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Cosmo's Factory

Creedence Clearwater Revival

1970

Buy At Rough Trade
Cosmo's Factory
Album Summary

Cosmo's Factory is the fifth studio album by American rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival, released by Fantasy Records in July 1970. Six of the album's eleven tracks were released as singles in 1970, with five of them charting in the top 5 of the Billboard Hot 100. The album spent nine consecutive weeks in the number one position on the Billboard 200 chart and was certified 4x platinum by the RIAA in 1990.

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Rating

3.91

Votes

12260
Genres
Rock

Reviews

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Fri Jul 02 2021
5

The Dude: Do you find them much, these, stolen cars? Younger Cop: Sometimes. Wouldn't hold out much hope for the tape deck though. Older Cop: Or the Creedence.

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Wed Aug 26 2020
5

Travelin' Band, Lookin' Out My Back Door, Run Through the Jungle, Who'll Stop the Rain, I Heard It Through the Grapevine, Long As I Can See the Light. Those are not songs from their greatest hits collection. Well, i'm sure they ARE, but more specifically they are from this album. That's simply a crazy collection of good songs. This really made me want to sit on a patio out in the Bayou and drink beers. If you dont feel the same - call for help.

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Mon Feb 01 2021
5

This is a really legendary album. Probably 75% of it's songs are on every CCR Greatest Hits collection. I really can't say enough good things about. The real star of the show is John Fogerty's vocals, but the musicianship is great too. Long as I can See the Light and Heard it Through the Grapevine are my 2 favorites, but I love most of the songs on here.

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Tue Feb 16 2021
5

I grew up on this band, mostly through Chronicles Vol 1, but most of the tracks on here are also on that. Discovered Ramble Tamble, which I love and Ooby Dooby, which I hate. Had to listen to Up Around the Bend twice because it’s so good. I’m amazed at the different style influences across this album. So good!

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Wed Aug 18 2021
4

A wonderful album with great songs. Can’t believe they were only together for three years, and they managed to create so many tunes that are still played today.

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Fri Dec 25 2020
4

4.5 stars. Loved the Rockabilly tones. The country was strong with such lovely bluesy undertones. Vocals are on point on this and an 11 minute cover of a Soul Classic in heard through the grapevine is the perfect ending. Which sadly eclipses the actual last song on the album.

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Sun Jan 17 2021
5

I liked this one a lot better than the other CCR album I got from this album generator. This one seems somehow 'swampier', but it also has more variety and more experimentation in the songs. This sets it apart from just being more highly polished radio-friendly standard rock-fare. Just a really good album, loved listening to it.

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Mon Sep 27 2021
5

To argue that this was anything less than a 5-star album would be a fight against democracy itself. The people have voted. CCR is an institution. Any band that can get right-wing voters to belt out anti-war anthems have some sort of Creole VOODOO going on behind the scenes. John Fogerty is from Berkley, California. The Fortress of Solitude for all things liberal. Yet if you see the confederate flag on a pick-up 50/50 chance they are bumping Fortunate Son. Insanity. True Bipartisanship rocking, I dig.

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Tue Nov 16 2021
5

Fogerty can really put an album together. So many classics, so much grit.

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Sat Dec 09 2023
4

I am devastated—DEVASTATED I TELL YOU—that I got all three CCR albums within a week of each other. I love CCR and would have rather spread them out to be a little tasty treat for my ears. This is my favorite of the three CCR albums on the list—some certified classics and also features CCR really experimenting with their sound on a few tracks. I do find “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” unnecessarily long and CCR has always excelled at creating great singles rather than cohesive albums, so this one still earns 4/5 stars. Nonetheless, they really were a one of a kind group that wrote some of the greatest songs in the rock and roll canon. Also, let’s pour one out for “Willy and the Poor Boys,” which easily could have been on this list and features my favorite CCR song (“Fortunate Son”).

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Sat Jul 15 2023
3

ok it seems like a four-worthy album to be honest but i really don't have the urge to listen to any of these songs again and its not my type of music so three it is.

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Wed Mar 17 2021
2

11 minutes is a fucking joke

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Thu Jan 14 2021
5

Love it' A Classic. Reminds me of drinking in a barn in NB.

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Fri Sep 03 2021
5

The opening track alone (Ramble Tamble) is inexplicably not on any greatest hits, but is their best song.

