Willy and the Poor Boys (40th Anniversary Edition) [Remastered]

iTunes Review

Willy and the Poor Boys was Creedence Clearwater’s fourth studio album and the third to be released in 1969. Working at this incredible pace, singer-songwriter John Fogerty came through in the clutch, authoring many of the band’s classic tunes in rapid succession. From the opening stomp of “Down on the Corner,” Fogerty’s clearly in an ebullient mood and his upbeat approach gives even his angry moments (“Fortunate Son”) a lightness of being that allows the listener to dance along. This California-bred rocker continues to obsess on an imagined southern youth in Louisiana (the country fried cover of Lead Belly’s “Cotton Fields,” the jugband-harmonica instrumental blues of “Poorboy Shuffle,” and the slow and moody “Feelin’ Blue”) with a stunning authenticity. The ominous rockabilly base of “Don’t Look Now” and the minor-key melancholy of “Effigy” represent the foreboding vibe he would perfect with the band’s next album, 1970’s Cosmo’s Factory. The 40th Anniversary Edition includes a studio version of “Down on the Corner” with Booker T. and the MGs, and live versions of “Fortunate Son” and “It Came Out of the Sky” that illustrate that Fogerty often restrains himself in the studio, as his singing here goes straight for overdrive.