[NOTE: Creedence Clearwater Revival’s cover of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” is actually a cover of a cover of a sort of cover. Smokey Robinson and the Miracles were the first to record the Norman Whitfield–Barrett Strong song for Motown, but their version wasn’t the first to be released. The song was next recorded by Marvin Gaye, but his version wasn’t the first to be released either. That honor went to the Gladys Knight & the Pips version, which was released in 1967 and promptly went to #1 on the Billboard “Hot 100.” I think the Creedence version is best described as a cover of the Marvin Gaye cover, which was released subsequent to the Miracles and Pips records and was clearly the best of the three quality-wise. (By the way, the Gaye cover surpassed the Gladys Knight & the Pips cover as the best-selling Motown single up to that time.) In any event, the Creedence cover – which was one of the members of the initial class of the 2 OR 3 LINES “GOLDEN DECADE” COVER RECORDS HALL OF FAME, and is now a member of the 2 OR 3 LINES “GOLDEN DECADE” ALBUM TRACKS HALL OF FAME as well – doesn’t sound much like any of the Motown versions, which is one of the reasons it’s a great cover. What follows is a lightly edited version of my original February 17, 2011 post about this record.]
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."
CCR at Woodstock |
Click here to listen to CCR's cover of "Grapevine."
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