Look up bend or Bend in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Bend can also refer to:

Engineering and construction[link]

• Bending, the deformation of an object due to an applied load
• Bend, a curvature in a pipe, tube, or pipeline (see bend radius)

Places[link]

• Bend, British Columbia, a city in Canada
• Bend, Oregon, a city in the United States

Music[link]

• Bend (guitar), a guitar technique
• Bending for harmonica
• Glissando
• Bend, a 2006 album by 8stops7.
• The Bends, an album by Radiohead

Transportation[link]

• Bend Airport (disambiguation), several airports
• Bend railway station

Other uses[link]

• Bend Elks, baseball team located in Bend, Oregon
• Bend (heraldry), a colored band that runs from the upper left (as seen by the viewer) corner of the shield to the lower right
• Decompression sickness, commonly "the bends"
• Bend knot, a general term for a knot used to tie two ropes together

See also[link]

• All pages beginning with "Bend"
• All pages with titles containing "Bend"
• Bendable (disambiguation)
• Bender (disambiguation)
• Bending (disambiguation)

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Gilbert Proesch^[1][2][3] (sometimes referred to as Gilbert Prousch,^[4] born 17 September 1943 in San Martin de Tor, Italy) and George Passmore (born 8 January 1942 in Plymouth, United Kingdom) are two artists who work together as a collaborative duo called Gilbert & George. They are known for their distinctive and highly formal appearance and manner and also for their brightly coloured graphic-style photo-based artworks.

Early lives[link]

Proesch was born in San Martin de Tor in South Tyrol, northern Italy, his mother tongue being Ladin.^[5] He studied art at the Sëlva School of Art and Hallein School of Art in Austria and the Akademie der Kunst, Munich, before moving to England.

Passmore was born in Plymouth in the United Kingdom, to a single mother in a poor household. He studied art at the Dartington College of Arts and the Oxford School of Art, then part of the Oxford College of Technology, which eventually became Oxford Brookes University.

The two first met on 25 September 1967 while studying sculpture at St Martins School of Art, now Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, one of six colleges in the University of the Arts, London. The two claim they came together because George was the only person who could understand Gilbert's rather poorly spoken English. In a 2002 interview with the Daily Telegraph, they said of their meeting: "it was love at first sight".^[6] They have claimed that they married in 2008.^[5]

For many years, Gilbert & George have been residents of Fournier Street, Spitalfields, East London. Their entire body of work has been created in, and focused on, London's East End, which they see as a microcosm. According to George, "Nothing happens in the world that doesn't happen in the East End."^[5]

Singing and living sculptures[link]

Whilst still students, Gilbert & George made The Singing Sculpture, which was first performed at Nigel Greenwood Gallery in 1970.^[7] For this performance they covered their heads and hands in multi-coloured metalised powders, stood on a table, and sang along and moved to a recording of Flanagan and Allen's song "Underneath the Arches", sometimes for a day at a time. The suits they wore for this became a sort of uniform for them. They rarely appear in public without wearing them. It is also unusual for one of the pair to be seen without the other. The pair regard themselves as "living sculptures". They refuse to disassociate their art from their everyday lives, insisting that everything they do is art.

[edit] The Pictures

The pair are perhaps best known for their large scale photo works, known as The Pictures. The early work in this style is in black and white, later with hand-painted red and yellow touches. They proceeded to use a range of bolder colours, sometimes backlit, and overlaid with black grids. Their work has addressed a wide variety of subject matter including religion and patriotism. The two artists also often appear in their own "pictures".^[8] They have described their "pictures" as a sort of "visual love letter from us to the viewer".^[9]

In 1986, Gilbert & George were criticized for a series of pictures seemingly glamourizing 'rough types' of London's East End such as skinheads, while a picture of an Asian man bore the title "Paki". Some of their work has attracted media attention because of the inclusion of (potentially) shocking imagery, such as nudity, depictions of sexual acts, and bodily fluids (faeces, urine and semen). The titles of these works, such as "Naked Shit Pictures" (1994) and "Sonofagod Pictures" (2005), also contributed to the attention.

A book, The Complete Pictures, 1971–2005, published in 2007 by Tate Modern, includes over a thousand examples of their art.^[10]

In May 2007, Gilbert & George were the subject of the BBC documentary Imagine, presented by Alan Yentob. At the end of the programme a picture entitled 'Planed' was made available as a free file download from the BBC and The Guardian websites for 48 hours. People who downloaded the files could then print and assemble the piece, and thus own an original Gilbert and George picture for free.^[11]

In 2000, they moved galleries to be represented by White Cube and since 2009 by ARNDT in Berlin.

