Creedence Clearwater Revival -- "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" (1970)

I know that a man ain't supposed to cry, 

But these tears I can't hold inside

Losin' you would end my life, you see

'Cause you mean that much to me

You could have told me yourself

That you love someone else 

Instead I heard it through the grapevine

If I had to pick one band that personifies good ol' American-style rock and roll music, it would be Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Here's what the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame says about Creedence:

Creedence Clearwater Revival . . . were progressive and anachronistic at the same time.  An unapologetic throwback to the golden era of rock and roll . . . [t]heir approach was basic and uncompromising, holding true to the band members’ working-class origins.

The term "roots rock" had not yet been invented when Creedence came along, but in a real way they defined it, drawing inspiration from the likes of Little Richard, Hank Williams, Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry and the artisans of soul at Motown and Stax.  In so doing, Creedence Clearwater Revival became the standard bearers and foremost celebrants of homegrown American music.

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"I Heard It Through The Grapevine" was a huge hit – not once, but twice – for Motown artists before CCR recorded it.

Their version of "Grapevine" was released on the Cosmo's Factory album in July 1970.  That was only about 18 months after Marvin Gaye's version of the song had reached the #1 spot on the Billboard "Hot 100."

Creedence's cover of the song is eleven minutes long.  You might think that's too long, but it isn't.  (I wouldn't mind if it was an hour long.) 

It has the no-frills feel of a live performance – compared to the Motown versions, it's a white T-shirt and a pair of blue jeans.

By the way, did you know that CCR performed at Woodstock?  Thanks to the Grateful Dead's endless jamming, Creedence didn't take the stage until 3 AM.  CCR frontman John Fogerty thought their performance wasn't up to snuff, so they are missing from the movie and the original soundtrack album.  (The 25th-anniversary Woodstock box set does include six CCR songs.) 

CCR at Woodstock

Here's one other odd fact about Creedence, which never got the respect it deserved:  the band never had a #1 hit, but had five #2 singles.

Click here to listen to CCR's cover of "Grapevine."

Click here to buy the record from Amazon.