John Fogerty Buys Back Control Of Creedence Clearwater Revival Discography

Creedence Clearwater Revival frontman and principal songwriter John Fogerty has finally gained worldwide control of the band's discography after 50 years of trying to regain the rights to his songs.

In 1980, Fogerty relinquished his rights to the Creedence Clearwater Revival catalogue to get out of a difficult contract with Saul Zaentz’s Fantasy Records, which he initially signed in 1968.

"I tried really hard" to get the rights back to his music, Fogerty said, but Zaentz refused and even sued the Proud Mary singer for plagiarism and lost. Zaentz used the royalty money from CCR hits to fund multiple successful films, including One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Amadeus, and The English Patient, all of which won the Academy Award for Best Picture. 

After decades of fighting and even refusing to play the songs he wrote in CCR so Zaentz wouldn't get any money from his performances, Fogerty has purchased a majority interest in the discography, Billboard reports.

"I’m the dad [of these songs]. I created them. They never should have been taken away in the first place," the singer told Billboard. 

Concord bought Fantasy Records in 2004 and, in a good-faith move, restored Fogerty’s artist royalties. "Fogerty was set to regain another portion of the US rights under US copyright law when the songs turned 56 years old," Consequence Of Sound reported. The vocalist's wife and manager, Julie Fogerty, began negotiating for a majority interest.

"The happiest way to look at it is, yeah, it isn’t everything," Fogerty added, as he owns a majority but still doesn't have full ownership. "It’s not a 100% win for me, but it’s sure better than it was. I’m really kind of still in shock. I haven’t allowed my brain to really, actually, start feeling it yet."

An undisclosed number sealed the deal, and Fogerty now has a majority interest in some of rock and roll's biggest hits, such as Fortunate Son, Bad Moon Rising, Green River, Have You Ever Seen The Rain, Born On The Bayou, and many more.

Creedence Clearwater Revival were inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 1993 and remain one of America's biggest rock bands, despite only making music from 1959 to 1972. The band have sold over 28 million records in the United States alone.