The Bar Room Prophet Looks Back, & Ahead: A Q&A With John Fogerty

Guys like you, Dylan, McCartney, Springsteen … you’re used to hearing yourself referred to as legends. What does that word mean to you?

Bob Dylan is a legend. Bruce Springsteen’s a legend. And I’m probably not. There’s so much I’m still learning. It’s like a great baseball player. At some point, he announces [Fogerty’s voice deepens], “This is my final season.” So he does the last trot around the track. Everywhere he goes, he steps toward the plate. The hand comes up and he makes that wave, like unscrewing a light bulb. That’s what a legend is, and God, I’m certainly not there yet.

I know Bruce feels the same way. I saw him [in 2009] and he was gonna turn 60. So I said, “Hey, where are you gonna be?” He looks at me and says [imitating a raspy Bruce], “Somewhere out on the road.” And his eyes had a twinkle. He didn’t even know where. That was cool. That’s the rock and roll way, you know.