Ok so you are probably wondering when the reissues from Concord covering Creedence Clearwater Revival are going to stop right? I would venture to guess until all the material in their vaults is completely exhausted. Why not? The music is still popular and it sells. If I was running the label I would do the same thing. It is different if a label is always repackaging the same materials over and over again (see Led Zeppelin). In a sense they are here but different versions are being made available. They sent this music to the right person too. I love this band and have covered all of the reissues including the first round of all their studio albums, the box set then the remastered digi-pack versions of the studio albums for the 40th anniversary with new bonus tracks. Sound like overkill to you? I guess it depends on your taste in music and what kind of listener you are. From this corner I have to say that I do appreciate what is going on here.
The Singles Collection comes housed in nice cardboard slip case with two CDs, a DVD of 4 vintage (as they indicate pre MTV videos and yes there were music videos long before MTV, they just popularized it ) videos that shows a very young band at work. The videos are great from a historical perspective and give you an idea of what everyone looked like back in the sixties. Don’t expect pristine polished videos but for CCR fans it’s a real treat. I am wondering if more time was put into the videos they could have been restored to better versions, possibly not. Also included with the package is a poster of all the singles artwork suitable for framing.
I never heard all the single versions of these classic tracks and yes they really are different than the album versions-shorter and different mixes as one might expect. I personally enjoy the album versions of the CCR catalog and some of the extended guitar jams from their leader John Fogerty. As I have always said about CCR music, it never gets old or wears on me. As Ben Fong Torres so powerfully describes in the detailed liner notes and CD booklet “Radio needed acts like CCR” and the faithful still do and fans that have yet discovered them will, they just don’t know it yet.
The sound quality is excellent and the packaging is above average for this set and I am glad that I had a chance to hear the versions of these songs. I also appreciate everything that came with set to make it different and collectable. Next out is the same set issued in 45 RPM vinyl. That will quickly become a collector’s item and will likely be under a few Christmas trees this year. If you want to hear some different versions of the original CCR swamp rock boogie or need an introduction this is a good place to start.
Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck
October 28, 2009