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Thu May 20 2021
4

I already knew over half the songs, but hearing it all come together as one unit makes it all the better. Some classic stuff here.

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Tue Sep 08 2020
5

Awesome album. Can listen to it wherever

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Thu Jan 14 2021
5

Very fun album to listen to.

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Wed Jan 13 2021
5

Loved it. The right vibe for my later day relaxation.

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Wed Jan 13 2021
5

I forgot how much I absolutely love this album!

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Sat Feb 13 2021
5

Ooby Dolby is a little silly, but the rest of this album is fantastic.

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Tue May 04 2021
5

Amazing how many timeless classic songs CCR was able to produce in such a short period of time. I went into this album thinking it would end up being a 4 star rating, but after listening to it I'm giving it a 5.

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Fri Jan 05 2024
4

I don’t know what I expected before listening to this album. I think my preconceptions about Creedence Clearwater Revival were that they were a country band like the Allman Brothers, and while I think there is a time in a place for that kind of music, it’s not my favorite. But after just a couple minutes of listening to this album, I am a convert. only giving four stars because white people gaining fame from music that is clearly inspired by traditions of black musicians deserves to be knocked down a peg on principle.

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Fri Feb 03 2023
3

A few notable songs on the album, like "Up Around The Bend". Never really was a big fan of CCR but can certainly appreciate their music. Some songs are dopey though, like "Ooby Dooby" is a waste of time. There's a cover or two on the album as well, which I almost never appreciate on studio albums because it's just filler, IMHO. Like we don't need an 11+ minute rendition of "Heard it through the grapevine". 7/10.

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Thu Dec 21 2023
3

When I was a kid, my mom wanted to get my dad a copy of John Fogerty's Centerfield on vinyl. We went around to every record shop in town trying to find a copy. One shop we tried to go to had a sign on the door that said "no minors," which my mom thought was an incredibly confusing and stupid policy, and she held a grudge about that incident for several years. That story really doesn't have a lot to do with this album, but I always think about it when I listen to CCR. I've listened to quite a bit of CCR over the years. They were never one of my favorite classic rock acts, but they got a ton of radio play on the local classic rock station. It's not that I think they're bad, there's just other stuff I'd rather listen to when it comes to classic rock. Needless to say, this was my first time listening to one of their albums in its entirety. I'm familiar with a few of the songs on this album, and "Up Around the Bend" is easily my favorite CCR song. Outside of the songs I knew, this was about what I'd expect for a CCR album: a southern rock album with touches of psychedelica, blues, and rockabilly. Most of the songs were good, with "Ramble Tamble" being my favorite of the songs that I didn't know. John Fogerty has one of the most recognizable voices in classic rock, and his vocals on this album were really good. His voice really helps create the band's unique swamp rock sound. "Up Around the Bend" is easily the best track on the album in my opinion. That high pitched guitar riff is just incredible, and the song does a fantastic job of making me feel like I'm driving down an old country road, headed to a backyard cookout. This song always puts a smile on my face, and listening to it today was no exception. CCR's version of "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" is really good too, and they really succeed at making the song their own. Outside of those tracks though, the album was just kind of boring to me, and that makes this album pretty middle of the road overall in my book. Again, I don't think it's bad, but it's just not my cup of tea.

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Fri Jan 05 2024
3

Repetitive, Frantic, Plagiaristic.

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Mon Jan 15 2024
3

Credit where credit is due. I know all music has it's influences but sometimes it's so just so blatant. Early Stones, early Beatles and half of the songs here owe such a great debt to Chuck Berry, Little Richard and all the old Blues masters. CCR don't try to hide this influence but I find it hard to give those songs any real credit. Tracks 5, 6, 7, 9 & 11 are however what I expect CCR to sound like. Of those, 'Up Around the Bend' & 'Who'll Stop the Rain' are decent songs. Tracks 1, 2, 3, 4, 8 & 10 just sound like a blues tribute band so I struggle to see the importance of this album, other than it's popularity. 3 stars.

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Thu Jan 25 2024
2

Surprising how one album can have songs that are absolutely shit and amazing.

