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25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Breath of Fresh Air, Venting 10 Years of Built-Up Emotion , October 3, 2004
"Centerfield" was a long-needed breath of fresh air for the music scene in 1985. At the height of synthesizers, hair metal, and glam-pop, John Fogerty's first original album in nearly a decade was a down-home piece of work, as rustic as a Top Ten record could get in 1985. Sure there are little dashes of 80s technology here and there as needed (bits of keyboards and some clinical drum work show up on some songs), but for the Decade of Decadence, "Centerfield" was a rescue. The most relief was probably for Fogerty himself; after the disheartening breakup of Creedence Clearwater Revival in 1972, he recorded some now-obscured albums but his musical career was put to silence by overwhelming business disputes with CCR's old label, which would hault Fogerty for nine years until 'The Old Man Down the Road' appeared at the end of 1984 and became a smash hit. The album "Centerfield" followed and hit Number 1, much to the disdain of the hot shot executives with whom Fogerty had been battling.
Even though there were even some legal turmoils surrounding this album, it was John Fogerty who had the personal satisfaction (for both he and his fans) that the years of legal and contractual turmoil had not wrinkled his musical talent. The opening hit single is worthy of the "repeat" button on the stereo, and Fogerty follows suit with a string of memorable, down-home, personal, and celebratory songs. There's the carefree joy of 'Rock and Roll Girls,' 'I Can't Help Myself,' and the title track (which in some corners was ruined by those who constantly used it for a novelty baseball anthem). There's also the reflective sadness of 'I Saw It On T.V.,' and even personal demons and a desire for redemption in 'Searchlight.' 'Big Train From Memphis' is seemingly autobiographical, reflecting upon Fogerty's youth in which he was bored with his California surroundings and rather took an interest in a mythical bayou world and southern creoles (which was the source of CCR's legendary sound). And of course Fogerty doesn't forget to burn those who kept him down with the legal disputes as he lashes out in slick style with 'Mr. Greed' and the notorious 'Vanz Kant Danz.'
Though its follow-up, "Eye of the Zombie" didn't catch on as well with music fans, Fogerty had already claimed his victory, and the quality of "Centerfield" (and the overlooked "Zombie") was enough to hold him for another long decade, after which he would re-emerge yet again with another triumph, the Grammy-winning 'Blue Moon Swamp' and the successful 'Premonition.'
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great sophomore effort by former CCR frontman, November 9, 2005
It was nine years between former CCR lead vocalist John Fogerty's first and second albums, much of which was spent ironing out troubles during his times with Creedence. However, Centerfield, with its mixture of blues, rockabilly, and rock, with a smooth pop polish proved that Fogerty had plenty more to share.
The #10 peak of the swamp bluesy "The Old Man Down The Road," of some scary juju man was indeed quite an oddity amid the synth-dominated Second British Invasion and hard-rock/heavy metal of the 1980's. In a cruel irony, Fogerty was sued for ripping himself off, namely Creedence's "Run Through The Jungle," but the court ruled in favour of him. I mean, doesn't a composer have the right to sound like himself? Crimony! Bob Rivers later parodied this song, "The Old Man On The Commode."
The next single was the #20 the upbeat "Rock and Roll Girls" complete with his vibrant country-rock vocals and a sax solo. Its B-side, the #44 title track, has become somewhat of an unofficial baseball anthem, as it pays homage to the nation's biggest sports, with nods to Joe DiMaggio, Willie Mays, and Ty Cobb, and even from Chuck Berry, "a brown-eyed handsome man."
The rockabilly of "Big Train From Memphis" is an homage to Elvis, while American history of the 50's to 60's is shown in the sobering "I Saw It On TV," whose sound sort of reminds me a bit of "Who Will Stop The Rain," with mention of Ike, Annette, the Davy Crockett fad, Elvis. The mention of the Beatles after JFK confirms Billy Joel saying that the Fabs cheered us up after Kennedy's death. Dark stuff includes the arms race and Westmoreland-"the light at the end of the tunnel was nothin' but a burglar's torch" and more personal criticism of Vietnam-"when they took my only son from me."