[edit] Jack Freak Pictures

Jack Freak Pictures is, to date, the largest series of work created by Gilbert & George. According to Michael Bracewell “the Jack Freak Pictures are among the most iconic, philosophically astute and visually violent works that Gilbert & George have ever created.” The Union Jack and Gilbert & George are the two dominant pictorial images - appearing contorted, abstracted, and sometimes complete. The entire series is set in the East End of London indicated by flags, maps, street signs, graffiti and other less obvious motifs such as brickwork and foliage that can be found there.

After showing at White Cube’s Hoxton and Mason Yard galleries the exhibition travelled to the Croatian Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb; The Kröller-Müller Museum, the Netherlands; Centro de Arte Contemporaneo de Malaga, Spain; Arndt & Partner gallery, Berlin; the Baronian Francey Gallery, Brussels; and the Bozar Center for Fine Arts, Brussels.^[12]

Awards[link]

In 1981, Gilbert & George won the Regione Lazio Award (Torino), in 1986, the Turner Prize, and in 1989, the Special International Award (Los Angeles).

In 2005, they represented the UK at the Venice Biennale. Their 2007 retrospective at Tate Modern was the largest of any of the artists who have had retrospectives there.^[5]

In 2007, they won the South Bank Award, as well as the Lorenzo il Magnifico Award (Florence).

In December 2008, Gilbert & George were awarded Honorary Doctorates by London Metropolitan University.^{[citation needed]}

In October 2010, Gilbert & George were awarded the honorary title "Magister Artium Gandensis" by University College Ghent.^[13]

In November 2010, Gilbert & George were conferred with Honorary Doctorates by the University of East London.^[14]

In March 2012, Gilbert & George were conferred with Honorary Doctorates by the Open University.^[15]

Political stances[link]

Gilbert & George are an oddity in the artistic world because of their openly conservative political views and their praise for Margaret Thatcher. George claims never to have been anti-establishment: "you're not allowed to be Conservative in the art world, of course", he says. "Left equals good. Art equals Left. Pop stars and artists are meant to be so original. So how come everyone has the same opinion? ... We admire Margaret Thatcher greatly. She did a lot for art. Socialism wants everyone to be equal. We want to be different."^[5] The duo are monarchists and have said of the Prince of Wales: "We're also fond of the Prince of Wales: he's a gentleman."^[5]

Influences[link]

• Gilbert & George inspired two characters, Man Green and Man Yellow, Chief Constables of the Science Gestapo, in Grant Morrison's comicbook series The Filth. The two characters appear in pastiches of Gilbert & George's artwork, with the separate sections of the imagery acting as individual comic book panels.^{[citation needed]}
• In the book Man, Machine and Music, Pascale Bussy claims that the look Kraftwerk adopted between 1974 and 1978 was partly inspired by Gilbert & George.^{[citation needed]}

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Baudino, Isabelle; Gautheron, Marie, eds. (2005), Gilbert & George, E1, Lyon: ENS Editions (to accompany an exhibition at the Musée d'art moderne de Saint-Etienne, parallel French and English texts)
• Dutt, Robin (2004), Gilbert & George: obsessions & compulsions. London: Philip Wilson Publishers ISBN 0-85667-570-9
• Farson, Daniel (1999), Gilbert & George: a Portrait, London: HarperCollins
• Farson, Daniel (1991), With Gilbert & George in Moscow, London: Bloomsbury
• Fuchs, Rudi (2007), Gilbert & George: the Complete Pictures, Tate Publishing ISBN 978-1-85437-681-7
• Jahn, Wolf (1989), The Art of Gilbert & George. New York: Thames & Hudson
• Jonquet, François (2005), Intimate Conversation, London: Phaidon
• Rosenblum, Robert (2004), Introducing Gilbert & George, London: Thames & Hudson

Exhibition catalogues[link]

• 1997: Lehmann Maupin, New York, The Fundamental Pictures
• 2001: White Cube, London, New Horny Pictures
• 2004: Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, Paris, London E1 Pictures
• 2004: Gallery Bernier/Eliades, Athens, Thirteen Hooligan Pictures
• 2004: Sonnabend Gallery/Lehmann Maupin, New York Perversive Pictures 2004
• 2006: White Cube, London, Sonofagod Pictures
• 2012: White Cube, London, London Pictures