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Sat Jul 15 2023
1

Pretty dreadful stuff. I really dislike Fogerty's voice. Travelin' Band is a straight rip off of Good Golly Miss Molly. The version of Grapevine adds nothing to the Marvin Gaye version. Sorry Dude, I'd be relieved if my Credence tape was stolen (though I agree about the f'n Eagles, man)

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Mon Jan 04 2021
5

CCR is classic and have never put out a bad album. (We don't talk about 'Mardi Gras'.) Favorite tracks: "Travelin' Band", "Heard It Thru the Grapevine", "Before You Accuse Me"

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Sun Jan 17 2021
5

Big fan of ccr . This album has a lot of what made them really popular. After the chaos of the album, that last song really tied us all together.

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Sun Mar 21 2021
5

southern rock at it's finest right here. i'm so inclined to give it a 5 just off of their rendition of "Heard It Through The Grapevine" alone!

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Sun Jan 17 2021
5

CCR, aka CLASSIC Classic Rock. Just wanna be stoned in someone’s barn listening to this. Love all the extended jams.

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Mon Mar 29 2021
5

god damn i love CCR. I listened to this album and then like 2 others so i hope they come up soon

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Wed Jan 20 2021
5

My dad’s kind of music, brought back memories

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Wed Jan 20 2021
5

Old school cool and classic credence. Love it!

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Mon Mar 29 2021
5

Forgerty in ‘69-‘70 was just churning out gold. This may be their best album end to end.

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Sat Feb 27 2021
5

In grade nine, I used to come home from school and listen to this entire album, every day on my father's "stereo". A combination of killer songs written by guitarist and lead vocalist John Fogerty, combined with some interesting cover songs (I Heard it Through the Grapevine), this is the single best CCR record from their relatively short, but illustrious career. I still love every one of these songs.

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Tue Feb 16 2021
5

Acid flashback to ‘Nam ‘71

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Tue Mar 09 2021
5

Just fantastic. Anthems of the time, like a time warp. Forrest Gump, lebowski, like soundtracks dedicated to this album

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Thu May 13 2021
5

Some of my favorite jams on this one

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Fri Mar 26 2021
5

Light rock. Some good guitar solos. Lots of CCR's hits.

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Sat Apr 24 2021
5

Das beste Album bis jetzt. Wahnsinn, wie viele Klassiker da drauf sind. Absoluter Hit: 11 Minuten Heard it through the Grapevine

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Fri May 28 2021
5

Excellent album. CCR is legendary

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Thu Apr 22 2021
5

Wonderful guitar riffs. A true classic to come back to again.

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Mon May 10 2021
5

Great album with lots of hits. Knew this one already.

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Mon Jul 05 2021
5

I grew up listening to CCR. If you want to hear all of their very best songs, just listen to this album.

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Fri Jul 23 2021
5

Hit after hit after hit. It almost got a 4 from me just because it's super dated and, at times, kinda cheesy, but it's just so dang fun.

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Thu Jul 29 2021
5

Outstanding collection of songs!

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Fri Aug 06 2021
5

Fun guitar stuff in Ramble Tamble. I've never heard a bad version of Before You Accuse Me - this one didn't disappoint either. It's hard to cover a song, stay so true to the original, and still make it your own. The same thing goes for Grapevine. It's country, folk, blues, rock - uniquely and unmistakably CCR.

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Mon Aug 30 2021
5

Know and love CCR. Some really great classics on this album. It almost feels like a Greatest Hits album, but it isn't. This is a solid 5/5. Classic. Love it.

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Tue Aug 31 2021
5

Amazing album. Fogerty is an absolute genius. His voice and guitar work make CCR sound like many genres at once, almost creating their own style of rock.

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Mon Sep 13 2021
5

Теперь понятно откуда взялась моя любимая музыка: Black Keys, Jack White, Arctic Monkeys, и даже кое где Radiohead

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Thu Sep 16 2021
5

All the songs are very good and the bests are originals.

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Thu Sep 30 2021
5

A great album! Just some really great rock and roll music. I like it a lot. I'm probably biased because of my love for classic rock, but I really liked this one.

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Tue Oct 19 2021
5

Good tunez. Favorite tracks are Ramble Tamble and I Heard It Through the Grapevine

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Mon Oct 25 2021
5

Easy 5 stars. Love the blues influence all over the album (and in the covers)

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Tue Oct 26 2021
5

A definite classic-- nice to hear the songs that I had known before collected in an album.