Songs like the hard-driving "Mr. Greed" with its fiery blues swamp guitar and "Vanz Kantz Danz" hit out at Saul Zaentz, who fronted Fantasy Records, CCR's label, and against whom he fought for the song rights to CCR's songs, which he co-wrote. "Greed" has got to be my favourite song due to its ferocity and condemnation-"you feast upon the blood and pain/but the bones you hoard can only bring you shame." I wonder if the late members of Badfinger are pumping their fists in the air, having experienced corruption from their label, especially as how Fogerty calls Zaentz a pig and four-legged thief in "Vanz." The chorus goes "Vanz can't dance, but he'll steal your money/watch him or he'll rob you blind."
"I Can't Help Myself" could've been a single with its energy, as I like it better than "Rock and Roll Girls," but given how "Centerfield" missed the Top 40, it's clear to see the dominant sound of the 80's charts.
I never heard the followup album, Eye of the Zombie, which bombed, but at least Centerfield was a much awaited shot in the arm for Creedence fans, and is even an album that anyone who'd never heard of CCR would've enjoyed. So unlike by Vanz, you won't be robbed blind by getting Centerfield.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Bases Are Loaded, January 17, 2004
John Fogerty was the driving force and musical genius behind one of the best bands of the late 60's, Creedence Clearwater Revival. The amount of product and great, quality songs in such a short time is amazing, and Fogerty's gift for being able to pound out classic songs, wether it's a hit or not, has always been astounding. This 1985 solo release from the singer, really harks back to the old days of Creedence. There is a sense of the old stuff on here and John is in fine voice and playing. He had previously released three studio albums before this, but none of the three were very successful or held a candle to his Creedence work. "Hoodoo" wasn't even released. "Blue Ridge Rangers" was a fantastic Country album, and you should check it out. But John really scored and made a mark as a solo artist with this set. His first released set of recordings, at the time, in 15 years. While there is some experimentation on here with drum machines and very 80's sounding type stuff, the album is a success overall. "The Old Man Down The Road" is a classic Fogerty song with a classic and unforgettable guitar catch. It doesn't sound a whole lot like "Run Through The Jungle". It's different enough for me. "Rock And Roll Girls", is a very fun and pleasant track with a sense of classic type sounding rockabilly to it, but it is pretty dispensable in the end, even though it is a favorite of mine. The main hit, and the reason why this CD is as remembered as it is, it the title track, "Centerfield". John has a love for baseball and he has said that he wanted to write a classic type song for the game that could stand the test of time. Mission accomplished John, because you did it. "Searchlight" has a classic Creedence type groove to it, even though it feels like it goes on a bit too long and never really ends up going anywhere. "I Can't Help Myself", with drum machines intact, is a very 80's sounding type song. It isn't a strong addition to Fogerty's cannon, but it is pleasant as you listen to it. "Vanz Kant Danz" is the closer. Like "Searchlight", it too is another song that seems to go on and on and doesn't really have much of a payoff. I do love the opening guitar intro though. There is another song on here that has to do with John's battle with prodcer Saul Zaentz. It is called "Mr. Greed", and it is a revved up rocker that really gets John's message across. He was in battle with Saul over the song "The Old Man Down The Road", which Zaentz proclaimed was a rip-0ff of "Run Through The Jungle", and thus began a decade long court battle for John. I think it was total bull myself. "I Saw It On TV" is a Creedence sounding song dealing with the things that John grew up with as a kid in the 50's. "Big Train In Memphis" is a short and very pleasant song that could rest very easily with any of this mid-tempo Creedence work. All in all, this set put John back on the charts with a hit album and hit singles that were rightfully deserved. "Blue Moon Swamp", which was released in 1997, was ten times better though. Still, this is an engaging and enjoyable romp in John's swamp rock world.
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by John Fogerty 
