Willy and the Poor Boys
Encyclopedia
Willy and the Poor Boys is the fourth studio album by American
rock
band Creedence Clearwater Revival
, released by Fantasy Records
in November 1969, and was the last of three studio albums that the band released in that year (see 1969 in music
).
The album features the songs "Down on the Corner
", from which the album got its name, and "Fortunate Son
," which is a well known protest song
.
In 2003, the album was ranked number 392 on Rolling Stone
magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time
.
, Green River
. Shortly after the band began recording songs for its next LP, Willy and the Poor Boys. Two months later the band released its sixth single
, "Down on the Corner
" b/w "Fortunate Son
". The single's A-side
reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100
and its B-side made it to #14, both in 1969.
When the band members were finalizing the album, they and photographer Basul Parik went over to the intersection of Peralta St. and Hollis St. in Oakland, California
and shot the photograph of the cover at Duck Kee Market owned by Ruby Lee.
The album was released in November as Fantasy 8397, and in 1970 made the Top 10 in six countries, including France
where it reached #1.
On December 16, 1970, the Recording Industry Association of America
certified
the album Gold(500,000 units sold). Almost 20 years later, on December 13, 1990, the album was certified platinum(1,000,000 units sold) and 2x Platinum(2,000,000 units sold).
In 1982 the band's rendition of Lead Belly's "Cotton Fields" made #50 on Billboard
magazine's Country Singles
chart.
On June 10, 2008 the album was remastered and released by Concord Music Group
as a Compact Disc
, with three bonus tracks.
, which stated it was "the best one yet". Allmusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine
contrasted Willy and the Poor Boys with their previous album, Green River
because the songs were softer and more upbeat, except for "Effigy", and stating that "Fortunate Son" is not as dated as most of the other protest songs of the era. However, he also feels the song is a little out of place on the album. He also compared "Poorboy Shuffle" to songs performed by jug band
s and he called the album "pure". In the Blender
magazine review of the album it was called the opposite of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
and psychedelic rock
which the reviewer feels is because of the band's performance at the Woodstock Festival
. In his review for the album, Robert Christgau
says that he thought it was their best album, when it was released, and feels John Fogerty's political lyrics are easy to understand and he gave the album his highest rating of all of CCR's albums. For his Rolling Stone
review of the 40th Anniversary reissue of the album, Barry Walters called the album "relaxed" and gives credit to Fogerty for writing a protest song, "Fortunate Son", that has a good beat to it.
, except where noted.
Side one
Side two
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Additional musicians
Production
People of the United States
The people of the United States, also known as simply Americans or American people, are the inhabitants or citizens of the United States. The United States is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds...
rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band Creedence Clearwater Revival
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Creedence Clearwater Revival was an American rock band that gained popularity in the late 1960s and early 1970s with a number of successful singles drawn from various albums....
, released by Fantasy Records
Fantasy Records
Fantasy Records is a United States-based record label that was founded by Max and Sol Weiss in 1949 in San Francisco, California. They had previously operated a record-pressing plant called Circle Record Company before forming the Fantasy label...
in November 1969, and was the last of three studio albums that the band released in that year (see 1969 in music
1969 in music
-Events:Perhaps the two most famous musical events of 1969 were concerts. At a Rolling Stones concert in Altamont, California, a fan was stabbed to death by Hells Angels, a biker gang that had been hired to provide security for the event...
).
The album features the songs "Down on the Corner
Down on the Corner
"Down on the Corner" is a song by the American band Creedence Clearwater Revival. It appeared on their fourth studio album, Willy and the Poor Boys . The song chronicles the tale of the fictional band Willy and the Poor Boys, and how they play on street corners to cheer people up and ask for nickels...
", from which the album got its name, and "Fortunate Son
Fortunate Son (song)
"Fortunate Son" is a song by Creedence Clearwater Revival on their album Willy and the Poor Boys in 1968. It was released as a single, together with "Down on the Corner", in September 1968. This song reached #14 on the United States charts. It won the RIAA Gold Disc award in December 1970...