External links[link]

This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. Please improve this article by removing excessive or inappropriate external links, and converting useful links where appropriate into footnote references. (August 2010)

• 2007 interview from Independent on Sunday ABC Arts magazine
• Gilbert and George: Major Exhibition at Tate Modern, London, 2007
• Gilbert and George's film "The World of Gilbert and George" as a RealMedia stream at Tate Online (includes a question and answer session with the audience)
• Complete Biography
• Works by or about Gilbert & George in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• Arts: Gilbert and George on glbtq.com
• 'Gilbert and George unveil new hoodie art' – UK Guardian website, 23/5/2005
• The Singing Sculpture
• Gilbert & George at ARNDT Berlin
• Gilbert & George at Lehmann Maupin Gallery
• Gilbert and George at de Young - San Francisco
• Gilbert and George in the Video Data Bank
• Tateshots video - the artists speak about their 'Bomb Pictures'
• Gilbert & George at the at The Milwaukee Museum of Art Videos.
• G&G interview include URETHRA POSTCARD PICTURES exhibition at Ropac Gallery

Creedence Clearwater Revival
Creedence Clearwater Revival, 1968. L-R: Tom Fogerty, Doug Clifford, Stu Cook, and John Fogerty
Background information
Origin	El Cerrito, California
Genres	Roots rock, country rock, blues rock, swamp rock, Southern rock, rock and roll
Years active	1967–1972
Labels	Fantasy
Associated acts	The Blue Velvets, The Golliwogs, Creedence Clearwater Revisited
Website	www.creedence-online.net
Past members
John Fogerty Stu Cook Doug Clifford Tom Fogerty

Creedence Clearwater Revival (sometimes shortened to Creedence or CCR) 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.

The band consisted of lead vocalist, lead guitarist, and primary songwriter John Fogerty, his brother and rhythm guitarist Tom Fogerty, bassist Stu Cook, and drummer Doug Clifford. Their musical style encompassed country rock and swamp rock genres. Despite their San Francisco Bay Area origins, they positioned themselves as Southern rock stylists, singing about bayous, the Mississippi River, catfish, and other popular elements of Southern iconography.

Creedence Clearwater Revival's music is still a staple of American and worldwide radio airplay^[1] and often figures in various media. The band has sold 26 million albums in the United States alone.^[2] Creedence Clearwater Revival was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993.^[3] They were ranked at 82 on Rolling Stone's 100 greatest artists of all time.^[4]

History[link]

Before Creedence: 1959–1967[link]

John Fogerty, Doug Clifford, and Stu Cook (all born 1945) met at Portola Junior High School in El Cerrito, California and began playing instrumentals and "juke box standards" together under the name The Blue Velvets.^[5] The trio also backed singer Tom Fogerty— John Fogerty's older brother by three years—at live gigs and in the recording studio. By 1964, the band had signed to Fantasy Records, an independent jazz label based in San Francisco at the time. Fantasy had released Cast Your Fate to the Wind, a national hit for jazz pianist Vince Guaraldi. The record's success was the subject of a National Educational Television TV special, which prompted budding songwriter John Fogerty to contact the label.^[6] For the band's first release, however, Fantasy co-owner Max Weiss renamed the group the Golliwogs (after the children's literary character, Golliwogg), apparently to cash in on a wave of popular British bands with similar names.^{[citation needed]}

During this period, band roles underwent some changes. Stu Cook had gone from piano to bass guitar and Tom Fogerty became the band's rhythm guitarist. John Fogerty also began to write much of the band's material. Most notably, the young guitarist had taken over lead vocal duty. As Tom Fogerty would later say, "I could sing, but John had a sound!"^{[citation needed]}

Early success: 1967–68[link]

The group had suffered a setback in 1966 when the draft board called up John Fogerty and Doug Clifford for military service. Fogerty managed to enlist in the Army Reserve instead of the regular Army while Clifford did a tenure in the United States Coast Guard Reserve.

