Creedence Clearwater Revival – Travelin’ Band

Seven thirty-seven comin’ out of the sky
Won’t you take me down to Memphis on a midnight ride
I want to move
Playin’ in a travelin’ band

This one is a rocker and doesn’t let up. It came off of perhaps their best album Cosmo’s Factory and was released as a double A-side single with Who’ll Stop The Rain on the other side.

“Travelin’ Band” is very similar in style to the music of Little Richard, which Fogerty saw as a heartfelt tribute to the singer. Specialty Records, which owned Richard’s catalog, saw things differently and sued the band, reaching a settlement to earn some royalties from the song.

After the basic track was cut, John Fogerty went back to the studio and added many of the instrumental parts, including horns and piano, which he played himself.

Travelin’ Band/Who’ll Stop The Rain peaked at #2 in the Billboard 100, #4 in Canada, and #8 in the UK in 1970.

From Songfacts

Written by lead singer John Fogerty, this song is all about the hectic lifestyle of Creedence Clearwater Revival and their road warrior ways. In 1969, the band toured constantly and played many of the major festivals, including Woodstock. There was a rush of excitement in going from place to place, but as their drummer Doug Clifford explained, their baggage was constantly getting lost (“baggage gone, oh well”) and they spent a lot of time waiting around in the heat during those famous festivals. The traveling got easier for the band when they got their own private plane.

The lawsuit claimed the Little Richard’s “Good Golly Miss Molly” was being copied, but Creedence bass player Stu Cook said he thought it sounded more like “Long Tall Sally.” Cook described the song as a combination of ’50s Rock classics, but not a ripoff of any one song.

 

 

Travelin’ Band

Seven thirty seven comin’ out of the sky
Won’t you take me down to Memphis on a midnight ride
I want to move
Playin’ in a travelin’ band
Yeah
Well I’m flyin’ ‘cross the land tryin’ to get a hand
Playin’ in a travelin’ band

Take me to the hotel baggage gone, oh well
Come on, come on won’t you get me to my room
I want to move
Playin’ in a travelin’ band
Yeah
Well I’m flyin’ ‘cross the land, tryin’ to get a hand
Playin’ in a travelin’ band

Listen to the radio talkin’ ’bout the last show
Someone got excited, had to call the state militia
Want to move
Playin’ in a travelin’ band
Yeah
Well, I’m flyin’ ‘cross the land, tryin’ to get a hand
Playin’ in a travelin’ band

Here we come again on a Saturday night
With your fussin’ and your fightin’ won’t you get me to the rhyme
I want to move
Playin’ in a travelin’ band
Yeah
Well, I’m flyin’ ‘cross the land, tryin’ to get a hand
Playin’ in a travelin’ band

Playin’ in a travelin’ band
Playin’ in a travelin’ band
Won’t you give myself a hand?
Playin’ in a travelin’ band
Well, I’m flyin’ ‘cross the land, tryin’ to get a hand
Playin’ in a travelin’ band

Author: Badfinger (Max)

Power Pop fan, Baseball, Beatles, old movies, and tv show fan. Also anything to do with pop culture in the 60s and 70s... I'm also a songwriter, bass and guitar player.

26 thoughts on “Creedence Clearwater Revival – Travelin’ Band”

  9. Pretty stellar 45 with two great songs on it. Just finished listening to Centerfield Max. Such a great record.
    FYI- Tomorrow night I’m going live with Ladano at 7 pm EST which is 6 pm your time.
    It is going to be a night of discussion on some 1980 albums with a twist.
    Course if you can’t watch it Mikey will post it

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  10. Great tune and cool clip – Fogerty really was a powerhouse and frankly still is. I also dig the single’s B-side “Who’ll Stop the Rain,” as well as “Fortunate Son”!

    While I fully support giving songwriters their dues, that lawsuit sounds a bit ridiculous to me. “Travelin’ Band” uses chord changes that are common in a million other rock & roll songs. I don’t hear much resemblance to “Good Golly Ms. Molly” or “Long Tall Sally” for that matter, though Cook’s comment was kind of funny.

    Well, I guess CCR’s legal representation wasn’t as good as Zep’s for “Stairway to Heaven,” which is a much more obvious case.

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    1. I know…the song sounds like a million other of those types of songs. Chuck Berry could have sued everyone!
      I doubt if he would have got sued if it would have came out now…back then it was still close to the 50s…I guess.

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      2. There is only one reason I don’t…they had some great great albums but I got that greatest package Chronicles and never explored their albums as much. One of the few great singles/album bands.

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  14. Pingback: Creedence Clearwater Revival – Who’ll Stop The Rain – PowerPop… An Eclectic Collection of Pop Culture

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