John Fogerty and Creedence Clearwater Revival cropped up at the height of psych rock and the sprouting of so-called progressive, or prog rock, and had more in common with the former than the latter.
They immediately got noticed, maybe because they stuck to the premise that they need to keep their brew of straightforward rock, blues, country, and roots music in general not complicated but honed practically to perfection. And they did so.
As the prog got to the top of the fave list, particularly with rock critics, their music was by some labeled as ‘too simple.’ Well, that ‘simple’ music stands the test of time fifty or so years on, while so many of those self-proclaimed intellectual bands and artists that thought fifty tempo changes in a minute is so cool are now considered as curiosities.
After all, at some point(s), like on ‘Ramble Tamble’ from ‘Cosmo’s Factory’ (1970), Fogerty and CCR showed that you can actually create complex out of simple and that there is nothing to be ashamed of doing pop(rock) if you do it right.
Far From Saints - Screaming Hallelujah
This duo proves the point above - yes, this is pop, but they take it a few notches up with a quality melody, some excellent dual vocals, and an arrangement to boot.
Drive-By Truckers - Goode’s Field Road
In many ways, Drive-By Truckers were and are picking up the best elements of what CCR have done and added some of the best elements of roots rock to their music that no one can label as simple anyway. Here they rework one of their favorites. No complications in sight.
Logan Lynn & Yellow Trash Can - Distracted
Neither Lynn nor the Yellow Trash Can crew with whom he collaborates here sound very much distracted as they pick some nice elements from another yellow set - Yellow Magic Orchestra and re-arrange them to their liking, with good results.
Julie Byrne - The Greater Wings
You don’t need much to make a ballad work, of course, if you know what you are doing, and Byrne certainly does here, also proving that she has an excellent voice.
Kitba - My Words Don’t Work
Well, if you think your words don’t work, try setting them to music. Kitba does that here, and actually makes both her music and words work quite well, thank you.
Lindsay Ell - Sweet Spot
Country pop today doesn’t exactly sound like what was even a few decades back, but the sound Ell come up with here has so many other musical elements involved, yet still has that essential country music feel included.
Death Valley Girls - Say It Too
This one definitely harks back to the early sixties and Phil Spector’s Wall of sound and this quartet actually is able to draw the best out of that sound and transport it to this century.
Kassa Overall - Going Up
Overall is more or less everything - a drummer, a producer a rapper, and he brings all of that here (and some singing too) along with an excellent song, all coming from his solo debut that is definitely one to watch, or better say, hear.
Sam Burton - I Don’t Blame You
Jonathan Wilson, both as an artist and as a producer has become synonymous with what modern singer-songwriters should sound like and here he shows quite a bit as a producer, yet it wouldn’t have worked if Sam Burton didn’t come up with a very strong song and vocals himself.
12 Rods - Private Spies
That eighties jangling guitar sound some bands like Echo & The Bunnymen patented still lives today, ad 12 Rods put it to some good use here. They do come up with a good song along the way too.
Para Lia - Yellow Rose
No, this German duo did not invent the musical wheel but, they picked up good pop ideas from a few previous decades and actually put them to good use here, no matter what.
Lime Cordiale - Imposter Syndrome
These five Australians don’t shy away from incorporating some old-fashioned R&B into their pop rock, and luckily for them, they know quite well how to do it here.
Jack River - Lie To You
Holly Rankin aka Jack River actually doesn’t want to lie neither to somebody she is intimate with nor to her audience it seems, as she comes up with some honest, quality pop here.
Silva & Steini - More Than You Know
Jazz is often considered as complex, but, as Silva & Steini show here, that complexity is often expressed in simple terms, as the spaces between notes here count as much as the notes themselves.
Vinyl Williams - Love Is A Sound
Williams puts a musician’s motto in this well-crafted modern psych-pop tune, that literally throws up in the air a few musical elements from the past, picks them up, and then re-arranges them in no particular order, yet an order that fits.
Seba Safe - I Wonder
Safe is one of those modern singer-songwriters who doesn’t limit himself to a voice and a single instrument and cherishes that modern part of the term, that includes a good rhythm too.
Captain Planet - For Sumo
By the number of sounds from around the world included here, no wonder this captain has that planet as part of his moniker there. Yet, he seems to know these sounds inside and out, as they all gel with ease.
Mirror Tree - See It Through
Michael Gold, aka Mirror Tree, is both an airline pilot and a musician, and his music works quite well here, with a very likely probability that his flight passengers are in good hands too.
Prince Josh - The Glory
Toronto’s Prince Josh, born Josh McIntyre is a producer, songwriter, and DJ, putting all his skills to work here and showing that he surely deserves that prince part of his moniker with this slow-burning trip-hopper.
Cordovas - Fallen Angels Rock ’N’ Roll
And back to the band that might also have CCR close to their hearts, with an added country soul touch added here, showing again, that very often, complexity is overrated.