In 1967, Saul Zaentz purchased Fantasy Records from Weiss and offered the band a chance to record a full-length album, but only if the group changed its name. Never having liked The Golliwogs, the foursome readily agreed. Zaentz and the band agreed to come up with ten suggestions each, but he enthusiastically agreed to their first: Creedence Clearwater Revival. The band took the three elements from, firstly, Tom Fogerty's friend Credence Newball, (to whose first name Credence they added an extra 'e', making it resemble a faith or creed); secondly, "clear water" from a TV commercial for Olympia beer; and finally "revival", which spoke to the four members' renewed commitment to their band. Rejected contenders for the band's name included 'Muddy Rabbit', 'Gossamer Wump', and 'Creedence Nuball and the Ruby', but the last was the start that led to their finalized name.^[7]

By 1968, Fogerty and Clifford had been discharged from military service. All four members subsequently quit their jobs and began a heavy schedule of rehearsing and playing area clubs full-time.^{[citation needed]} AM radio programmers around the United States took note when a song from the LP, "Suzie Q", received substantial airplay in the San Francisco Bay Area as well as on Chicago's WLS.^{[citation needed]} A remake of a 1956 song by rockabilly singer Dale Hawkins, "Suzie Q" was the band's second single, and its first to crack the Top 40. Reaching #11 nationally, it would be Creedence's only Top 40 hit not written by John Fogerty. Two other singles from the debut were released: a cover of Screamin' Jay Hawkins' "I Put a Spell On You" (which made it to #58) and "Porterville" (released on the Scorpio label with writing credited to "T. Spicebush Swallowtail"), written during John Fogerty's Army Reserve stint.

Peak success: 1969–70[link]

With a string of live dates around the country to capitalize on their breakthrough, Creedence Clearwater Revival was also hard at work on their second album Bayou Country at RCA Studios in Los Angeles. Released in January 1969 and becoming a #7 platinum hit, the record was the first in a string of hit albums and singles which continued uninterrupted for the next three years.

Bayou Country's seven songs were well-honed from Creedence's constant live playing.^{[says who?]} The album showed a distinct evolution in approach, much more simple and direct than the band's first release.^{[says who?]} The single "Proud Mary," backed with "Born on the Bayou," went to Number 2 on the national Billboard chart. The former would eventually become the group's most-covered song, with some 100 cover versions by other artists to date, including a hit version in 1971 by Ike and Tina Turner. Bob Dylan named it his favorite single of 1969^{[citation needed]}. John Fogerty cites this song as being the result of high spirits on gaining his discharge from the Army Reserve.^{[citation needed]} The album also featured a remake of the rock & roll classic "Good Golly Miss Molly" and the band's nine-minute live-show closer, "Keep On Chooglin'", the entire song has only one chord: E7.^{[citation needed]}

Only weeks later, in March 1969, "Bad Moon Rising" backed with "Lodi" was released and peaked at #2 on the charts. The band's third album, Green River, followed in August and went gold along with the single "Green River," which again reached #2 on the Billboard charts. The B-side of "Green River," "Commotion" peaked at #30. The bar-band story of "Lodi" became a popular staple on then-emerging FM radio.^{[citation needed]} The band's emphasis on remakes of their old favorites continued with "Night Time Is the Right Time," which found its way into the band's live set as a crowd sing-along.^{[says who?]}

In 1969, Harry Shearer interviewed Cook and John Fogerty for the Pop Chronicles radio documentary.^[8][9]

Creedence continued to tour heavily including performances at the Atlanta Pop Festival and Woodstock. Their set was not included in the Woodstock film or its original soundtrack because John Fogerty felt the band's performance was subpar. (Several tracks from the event were eventually included in the 1994 commemorative box set.) Stu Cook's view: "The performances are classic CCR and I'm still amazed by the number of people who don't even know we were one of the headliners at Woodstock '69."^{[citation needed]} The band complained that they had to take the stage at three in the morning because the Grateful Dead had jammed far past their scheduled set time, so by the time Creedence began playing many in the audience had gone to sleep.^[7]

After Woodstock, Creedence was busy honing material for a fourth album, Willy and the Poor Boys, released in November 1969. "Down on the Corner", a good-time street-corner number, and "Fortunate Son" climbed to #3 and #14, respectively, by year's end. The album was Creedence in its standard form, featuring Fogerty originals and two reworked Leadbelly covers, "Cotton Fields" and "Midnight Special". Both the latter songs also had been performed by actor Harry Dean Stanton in the movie Cool Hand Luke, suggesting a subtle non-conformist theme to an apparently tradition-oriented album.

