Creedence Clearwater Revival frequently recorded songs with spooky or eerie themes, some of which were inspired by frontman John Fogerty’s fascination with the music of New Orleans.
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With Halloween taking place on Wednesday, a new playlist has been created featuring some of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s spookiest tunes. The list, dubbed “Bad Moon Rising: Shadows on the Bayou,” features a few popular tunes, including “Bad Moon Rising” and “Born of the Bayou,” but mainly is made up of deep cuts.
You can listen to the 10-track playlist now at various popular streaming platforms, including Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music.
Here’s a look at a few of the tunes featured on the playlist:
“Bad Moon Rising”
“Bad Moon Rising” was the first single released from CCR’s third studio effort, Green River, arriving in April 1969, three months before the album. The song was one of the band’s biggest hits, reaching No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.
“Bad Moon Rising” is sung by a character who senses impending dangers, including, hurricanes, lightning and floods, signaled by an ominous moon. The song was inspired by the 1941 supernatural-themed film The Devil and Daniel Webster, which tells the story of a man who sells his soul to the devil in return for earthly riches.
“Tombstone Shadow”
“Tombstone Shadow” was also featured on Green River, which was released in August 1969. According to Songfacts, Fogerty was inspired to write the tune after visiting a fortune teller in San Bernardino, California.
The spiritualist warned Fogerty that he should avoid traveling in airplanes and to expect 13 months of bad luck.
“I Put a Spell on You”
“I Put a Spell on You” was a popular 1956 blues-rock song by Screamin’ Jay Hawkins that CCR covered on their self-titled 1968 debut album.
The spooky, minor-key tune is sung by a character who warns his unfaithful lover that he’s put a spell on her because of her two-timing ways.
“It Came Out of the Sky”
“It Came Out of the Sky” appeared on Creedence’s fourth album, Willy and the Poor Boys, released in October 1969. The song tells the humorous story of the hysteria that occurs when an unidentified object comes crashing from outer space to Earth.
In the raved-up rock ‘n’ roll tune, Fogerty pokes fun at the fear and greed that might accompany such an event, including how the media, the government, and the Vatican might react.
Creedence Clearwater Revival, “Bad Moon Rising: Shadows on the Bayou” Playlist:
- “Bad Moon Rising”
- “Tombstone Shadow”
- “I Put a Spell on You”
- “Graveyard Train”
- “Pagan Baby”
- “It Came Out of the Sky”
- “Sinister Purpose”
- “Gloomy”
- “Born on the Bayou”
- “Effigy”
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