John Fogerty was born on May 28, 1945, in Berkeley, California—the fourth of five boys raised in nearby El Cerrito by parents Galen and Edith. He grew up in a working-class household, where money was tight, but love was overflowing. At a very young age, John discovered gospel, blues and country music from Southern cities like Memphis and New Orleans. He’d never been there, but he felt them deeply.
By the time he was a teenager, Fogerty was playing guitar and started a band with his older brother, Tom, and two classmates from junior high—Stu Cook and Doug Clifford. They called themselves The Blue Velvets at first, before renaming themselves The Golliwogs. In 1967, they decided on one final name change—Creedence Clearwater Revival (CCR).
With his go-to flannel shirt, a Gibson Les Paul and that signature raw, raspy and emotion-filled voice, John led the band on a truly historic journey to the top. From 1969 to 1971, CCR was the biggest band in the world—outselling even The Beatles.
Songs like “Proud Mary,” “Bad Moon Rising,” “Have You Ever Seen the Rain” and “Fortunate Son” became the soundtrack for a generation—and more than 50 years later, remain deeply embedded in American culture.
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But behind all of that staggering success was a devastating betrayal and heartbreak that nearly cost John his career, his wealth and his sanity. It started within the band itself. By 1970, the internal tension had reached a breaking point. As the group’s primary songwriter, lead singer and producer, John ran a tight ship, but his bandmates—including his brother Tom—wanted more creative input with regard to the music. In 1971, Tom left the band.
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CCR continued on as a trio and released their seventh and final album, Mardi Gras, in 1972. With Cook and Clifford now sharing songwriting and lead vocals, the album was a critical disaster—often cited as one of the worst farewell records in rock history. Six months later, on October 16, 1972, John officially disbanded Creedence Clearwater Revival.
Related: The Story Behind Creedence Clearwater Revival’s 1971 Hit That’s Storming the Charts Again
But the truly devastating blow was still to come. Before the hit songs and stadium tours, John was a young musician so thrilled about being offered a record deal that he signed a disastrous contract with Fantasy Records executive Saul Zaentz—a deal that stripped him of the copyrights to his own songs. So when CCR fell apart, John found himself locked in a creative prison. The harder he fought for his music, the tighter the legal knots became. And it all culminated in one of the most bizarre lawsuits in music history: In 1985, Zaentz served John with a $144 million lawsuit, claiming his new solo song sounded too much like an old CCR song. In other words, Zaentz was suing John Fogerty for plagiarizing John Fogerty—absolutely unconscionable.
During the trial, John brought his guitar to the witness stand and played both songs to prove they were different. The jury decided “The Old Man Down the Road” was not a copy of “Run Through the Jungle” and John won the case. But along the way, he racked up over $1.3 million in legal fees and asked the court to make Zaentz responsible for paying them. They did not agree.
So Fogerty appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. On March 1, 1994, Fogerty won 9-0 in a unanimous decision. The court ruled that defendants and plaintiffs must be treated equally when awarding attorney fees, and John was ultimately awarded $1,347,519.15. It became a landmark ruling in copyright law that still protects artists to this day.
But his victories only proved that he didn’t plagiarize himself and covered his legal fees. Zaentz still owned “Proud Mary,” “Bad Moon Rising,” “Fortunate Son”—every single CCR song Fogerty wrote. Every time Fogerty performed them live, or they got played on the radio, Zaentz pocketed the publishing royalties. (Think Taylor Swift vs. Scooter Braun.)
John made the heartbreaking choice to protect his integrity—he walked away. For nearly a decade after CCR ended, he essentially disappeared from the music world, paralyzed by the legal battles, the betrayals and periods of depression. Think about how often you hear CCR on the radio or on TV commercials and movie soundtracks—imagine writing all of those songs and hearing your own voice, knowing you weren’t getting a single dime? And the person who was getting rich from your pride and passion tried to sue you for $144 million!?
But in January 1985, John came roaring back when he dropped his new solo album, Centerfield, with lead single “The Old Man Down the Road” climbing into the Top 10. When the album hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200, it meant John had released No. 1 albums in the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s. Only five artists in history have achieved this feat: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, the Rolling Stones, Barbra Streisand and yes, John Fogerty.
Related: All the Times John Fogerty Had a No. 1 Album, With and Without Creedence Clearwater Revival, and What He’s Said About Them
To this day, the album’s title track is one of Fogerty’s biggest hits, but strangely enough, it was kind of an afterthought! “Centerfield” was first released as a B-side to “Rock and Roll Girls,” but it became an instant baseball anthem. It even earned John the honor of being the first musician ever inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame!
But he wasn’t just finding happiness in his new music. In 1986, John would find the love of his life—Julie Lebiedzinski—at one of his concerts. On April 20, 1991, the two were married in her hometown of Elkhart, Indiana. Julie became his rock, his manager and mother of their three children—Shane, Tyler and Kelsy. She even reunited John with another past love—his 1969 Rickenbacker guitar. He’d written every CCR hit on it and thought it was lost forever—only for her to somehow track it down and surprise him with it.
Photo by Ron Galella, Ltd. on Getty Images
But on January 12, 2023, John got the one back that he’d been missing the most: the majority stake in his global publishing rights for Creedence Clearwater Revival. Every song he had poured his heart into as a young man was finally his again. “This is something I thought would never be a possibility,” he said. “After 50 years, I am finally reunited with my songs.” The next day, he added, “I have been waiting my entire career for this moment, and I am honored to share it with my family and with you!”
On August 22, 2025, John released Legacy: The Creedence Clearwater Revival Years (John’s Version)—a brand new album of 20 re-recorded CCR classics that he now fully owns. (If that subtitle sounds familiar, it should: John was directly inspired by Swift’s “Taylor’s Version” re-recordings.) The entire album was a family affair, with John’s three children—Shane, Tyler and Kelsy—playing instruments on every track.
Over the last 50 years, John Fogerty has given us a true masterclass on how riding through our hardest times can turn into our greatest blessings—and that’s why he’s today’s quote of the day.
Quote of the Day by John Fogerty
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“Sometimes I think life is just a rodeo, the trick is to ride and make it to the bell.”
If anyone knows what it means to hold on during tough times, it’s John Fogerty. In one perfect sentence, he captures an important truth. We can’t predict hard times and heartbreak and we don’t know how crazy life will get. We simply have to hold on for the ride and keep the faith because incredible things are waiting for us.
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Deeper Meaning of John Fogerty’s Quote—Keep Holding On
When most people think about John Fogerty, they think about the hit records, the sold-out tours, the Grammys and every other accolade. But his path to incredible success was paved with legal battles, betrayals and a lifelong battle with depression. It’s kind of like when you scroll through a friend, co-worker or relative’s social media page and start to feel down on yourself—you have to remember that it’s a carefully curated highlight reel. They’re not showing the hardest challenges they’ve faced.
So whenever you start to feel like you’re stuck in the dark, or like you want to give up, just hold on. Life is a wild ride and we have to hold on through the hard times to get to the better ones. Like John said, “The trick is to ride and make it to the bell.”
More Quotes by John Fogerty
- “If you love what you do, you’re going to keep doing it regardless of the obstacles.”
- “I don’t know that all the demons have been beaten, but I’m very, very proud of those songs.”
- “A great song can make you feel something you didn’t know you needed to feel.”
- “Keep on chooglin’. It just means to keep moving forward, keeping a good attitude, and driving ahead.”
- “Kids don’t quite get what the consequences are until the consequences are due.”
- “Other people want a career or success because they think that will help them find their personal life somewhere. I’ve done it the other way around. What I have is what everybody else is looking for.”
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