1969 had been a remarkable chart year for the band: three Top Ten albums, four hit singles (charting at #2, #2, #2, and #3) with three additional charting B-sides. On November 16, 1969, they performed "Fortunate Son" and "Down on the Corner" on The Ed Sullivan Show.^[10]

Just after the new year, 1970, Creedence Clearwater Revival released yet another new double-sided 45, "Travelin' Band"/"Who'll Stop the Rain". John Fogerty has said that the flip side was inspired by the band's experience at Woodstock.^{[citation needed]} The speedy "Travelin' Band", however, bore enough similarities to "Good Golly, Miss Molly" to warrant a lawsuit by the song's publisher;^{[citation needed]} it was eventually settled out of court.^{[citation needed]} In the meantime, the single had topped out at #2. The band also recorded its January 31, 1970, live performance at the Oakland Coliseum Arena in Oakland, California, which would later be marketed as a live album and television special. In February, the Creedence foursome was featured on the cover of Rolling Stone, although only John Fogerty was interviewed in the accompanying article.^[11]

In April 1970, Creedence was set to begin its first European tour. To support the upcoming live dates, Fogerty wrote "Up Around the Bend," and "Run Through the Jungle". The single—written, recorded, and shipped in only a few days' time—went to #4 that spring, enjoying enthusiastic response from European live audiences and high commercial success in the U.S. and the rest of the world.^{[citation needed]}

The band returned to Wally Heider's San Francisco studio in June to record what many consider their finest album, Cosmo's Factory.^{[weasel words]} The title was an in-joke about their various rehearsal facilities and factory work ethic over the years.^{[citation needed]} (Drummer Doug Clifford's longtime nickname is "Cosmo," due to his keen interest in nature and all things cosmic.)^{[citation needed]} The album contained the earlier Top 10 hits "Travelin' Band" and "Up Around the Bend" plus highly popular album tracks such as the opener "Ramble Tamble".

Cosmo's was released in July 1970, along with the band's fifth and final #2 national hit, "Lookin' Out My Back Door"/"Long As I Can See the Light." Though they topped some international charts and local radio countdowns, Creedence Clearwater Revival never had a #1 Billboard Hot 100 hit. Their five #2 singles were exceeded only by Elvis Presley and Madonna with 6 each and tied with The Carpenters. The band has the odd distinction of having the most #2 singles on the Billboard charts without ever having had a #1.^[12] Curiously on WLS the band had three #1, four #3, two #4, but no #2, singles.^[13]

Other cuts on the "Cosmo's Factory" album included an eleven-minute jam of the 1967 and 1968 R&B hit "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" (which would become a minor hit when an edited version was released as a single in the 70s a few years after the group's breakup) and a nearly note-for-note homage to Roy Orbison's "Ooby Dooby." John Fogerty's musical range clearly had expanded.^{[says who?]} He now wove in slide guitar, keyboards, saxophones, tape effects, and layered vocal harmonies—and pushed himself vocally more than ever on "Long As I Can See the Light." The album, eleven songs in all, was Creedence's best seller and went straight to #1 on the Billboard 200 album charts and #11 on Billboard's Soul Albums chart.

Decline and breakup: late 1970–1972[link]

The Cosmo's Factory sessions had seen the stirrings of tensions within the foursome as the incessant touring and heavy recording schedules took their toll.^{[citation needed]} John Fogerty had taken control of the group in its business matters and its artistic output.^{[citation needed]} The situation began to grate on Tom Fogerty, Cook, and Clifford, who wanted more of a say in the band's workings.^{[citation needed]} Fogerty resisted, feeling that a 'democratic' process would threaten their success.^{[citation needed]} Other issues included Fogerty's decision at a 1970 Nebraska gig that the band would no longer give encores at its live shows.^{[citation needed]}

Pendulum, released in December 1970, was another top seller, spawning a Top 10 hit with "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?". The album marked yet another shift in the band's approach: a more minimal approach to production values, as opposed to the "wall of sound" style of the previous three albums.^{[says who?]} However, John Fogerty included Hammond B3 Organ on many of the Pendulum tracks, notably "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?"; a recognition of the deep respect and influence of Booker T and The MG's,^{[says who?]} with whom the members of the band had jammed. The single's flip side, "Hey Tonight," was also a hit.