," which is a well known protest song
Protest song
A protest song is a song which is associated with a movement for social change and hence part of the broader category of topical songs . It may be folk, classical, or commercial in genre...
.
In 2003, the album was ranked number 392 on Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time
The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
"The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is the title of a 2003 special issue of American magazine Rolling Stone, and a related book published in 2005.Related news articles:...
.
History
In August, CCR released its third LPLP record
The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
, Green River
Green River (album)
Green River is the third studio album by American rock and roll band Creedence Clearwater Revival, released in August 1969 after their second release Bayou Country which was released in January of the same year . In 2003, the album was ranked number 95 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500...
. Shortly after the band began recording songs for its next LP, Willy and the Poor Boys. Two months later the band released its sixth single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
, "Down on the Corner
Down on the Corner
"Down on the Corner" is a song by the American band Creedence Clearwater Revival. It appeared on their fourth studio album, Willy and the Poor Boys . The song chronicles the tale of the fictional band Willy and the Poor Boys, and how they play on street corners to cheer people up and ask for nickels...
" b/w "Fortunate Son
Fortunate Son (song)
"Fortunate Son" is a song by Creedence Clearwater Revival on their album Willy and the Poor Boys in 1968. It was released as a single, together with "Down on the Corner", in September 1968. This song reached #14 on the United States charts. It won the RIAA Gold Disc award in December 1970...
". The single's A-side
A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
and its B-side made it to #14, both in 1969.
When the band members were finalizing the album, they and photographer Basul Parik went over to the intersection of Peralta St. and Hollis St. in Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
and shot the photograph of the cover at Duck Kee Market owned by Ruby Lee.
The album was released in November as Fantasy 8397, and in 1970 made the Top 10 in six countries, including France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
where it reached #1.
On December 16, 1970, the Recording Industry Association of America
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
certified
RIAA certification
In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets. Other countries have similar awards...
the album Gold(500,000 units sold). Almost 20 years later, on December 13, 1990, the album was certified platinum(1,000,000 units sold) and 2x Platinum(2,000,000 units sold).
In 1982 the band's rendition of Lead Belly's "Cotton Fields" made #50 on Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
magazine's Country Singles
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...
chart.
On June 10, 2008 the album was remastered and released by Concord Music Group
Concord Music Group
Concord Music Group is a record company owned by Village Roadshow formed in 2004 by the merger of Concord Records and Fantasy Records. In 2005, the company acquired the classics and jazz label Telarc International. On December 18, 2006, Concord announced the re-launch of the soul label Stax;...
as a Compact Disc
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
, with three bonus tracks.
Reception
The album was well received exemplified by the original review in Rolling StoneRolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
, which stated it was "the best one yet". Allmusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for Allmusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for Allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the nephew...
contrasted Willy and the Poor Boys with their previous album, Green River
Green River (album)
Green River is the third studio album by American rock and roll band Creedence Clearwater Revival, released in August 1969 after their second release Bayou Country which was released in January of the same year . In 2003, the album was ranked number 95 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500...
because the songs were softer and more upbeat, except for "Effigy", and stating that "Fortunate Son" is not as dated as most of the other protest songs of the era. However, he also feels the song is a little out of place on the album. He also compared "Poorboy Shuffle" to songs performed by jug band
Jug band
A Jug band is a band employing a jug player and a mix of traditional and home-made instruments. These home-made instruments are ordinary objects adapted to or modified for making of sound, like the washtub bass, washboard, spoons, stovepipe and comb & tissue paper...
s and he called the album "pure". In the Blender
Blender (magazine)
Blender was an American music magazine that billed itself as "the ultimate guide to music and more". It was also known for sometimes steamy pictorials of celebrities....
magazine review of the album it was called the opposite of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is the eighth studio album by the English rock band The Beatles, released on 1 June 1967 on the Parlophone label and produced by George Martin...
and psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
which the reviewer feels is because of the band's performance at the Woodstock Festival
Woodstock Festival
Woodstock Music & Art Fair was a music festival, billed as "An Aquarian Exposition: 3 Days of Peace & Music". It was held at Max Yasgur's 600-acre dairy farm in the Catskills near the hamlet of White Lake in the town of Bethel, New York, from August 15 to August 18, 1969...
