Reader's Poll: Top 10 John Fogerty Songs

Photo: ceedub13, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Our Top 10 John Fogerty songs list looks back at the solo songs and albums John Fogerty released in his post-Creedence Clearwater Revival days. This list only presents songs from his solo albums. It does not include any of his Creedence Clearwater Revival songs. We have already published a separate article on the legendary songs he composed as a member of his band, Creedence Clearwater Revival. In the 1980s, John Fogerty released a pair of excellent albums loaded with hits that echoed his work with Creedence Clearwater Revival. These albums, including his smash hit “Centerfield” and so many others, helped catapult his solo career into the mainstream spotlight. He has continued performing and recording ever since. He is one of the last truly great Classic Rock stars that still sounds just as good, if not even better, than when he first started. The following list represents 10 of the best songs he released on his solo albums according to the site’s writers and a readers’ poll we conducted asking fans what their favorite John Fogerty solo songs were.

# 10 – Weeping In The Promised Land

We open up our top 10 John Fogerty songs list with Fogerty’s most recent recording, “Weeping In The Promised Land.” Our staff of writers selected this one. If there ever was a voice of rebellion, a voice screaming for justice, an artist not afraid to speak out, it has always been John Fogerty. Taking the lead in the 1960s from Bob Dylan, who took it from Woody Guthrie, John Fogerty is an artist who can not just stand around witnessing tragedy without responding.

In recent years, not many artists have spoken out against what they believe are political and social injustices for fear of lost sales or retaliation. Even during this horrible pandemic, we have heard too much silence from our great artists. Yes, there have been a few like Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen, Sheryl Crow, and a handful of others, but in the end, the people have raised their fists. “Weeping In The Promised Land” is an observation and a protest against what happened in 2020. It’s the most emotionally honest song to have been released in this past year. And it was John Fogerty who responded with it.

# 9 – Deja Vu (All Over Again)

Continuing with our Top 10 John Fogerty songs list, we present another song of protest and observance. Released in 2004, John Fogerty’s “Deja Vu (All Over Again)” echoes his masterful work with Creedence Clearwater Revival both musically and lyrically. With a guitar riff clearly and intentionally a play on his “Who’ll Stop The Rain” masterpiece, John Fogerty questions the Bush Era and the Iraq War in the same way he cried out against the Vietnam War over thirty years earlier.

# 8 – Premonition

At number eight on our top 10 John Fogerty songs list is the excellent 90s original John Fogerty song entitled “Premonition.” The song was released on his live 1997 album, also titled Premonition. The album was filled with classic John Fogerty songs from his 80s albums and of course, the songs he wrote for his band Creedence Clearwater Revival. The album sounds spectacular. The song “Premonition” rocks with the best of his solo work.

# 7 – Eye Of The Zombie

“Eye Of The Zombie” was the title track to his 1986 album Eye Of The Zombie. The album and single served as the follow-up to his massively successful 1985 album, Centerfield, which was released a year earlier. While not as commercially successful as the Centerfield album, the songs on the record were well-written and still a welcome addition to his catalog for fans of his work. This one is much darker than anything on the Centerfield album. Eye Of The Zombie is one of his most underrated works.

# 6 – Rock And Roll Girls

The first track from the Centerfield album to appear on this top 10 John Fogerty songs list is the fun song “Rock And Roll Girls.” The song was released as the second single from the Centerfield album. “Rock And Roll Girls” was one of those great songs with simple chord changes that garage bands loved to play, much like many of his earlier Creedence Clearwater Revival songs.

# 5 – Jambalaya (On the Bayou)

While “Jambalaya (On the Bayou),” may not be a John Fogerty original, the killer version that John Fogerty recored for his album The Blue Ridge Rangers deserves to be presented on this list. The album The Blue Ridge Rangers was released in 1993 without John Fogerty’s name on it. Eventually, it was reissued with his name. “Jambalaya (On the Bayou)” is a classic song written by Hank Williams.

# 4 – Rocking All Over The World

This is one that many people forget about. Some think this was a Creedence Clearwater Revival song. The John Fogerty song “Rocking All Over The World” was released on John Fogerty’s second solo album, simply titled John Fogerty. “Rocking All Over The World” was placed as the album’s opening track. It was also released as the record’s first single. The song broke the Billboard Top 40, peaking at number 27. The song was covered by the band Status Quo in 1977. It has also found a spot on many live setlists among some rock legends, including Bruce Springsteen, The Beach Boys, and many others who have performed the song in concert.

# 3 – Almost Saturday Night

At number three on our top 10 John Fogerty solo songs list is his classic early 1970s song “Almost Saturday Night.” The song was released on John Fogerty’s 1975 album John Fogerty. It was released as the follow-up single to “Rocking All Over The World.” Many people know this song from the very popular Dave Edmunds version released six years later in 1981.

# 2 – Centerfield

The following two songs on this John Fogerty list kind of run neck and neck in terms of popularity. Both songs were released on the grand album Centerfield, released in 1985. The song “Centerfield” was initially released as the B-Side to the single “Rock and Roll Girls.” However, over time, it soon became a much more popular song than the A-side. It’s one of those songs that have just become a part of pop culture, as its baseball tales were just so universal the song became loved by everyone.

# 1 – The Old Man Down The Road

We close out our John Fogerty solo songs list with a fantastic recording released in 1985. Listen to the sound of that guitar. That lick is incredibly addicting. The first second fans heard it, they knew John Fogerty had written a new classic. The Old Man Down The Road became a top 10 hit for John Fogerty, hitting number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song also reached number one on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks charts.