But even continued musical innovation and success could not resolve the differences between John and Tom Fogerty.^{[says who?]} During the recording of Pendulum Tom Fogerty, who had already quit the band several times in disgust but was always talked into returning, left Creedence Clearwater Revival permanently.^{[citation needed]} His departure was made public in February 1971. The band members considered replacing Tom but never did. Tom Fogerty stated on an Australian TV broadcast that no new member could endure being in Creedence.

In spring 1971, John Fogerty informed a startled Cook and Clifford the band would continue only by adopting a 'democratic' approach: each member would now write and sing his own material. Fogerty also would contribute only rhythm guitar to his bandmates' songs. Cook and Clifford, who had wanted more of a voice in the band's music and business decisions, resisted this arrangement. Fogerty insisted they accept the new arrangement, or he would quit the band.

Despite the dissension, the trio put its new work ethic to the test in the studio, releasing the Top 10 single "Sweet Hitch-Hiker" in July 1971, backed with Stu Cook's "Door to Door." The band toured both the U.S. and Europe that summer and autumn, with Cook's song a part of the live set. In spite of their continuing commercial success, however, relations among the three had become increasingly strained.

The band's final album, Mardi Gras, was released in April 1972, featuring songs written by Fogerty, Cook, and Clifford and a cover of "Hello Mary Lou" (a song Gene Pitney originally wrote for Ricky Nelson.) It received mostly poor, even savage reviews: Rolling Stone reviewer Jon Landau called it "the worst album I have ever heard from a major rock band".^[14]

The sales of Mardi Gras were weaker than those of the previous albums, though not a flop commercially. Mardi Gras peaked at #12, perhaps due more to the strength of the Creedence name than to the particular music on the record. This final release had the worst showings of any Creedence album and single since 1968. The 1971 hit single "Sweet Hitch-Hiker"/"Door to Door" was included on the album. Fogerty's "Someday Never Comes," backed with Clifford's "Tearin' Up the Country," also cracked the US Top 40. The album was also notable for featuring songs written by all three members of the band, with the writer also singing their song. Not surprisingly, the LP has a disjointed feel, with only those by Fogerty having the identifiable Creedence sound.

By this point, Fogerty was not only at direct odds with his bandmates, but he had also come to see the group's relationship with Fantasy Records as onerous, feeling that label owner Saul Zaentz had reneged on his promise to give the band a better contract. Cook — who holds a degree in business — claimed that because of poor judgment on Fogerty's part, Creedence Clearwater Revival had to abide by the worst record deal of any major American recording artist.

Despite the relatively poor reception of Mardi Gras and deteriorated relationships among the remaining band members, Creedence immediately embarked upon a two-month, 20-date U.S. tour. However, on October 16, 1972 – less than six months after the tour ended – Fantasy Records and the band officially announced the disbanding of Creedence Clearwater Revival.^[15]

Creedence Clearwater Revival never formally reunited after the break-up, although Cook and Clifford eventually started the band Creedence Clearwater Revisited.

As for John Fogerty's thoughts on the band and its eventual demise, he told a Swedish magazine in 1997: "I was alone when I made that [Creedence] music. I was alone when I made the arrangements, I was alone when I added background vocals, guitars and some other stuff. I was alone when I produced and mixed the albums. The other guys showed up only for rehearsals and the days we made the actual recordings. For me Creedence was like sitting on a time bomb. We'd had decent successes with our cover of 'Suzie Q' and with the first album. When we went into the studio to cut 'Proud Mary,' it was the first time we were in a real Hollywood studio, RCA's Los Angeles studio, and the problems started immediately. The other guys in the band insisted on writing songs for the new album, they had opinions on the arrangements, they wanted to sing. They went as far as adding background vocals to 'Proud Mary,' and it sounded awful. They used tambourines, and it sounded no better.

"That's when I understood I had a choice to make. At that point in time we were just a one hit wonder, and 'Suzie Q' hadn't really been that big a hit. Either this [the new album] would be a success, something really big, or we might as well start working at the car wash again. There was a big row. We went to an Italian restaurant and I remember that I very clearly told the others that I for one didn't want to go back to the car wash again. Now we had to make the best possible album and it wasn't important who did what, as long as the result was the very best we could achieve. And of course I was the one who should do it. I don't think the others really understood what I meant, but at least I could manage the situation the way I wanted. The result was eight million-selling double-sided singles in a row and six albums, who all went platinum. And Melody Maker had us as the best band in the world. That was after the Beatles split, but still... And I was the one who had created all this. Despite that, I don't think they understood what I was talking about....They were obsessed with the idea of more control and more influence. So finally the bomb exploded and we never worked together again."^[16]

