that a rock band could actually play on stage and not have too many things thrown at them.
Then comes a beautiful religious piece, Mississippi Blind Boy Archie Brownlee's "Somewhere Listening For My Name", complete with a gospel choir consisting of Fogerty himself.

Bobby Edwards' "You're The Reason" has been transformed into something almost like a country-rocker with the addition of a rock n' roll backbeat from the man on the swivel chair (a certain Mr Fogerty), and Hank Williams' "Jambalaya" is given the rock treatment as well, guitar solo and everything, yet stays true to its country origins. Fogerty still does than one in concert on occation.

"She Thinks I Still Care" is a great vocal performance by John Fogerty, aided by himself on harmony vocals and steel guitar.
"Blue Yodel #4" was witten by the legendary Jimmie Rodgers, who influenced country- and blues singers alike, and the traditional gospel piece "Working On A Building" also popped up in concert on Fogerty's 1997-98 world tour. On this record he provides all the harmony vocals, hand claps and enthusiastic wails himself.

"Please Help Me, I'm Falling" is another catchy melody, the kind that's so much fun to sing if you have half a singing voice (a sinful pleasure, I know).
"Have Thine Own Way, Lord" has been sung by everyone from Slim Whitman and Marty Robbins to Pat Boone and Jim Reeves, and Fogerty does a lovely job with it, once again adding layers of harmony vocals.
"I Ain't Never" is a Mel Tillis/Webb Pierce song, and it's hard to sit still when it is playing. "Hearts Of Stone" was released as a single, and showed up in the top 50 on the pop charts (as did "Jambalaya"), and the album closes with the resigned country ballad "Today I Started Loving You Again", a Merle Haggard song, and another fine vocal perfomance.

Remember - this is not a rock record.
But it's a lot of fun to sing along to on a rainy afternoon, after making sure nobody can hear you, of course, and perhaps leaving a few hard rock records lying around in case anyone should come by!

With or without his bandmates in Creedence Clearwater Revival, Mr.Fogerty has always been one of the most artless performers that I've ever known; he's certainly never tried to be anything other than the talented singer/songwriter that he is(unlike some acts who adopted grandiose images that they could never continue off-stage: the Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, the Moody Blues & David Bowie among them...John Lennon called them "Sons of Beatles").

And on the face of it, this album is a simple collection of country & western "oldies"(even by 70's standards) whose repertoire is taken from the bluegrass & gospel heroes that inspired the artist in his younger days(similar to the rock & roll "farewell" album that John Lennon would do two years later in 1975).

But this album, the Blue Ridge Rangers(his first solo album after disbanding CCR over legal and familial issues), rapidly shows itself to have an underlying thematic unity that reveals itself as one of the most low-key and honest of the "concept albums" that came to maturity in the late sixties.

For instance, the name of this album suggests that this is a group-effort being released by someone calling themselves the "Blue Ridge Rangers", but that name is actually taken from one of the songs contained on the album itself, namely 'Blue Ridge Mountain Blues'; and local legend in my hometown claims that Mr.Fogerty handled all of the instrumental/vocal chores on this album all by his lonesome self...a thus-far unverified fact not disputed by the liner notes on the sparse CD booklet(which has no credits and only says: Arranged and Produced by John Fogerty) or by the album cover itself, which features John himself as no less than 5 different members of the Blue Ridge Rangers: Fiddler, Banjo-Picker, Head Singer, Double-bass player & Guitarist.

Continuing with this, we have to ask: "Why did a man who was the primary creative focus behind one of music's top acts choose to release an album of Other People's Songs"? The answer is simple, as we see that, except for the cajun good-fun of 'Jambalaya', his selection of songs and the raw emotion that he pours into performing them show an incredible tinge of sadness and loss for something/someone extremely close to him. He pretended to be "Someone Else" and chose to sing "Other People's Songs" simply because "They" could say what he wanted to say easier and less painfully than if he had said it or sung it or written it himself...it was comfort to know that "Someone Else" had gone through what he had went through, that "Someone Else" had been as lonely as he felt right now, lonely enough that he literally had to "be" every single member of a fictional band.

This period was so painful that 'Blue Ridge Rangers' is the only album from which he did NOT extract any material for his mid-90's live event extravaganza, 'Premonition'("What about Eye Of The Zombie?", you ask? Well, FYI and UjustME...'Going Back Home' was used as a warm-up and 'Headlines' was used as a sound-check with updated verses; both are among the great bootlegs from that era, if you want to go searching for them).

Ultimately, I believe that 'Blue Ridge Rangers' was a cathartic episode for Mr.Fogerty, who was saying goodbye to his old bandmates, and the past in general, while trying hard to look ahead to a brighter future. The beautiful part is that he does so while still somehow managing to turn in an extremely respectable performance, unlike other singers' therapeutic sessions which happened to make it onto the market.

I heartily recommend this album, not only to Country & Western or John Fogerty/CCR fans, but also to anyone "into" the revealing side of classic rock albums...I mean, you can easily find any and all of these songs on Other People's Albums, but they would not provide you with any of the insight into the heart and soul of one of Rock's legendary greats.

John Fogerty had already demonstrated an interest in traditional country music while still leading Creedence Clearwater Revival -- witness the twangy styling on "Lookin' Out My Back Door." With this album, Fogerty took the tendency to its logical conclusion -- an album of traditional country songs that have characterized the style for a generation. Not a well-known album in either country or rock circles, it remains one of the benchmarks country/rock style-benders have to live up to. A worthwhile purchase for fans of either style, and an eye-opener for those who think country is a sad, wailing form of music for cattle-ranchers and honky-tonkers.