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Tue Oct 26 2021
5

Really great album. Nice and groovy.

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Tue Nov 09 2021
5

9/10, masterpiece OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO DOWN THE ROAD I GO

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Mon Nov 15 2021
5

Es la primera vez que escucho un disco de CCR completo, porque solo conocía las rolas que sonaban sueltas en Universal o en compilaciones de los 60/70. Me gustó especialmente conocer más la voz de Fogerty y las guitarras en este disco que van más allá de la simpleza que hacen en Have You Ever Seen the Rain. Además, me gustó lo variado del disco: desde rockabilly hasta swamp rock incluyendo unos covers muy bien hechos.

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Mon Nov 15 2021
5

Creo que cualquier persona medianamente familiarizada con la música en general puede ubicar cerca de la mitad de las canciones de este disco, a pesar de no saber de quien son o a qué disco pertenecen. Sonido impecable, arreglos de guitarra poco comunes, como 8 géneros de música en el mismo disco todos bien ejecutados... No hay peros con el disco, una de las grandes bandas de rock con un sonido que se siente como "comfort food."

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Wed Nov 17 2021
5

Very few make rock music like the Creedence Clearwater Revival. Just a really good album, indeed.

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Wed Nov 24 2021
5

Some of my favorite songs on this album.

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Tue Dec 14 2021
5

The whole album’s vocals and music comforts a cosy part of my brain.

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Wed Dec 15 2021
5

Tons of Bangers on this one.

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Fri Dec 17 2021
5

Pieza de colección. Hippies buena vibra.

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Mon Jan 03 2022
5

Not a huge classic rock guy, but I can certainly appreciate a legendary album. So many iconic songs on this one.

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Sun Jan 16 2022
5

We all love CCR in my house. This is probably their most fun record on the whole. It's still got some heavy hitters though, like "Run Through The Jungle" and "Long As I Can See the Light." They really make "Heard It Through the Grapevine" their own too. I'd listen to this nearly anytime.

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Tue Jan 18 2022
5

Really great shit. I love this album.

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Tue Jan 25 2022
5

Oh hell to the yes, CCR is my jam. Their blend of blues rock and folk/soul hits this beautiful sweet spot for me - I think some refer to their music as "americana". This record just keeps on grooving throughout the track list. While it's not my favorite of CCR's catalogue, there's some great hits here, along with a long version of Heard It Through The Grapevine which I hadn't heard before. I think where this group really strikes a chord (haha because get it?) with me is the songwriting and vocal style. Something about their lyrics and style has always drawn me in, and Fogerty's delivery of these lyrics is incredible, I absolutely love his style.

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Sat Jan 29 2022
5

a great rock and roll record - a wonderful band, fantastic arrangements and dynamics, glorious guitar parts that you can sing and one of the greatest voices in rock & roll

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Tue Feb 08 2022
5

Some music brings back strong memories. This was the soundtrack to a long weekend out of town. It was one of those experiences that makes me thankful that we didn't kill anyone from stupid teenage boy antics. This album was heard many times over many years.

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Thu Feb 10 2022
5

Brilliant album. Run Through The Jungle, and THAT version of Grapevine.

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Thu Feb 24 2022
5

Great album! So many different styles on one record.

