After a 50-year battle, John Fogerty has regained control of the worldwide publishing rights to his music with Creedence Clearwater Revival.
Unlike artists who have sold their catalogs in recent years, the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer has been able to purchase, for an undisclosed sum, a majority interest in his rights to CCR songs, which encompass more than 65 songs, including classics like “Proud Mary,” “Fortunate Son,” “Bad Moon Rising” and more.
Fogerty initially gave up his royalties on the CCR songs to Saul Zaentz’s Fantasy Records in 1980 in order to get out of his deal with the label. In 2004, when Concord purchased Fantasy Records, they reinstated and increased Fogerty’s royalties, which he hadn’t previously been receiving.
Concord still owns the CCR master recordings and will continue to look after Fogerty’s publishing interests, at least for a limited time.
“I’m really kind of still in shock,” 77-year-old Fogerty tells Billboard. “I’m the dad [of these songs]. I created them. They never should have been taken away in the first place.”
He adds, “The happiest way to look at it is, yeah, it isn’t everything. It’s not a 100% win for me, but it’s sure better than it was.”
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