This must have seemed like a real oddity - to both Fogerty's fans and his record label - upon its release in 1973. Only a year's distance from Creedence Clearwater Revival's break-up, Fogerty immersed himself in an album of cover version, mostly country, with a smattering of gospel and blues. And "immersed" is meant in its fullest sense -- Fogerty produced the album, sang all the vocals (including the layered backings) and played all the instruments: guitar, drums, bass, pedal steel, banjo, organ and fiddle. Though not a virtuoso across the board, Fogerty was certainly talented enough to create a convincing and compelling illusion of a band.

More importantly, freed from the shackles of his Creedence fame, Fogerty was able to express his heartfelt love for the roots music that fueled his own songwriting. Considering that country wasn't exactly popular with the rock crowd in '73 (though it was making stoner inroads through Commander Cody, and the Outlaw movement was about to take off), this was a rather daring move commercially. Most likely, Fogerty wasn't concerned about duplicating his Creedence success, and he obviously relishes the opportunity to record something close to his heart, without concern for sales or radio play.

What truly fuels this album's greatness is Fogerty's repertoire selection. Country classics from Hank Williams ("Jambalaya (on the Bayou)"), George Jones ("She Thinks I Still Care"), Jimmie Rodgers ("California Blues (Blue Yodel #4)"), Webb Pierce ("I Ain't Never") and Merle Haggard ("Today I Started Loving You Again") are rendered in Fogerty's bayou-voice with an enthusiasm that rings of affection and thankfulness. Traditional tunes like "Somewhere Listening (For My Name)" and "Workin' on a Building" feature Fogerty singing both lead vocals and the fervent shout-outs, with multi-layered backing that forms an all-Fogerty gospel chorus.

The dichotomy of this album is fascinating: Fogerty travelled great lengths to distance himself from Creedence (including posing on the album cover as all five silhouetted members of the fictional Blue Ridge Rangers), while at the same time his voice, front and center, provides an unmistakable link to previous fame. In retrospect, this mid-career tip-of-the-hat to Fogerty's influences turns out to have been a place to rest, regather, and contemplate his next steps. The choice of an entirely solo production, and the obvious safety and relaxation it provided, resulted in a highly personal and superbly listenable album.

I don't remember the last time I listened to a CD that I liked as much as this one. Every song is a classic. I listen to this over and over and over again.

If you like bluegrass, old-time country (including country ballads) and gospel, you'll love this album. If you like John Fogerty's voice, you'll agree with me that this is one of the best albums ever made.

Granted, Fogerty won't set the world on fire with his fiddle or banjo playing (he plays all instruments). But the simple arrangements emphasize the material, all of which are covers (no Fogerty originals). This is a labor of love for Fogerty. Nothing he's done since comes close, for my money.

Five stars is not enough. This is a great great album.
Although this may date me, I bought this album new in 1973 when it first came out. It remains to this day my favorite album of all time.
Being a huge CCR fan from the opening chords of Proud Mary when it was first played on AM radio back in 1968, this album forever changed the music I began to listen to and come to love. It may have taken me a few more years to "discover" the likes of Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, Billy Joe Shaver, George, Willie, (and the list goes on....) if it were not for this album. For that I am eternally thankful to John Fogerty.

While the songs are not originals he makes them his own. I'm sure 'ol Hank smiled when he first heard Jambalaya.
Back in 1973 doing a one-man-band record was not like doing it today with all the digital tools available. John Fogerty did this and made it sound convincing using a bunch of talent and the technology available at the time. And it still sounds great.
I wonder if John's brother had Photo Shop on his PC in '73 to do that great cover shot of the "band". The original cover didnt have Fogerty's name on it, his name only appearing on the back in small letters, Arranged & Produced by John Fogerty. This particular cover came out a few years later as a Fantasy Records re-release.
Although I own the vinyl copies of both covers I dont have the CD of this cover so I don't know if its remasterd or not. There were several releases of this CD over the years with the original cover artwork as well as an awesome sounding remastered Japanese release with a cardboard bi-fold CD jacket with the original cover additional pictures inside. (I own 3 copies of this one, one still sealed)I would recommend seeking out this version.

Thank you for making this album but PLEASE John Fogerty do another like this real soon. It should be easier this time.

The Blue Ridge Rangers was released in 1973, just after the breakup of Creedence Clearwater Revival. Rumor has it that CCR's heart and soul, John Fogerty, was still under contract to Fantasy records with some very unfavorable terms. While waiting for the contract to expire, he released a Country/Gospel album under the pseudonym The Blue Ridge Rangers in an attempt to stay under the radar screen. Although billed as a band, this is actually a solo album, with Fogerty singing all the parts and playing all the instruments.

This album has held up well despite its age. There are no Fogerty originals here, just classic country and gospel -- some traditional, and some from classic country writers such as Hank Williams, Mel Tillis, and Merle Haggard. If the idea of Fogerty -- or Creedence -- gone Country appeals to you, this is well worth a try.

This album is a staple in my Road Trip collection, and has been for several years. I just replaced a worn-out cassette copy of a worn-out vinyl album with the CD, and it sounds good, even without the ticks and pops!