Willy & the Poor Boys

It's the best creedence album in my opinion! Fortunate Son rocks!

By the late sixties and early seventies The Creedence Clearwater Revival were one of if not the biggest American Band led by John Fogerty they produced a series of wonderful singles including classics such as Proud Mary [Ike & Tina Turner did a wonderful version], Bad Moon Rising, Up Around The Bend and from this album the fabulous angry Fortunate Son.Of the albums by Creedence my 2 favourites are Cosmos Factory and this one Willie And The Poor Boys, the bands sound has been described as swamp rock, music with a southern American vibe which is a mixture of country, blues and rock this was surprising as the band didn't hale from Alabama but from California!! . The album begins with Down On The Corner which has a sort of funky country rhythm it is followed by the rocking It Came Out Of The Sky then comes the country flavoured Cotton Fields this is as good a start to an album as you will find and it continues with tracks such as Midnight Special and of course Fortunate Son the last 2 tracks of the original album tend to lose slightly the momentum set up by the opening tracks then there are the extra tracks include 2 live tracks recorded on a tour of Europe and a version of Down On The Corner recorded with Booker T And The MG'S. So this is Creedence at the zenith of their popularity it didn't last the band were unhappy with John Fogerty's dominance of the band and pushed for more participation in the material this created acrimony within the group and by 1972 the band split with wounds that never healed.

I have never enjoyed talking about Creedence Clearwater Revival. The band's back catalogue with the original four members is about as perfect as rock and roll ever got and it's really hard to review . Yet, here I am trying to review their fourth album, Willy And The Poor Boys. Another stone cold classic from the band.Willie and the Poor Boys was Creedence Clearwater Revival third and final album of 1969. The album was originally released through Fantasy Records in November of 69 and was produced by the band's singer and song writer John Fogerty. The album is ten tracks in total and is a good thirty five minutes in length.As a record, Willie and the Poor Boys is one of the band's best and probably one of their more recognisable. The track list features many classics including the opener, Down on the Corner, Effigy and a fantastic cover of Cotton Fields. It's mostly known for one of the band's most popular songs, Fortunate Son. A song that has been featured in every rock compilation over the last fifty years.Much like the albums that came before it, the album has a lovely raw tone to it. The guitars are distorted and the drums pack a punch, but it all sounds very natural and it really compliments the kind of simple music that the band play. John Fogerty's vocals are extremely powerful and ooze emotion, even on their cover versions. You'd think the group wrote Cotton Fields with the way they perform it. Absolutely fantastic in every way.This (and the others) are most definitely worth picking up. They're mandatory purchases for fans of old school rock music. You can easily buy it on the basis that it contains Fortunate Son, a fantastic song in its own right. The rest of the songs are just as good and there's no filler here at all. If you haven't got it, it's time to fix that.

I've listened to a lot of music over the years and it takes something special for me to award 5 stars.This album shows us what brilliant musicians these guys were.Every track is a great listen. When "poor boy shuffle" mixes into the next song "feeling blue" it felt so good.I just love this album. I've only just discovered it. You won't be disappointed.

I have this album on vinyl but no longer have turntable and so bought the CD. The auto-rip was a good idea and it is now downloaded to my PC and into iTunes.The album was really great when it came out and is simply nostalgia and easy-listening now.

My favourite band of all time! I still listen to all their albums regularly, even though I still don't know half the mumbled lyrics! I thought I'd upgrade, as the CDs were so cheap! This remastered album, with the bonus tracks, is absolutely superb! Great sound quality and interesting, memory jogging information in the accompanying booklet. A must for all CCR fans...