. In his review for the album, Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau is an American essayist, music journalist, and self-proclaimed "Dean of American Rock Critics".One of the earliest professional rock critics, Christgau is known for his terse capsule reviews, published since 1969 in his Consumer Guide columns...
says that he thought it was their best album, when it was released, and feels John Fogerty's political lyrics are easy to understand and he gave the album his highest rating of all of CCR's albums. For his Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
review of the 40th Anniversary reissue of the album, Barry Walters called the album "relaxed" and gives credit to Fogerty for writing a protest song, "Fortunate Son", that has a good beat to it.
Original album
All songs written and composed by J. C. FogertyJohn Fogerty
John Cameron Fogerty is an American rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist, best known for his time with the swamp rock/roots rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival and as a #1 solo recording artist. Fogerty has a rare distinction of being named on Rolling Stone magazine's list of 100 Greatest...
, except where noted.
Side one
- "Down on the CornerDown on the Corner"Down on the Corner" is a song by the American band Creedence Clearwater Revival. It appeared on their fourth studio album, Willy and the Poor Boys . The song chronicles the tale of the fictional band Willy and the Poor Boys, and how they play on street corners to cheer people up and ask for nickels...
" – 2:47 - "It Came Out of the Sky" – 2:56
- "Cotton FieldsCotton Fields"Cotton Fields" is a song written by blues musician Huddie Ledbetter, better known as Lead Belly who made the first recording of the song in 1940.-Early versions:...
" (Huddie Ledbetter) – 2:54 - "Poorboy Shuffle" – 2:27
- "Feelin' Blue" – 5:05
Side two
- "Fortunate SonFortunate Son (song)"Fortunate Son" is a song by Creedence Clearwater Revival on their album Willy and the Poor Boys in 1968. It was released as a single, together with "Down on the Corner", in September 1968. This song reached #14 on the United States charts. It won the RIAA Gold Disc award in December 1970...
" – 2:21 - "Don't Look Now (It Ain't You or Me)" – 2:12
- "The Midnight SpecialMidnight Special (song)"Midnight Special" is a traditional folk song thought to have originated among prisoners in the American South. The title comes from the refrain which refers to the Midnight Special and its "ever-loving light" ....
" (TraditionalTraditional musicTraditional music is the term increasingly used for folk music that is not contemporary folk music. More on this is at the terminology section of the World music article...
, arr.ArrangementThe American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
J. C. Fogerty) – 4:14 - "Side o' the Road" – 3:26
- "Effigy" – 6:31
40th Anniversary Edition CD bonus tracks
- "Fortunate SonFortunate Son (song)"Fortunate Son" is a song by Creedence Clearwater Revival on their album Willy and the Poor Boys in 1968. It was released as a single, together with "Down on the Corner", in September 1968. This song reached #14 on the United States charts. It won the RIAA Gold Disc award in December 1970...
" (Live in ManchesterManchesterManchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
; 9/1/71) – 2:15 - "It Came Out of the Sky" (Live in BerlinBerlinBerlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
; 9/16/71) – 3:27- Recorded for Live in Europe
- "Down on the CornerDown on the Corner"Down on the Corner" is a song by the American band Creedence Clearwater Revival. It appeared on their fourth studio album, Willy and the Poor Boys . The song chronicles the tale of the fictional band Willy and the Poor Boys, and how they play on street corners to cheer people up and ask for nickels...