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Sat Mar 05 2022
5

I was just a lad in 6th grade when, during a school assembly in the auditorium, we were treated to a performance of three numbers by a quartet of upperclassmen 8th graders. I think their name was similar to the 1960s psychedelic blues band, Blue Cheer (coincidentally based out of San Francisco, same as Creedence.) I cannot recall the other two songs the boys played, but I will never forget their closer: ‘Proud Mary.’ The minute I heard the opening riff, I was spellbound. Lord, I wanted to be in that band. It was all I could do not to jump on stage, body check the singer, and grab the mic myself. And while ‘Proud Mary’ is not featured on 'Cosmo’s Factory,' a shitload of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s other hits sure are, and just as good. There are more hits off this LP than there are mosquitos in the bayou at dusk. Out of the eleven songs, no less than six were hit singles. And if you throw in ‘I Heard It Through the Grapevine,’ that totals seven. And, with the exclusion of ‘Ramble Tamble,’ every single song on 'Cosmo’s Factory' written by band leader John Fogerty was a hit. Every single one! Just let that sink in for a moment. One of the main reasons why I rarely listen to our local ‘classic rock’ radio station these days is because of the programmer’s insistence on taking artists like Creedence, picking just a few of their hits, and playing them over and over and over and over and over and over and over again. I’ve heard ‘Lookin’ Out My Backdoor’ so many times I don’t really like it that much anymore. It’s a good song, but it’s suffered from overexposure. So, when I listened to 'Cosmo’s Factory' in its entirety, I was unexpectedly and pleasantly surprised at how great the non-hits are. The overplayed-hit-single Creedence I’ve grown a little weary of was born again while listening to the non-hit Creedence offerings, like the two late 50s/early 60s rockabillies ‘Ooby Dooby’ and ‘My Baby Left Me,’ or the traditional blues number, ‘Before You Accuse Me,’ or Motown’s ‘I Heard It Through the Grapevine.’ Marvin Gaye had a bit of success with this one, too, for those of you who are hip to that genre. Creedence is a genuinely fine band. Don’t be fooled by their seemingly simple sound. While they may come across as loose, unrehearsed even- like the Rolling Stones- they are most certainly not! In fact, the LP’s title is a reference to how long and hard Fogerty near daily rehearsed his band, inspiring drummer Doug ‘Cosmo’ Clifford to dub the rehearsal space, ‘The Factory.’ And while the band may have suffered under their taskmaster, 'Cosmo’s Factory' sure benefited. ‘Course, Fogerty himself is really the star shining brightest. Oh me, oh my, that swampy, filthy mud-caked waders vibe he gets on his heavily reverbed guitar is as signature a sound as B.B. King’s or Jimi Hendrix’s or Neil Young’s or Eddie Van Halen’s. When 'Cosmo’s Factory' opens with ‘Ramble Tamble,’ and the listener hears that guitar, there is no question who’s putting pick to strings. And wow, that opening number: beginning with a slow, brackish groove before then launching into double time and then a rambling tambling ‘down the road’ we go! The next number, ‘Before You Accuse Me,’ reveals Fogerty not only playing down and dirty blues on his guitar, but piano as well. Who knew he played piano? Or saxophone?! That’s right, on the final, ‘Long as I Can See the Light,’ Fogerty does a nice little sax solo, too. Three songs, three comments: 1) ‘Run Through the Jungle,’ referencing the Vietnam war in which America found itself entrenched in the year 1970. Again, I’ve heard this hit a zillion times, but I was struck this time by the poetic lyrics (yes, Fogerty is a talented writer, as well): ‘Over on the mountain, thunder magic spoke. Let the people know my wisdom. Fill the land with smoke.’ The devil was most certainly on the loose, and Fogerty is radioing the soldiers to get their ass outta there, di di mau, run through the jungle, and ‘don’t look back to see.’ It’s hard to imagine any veteran of the Vietnam war not vividly recalling their own experience upon hearing this song. Very powerful. Evoking an emotion such as this is song writing at its finest. 2) ‘Long as I Can See the Light,’ features rhythm guitarist Tom Fogerty and bassist Stu Cook on harmony duties complimenting Fogerty’s melody, but in the spirit of full SATB parts, including a prominent bass harmony, something rarely, if ever, heard in rock music, and more often in a church congregation singing old gospel standards. 3) ‘I Heard It Through the Grapevine,’ clocking in at eleven minutes, the last eight of which are Creedence just jammin’ away like their fellow San Franciscan mates, Grateful Dead. The snobby music critic Ralph Gleason wrote that Creedence is an example of the Third Generation of San Francisco bands,’ with the meaning that they weren’t as good as the Dead, for example. And Creedence was definitely doing something very different from the other bay bands (Jefferson Airplane, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and the like.) But their cover of ‘Grapevine’ may be understood as a big ‘fuck you’ to Gleason. We can jam, too, just like the acid rockers; but, in our own way. And that, and everything else about this terrific LP allows me to replace my middle finger likewise extended to Gleason with a more positive thumb up for Creedence and 'Cosmo’s Factory.'

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Mon Mar 14 2022
5

There isn't a bad song on this. Actually, nothing short of "fucking great". Am I about to hand out two 5s in a row? I think so! exciting times. 5/5.

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