" (Jam with Booker T. & the M.G.'sBooker T. & the M.G.'sBooker T. & the M.G.'s is an instrumental R&B band that was influential in shaping the sound of southern soul and Memphis soul. Original members of the group were Booker T. Jones , Steve Cropper , Lewie Steinberg , and Al Jackson, Jr....
at Fantasy StudiosFantasy StudiosFantasy Studios is a recording studio in Berkeley, California at the Zaentz Media Center, known for its recording of award-winning albums such as Journey's Escape and Green Day's Dookie. Built as a private recording studio for artists on the Fantasy Records label in 1971, it was opened to the...
, 1970) – 2:48
Personnel
Per liner notesCreedence Clearwater Revival
- John FogertyJohn FogertyJohn Cameron Fogerty is an American rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist, best known for his time with the swamp rock/roots rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival and as a #1 solo recording artist. Fogerty has a rare distinction of being named on Rolling Stone magazine's list of 100 Greatest...
– harmonicaHarmonicaThe harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
on "Poorboy Shuffle", vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
, producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, arrangerArrangementThe American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents... - Tom FogertyTom FogertyThomas Richard "Tom" Fogerty was an American musician, best known as the rhythm guitarist in Creedence Clearwater Revival and the elder brother of John Fogerty, lead singer and lead guitarist in that band....
– rhythm guitarRhythm guitarRhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...
, except on tracks 11 & 12 - Stu CookStu CookStuart Alden Cook is an American bass guitarist, best known for his work in the rock band, Creedence Clearwater Revival....
– washtub bassWashtub bassThe washtub bass, or "gutbucket", is a stringed instrument used in American folk music that uses a metal washtub as a resonator. Although it is possible for a washtub bass to have four or more strings and tuning pegs, traditional washtub basses have a single string whose pitch is adjusted by...
on "Poorboy Shuffle", bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Doug CliffordDoug CliffordDoug "Cosmo" Clifford played drums in the American rock band, Creedence Clearwater Revival...
– washboardWashboardA washboard is a tool designed for hand washing clothing. With mechanized cleaning of clothing becoming more common by the end of the 20th century, the washboard has become better known for its originally subsidiary use as a musical instrument....
on "Poorboy Shuffle", drumDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
s
Additional musicians
- Booker T. JonesBooker T. JonesBooker T. Jones is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, record producer and arranger, best known as the frontman of the band Booker T. and the MGs. He has also worked in the studios with many well-known artists of the 20th and 21st centuries, earning him a Grammy Award for lifetime...
– organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
on track 13 - Steve CropperSteve CropperSteve Cropper , also known as Steve "The Colonel" Cropper, is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the guitarist of the Stax Records house band, Booker T...
– guitar on track 13 - Donald "Duck" Dunn – bass on track 13
- Al Jackson, Jr. – drums on track 13
Production
- Basul Parik – photographyPhotographyPhotography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
- Chris Clough – 2008 compilation producer
- Ed WardEd Ward (writer)Edmund P. "Ed" Ward is an American writer and radio commenter, known since 1986 as the "rock-and-roll historian" for NPR's program Fresh Air and one of the original founders of Austin's South by Southwest music festival....
– 2008 liner notesLiner notesLiner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:... - Joel SelvinJoel SelvinJoel Selvin is a San Francisco-based music critic and author known for his weekly column in the San Francisco Chronicle which ran from 1972 to 2009. Selvin has written books covering various aspects of pop music and has interviewed a large number of musical artists...
– 2008 liner notes - Rikka Arnold – project assistance
- Bill Belmont – project assistance
- Jennifer Peters – project assistance
Charts
| Chart (1970) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada RPM RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... 100 Albums |
2 |
| France (InfoDisc) | 1 |
| Netherlands (Top 100) | 7 |
| Norway (Top 40 VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... ) |
2 |
| UK (The Official Charts Company UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... ) |
10 |
| US Billboard Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
3 |
| US Billboard R&B Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
28 |