After Creedence[link]

John Fogerty[link]

John Fogerty has continued to have a successful solo career for decades after the dissolution of CCR; he is pictured here performing in 2011

In 1973, Fogerty began his solo career with The Blue Ridge Rangers, his one-man band collection of country and gospel songs. Under his old Creedence contract, however, Fogerty owed Fantasy eight more records. In the end, he simply refused to work for the label any longer. The impasse was resolved only when Asylum Records' David Geffen bought Fogerty's contract for $1,000,000. His next major hit was Centerfield, a chart-topping success in 1985. On tour in 1986, however, Fogerty suffered complaints over his steadfast refusal to play Creedence songs live and suffered with recurring vocal problems which he blamed on having to testify in court. Fogerty's explanation for not playing Creedence Clearwater Revival songs was that he would have had to pay performance royalties to copyright holder Saul Zaentz—and that it was "too painful" to revisit the music of his past.

With the Centerfield album, Fogerty also found himself entangled in new, tit-for-tat lawsuits with Zaentz over the song "The Old Man Down the Road" which was, according to Zaentz, a blatant re-write of Fogerty's own 1970 Creedence hit "Run Through the Jungle". Since Fogerty had traded his rights to Creedence's songs in 1980 to cancel his remaining contractual obligations, Fantasy now owned the rights to "Run Through the Jungle" and sued Fogerty essentially for plagiarizing himself. While a jury ruled in Fogerty's favor, he did settle a defamation suit filed by Zaentz over the songs "Mr. Greed" and "Zanz Kant Danz". Fogerty was forced to edit the recording, changing the "Zanz" reference to "Vanz".

On February 19, 1987, at the Palomino Club in Los Angeles, Fogerty broke his self-imposed 1972 ban on performing his Creedence Clearwater Revival hits, on an admonition from Bob Dylan and George Harrison (who both joined him onstage) that "if you don't, the whole world's gonna think 'Proud Mary' is Tina Turner's song." At a Fourth of July benefit for Vietnam veterans in 1987, Fogerty finally ran through the list of Creedence hits—beginning with "Born on the Bayou" and ending with "Proud Mary"—to an ecstatic audience. He retreated from music again in the late 1980s but returned in 1997 with the Grammy-winning Blue Moon Swamp. John Fogerty still tours frequently and plays Creedence Clearwater Revival tunes alongside material from his newer albums.

Tom Fogerty[link]

Tom Fogerty released several solo albums, though none reached the success of Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Tom's 1974 solo album Zephyr National was the last to feature the four original band members. A few of the songs sound very much in the Creedence style, particularly the aptly titled "Joyful Resurrection" on which all four members played, even though John Fogerty recorded his part to the mix separately.

In September 1990, Tom Fogerty died of an AIDS complication, which he contracted via a tainted blood transfusion he received while undergoing back surgery.

Stu Cook and Doug Clifford[link]

CCR's rhythm section formed Creedence Clearwater Revisited in 1995

Junior high buddies Doug Clifford and Stu Cook continued to work together following the demise of Creedence Clearwater Revival both as session players and members of the Don Harrison Band. They also founded Factory Productions, a mobile recording service in the Bay Area. Clifford released a solo record, Cosmo, in 1972. Cook produced artist Roky Erickson's The Evil One and was bassist with the popular country act Southern Pacific in the 80s.

Doug Clifford also produced "Groovers Paradise" for former Sir Douglas Quintet and Texas Tornados frontman Doug Sahm. Both Clifford and Stu Cook played on the album which was released on Warner Bros. in 1974.

Following a relatively lengthy period of musical inactivity, the two formed Creedence Clearwater Revisited in 1995 with several well-known musicians. Revisited toured globally performing the original band's classics. John Fogerty's 1997 injunction forced 'CCRev' to change to 'Cosmo's Factory', but the courts later ruled in Cook's and Clifford's favor.

Fantasy Records[link]

After Creedence, Fantasy Records released several greatest-hits packages and curiosities such as 1975's Pre-Creedence, a compilation album of The Golliwogs' early recordings. Fantasy also released the highly successful Chronicle, Vol. 1, a collection of Creedence's twenty hit singles, in 1976. Several years later, the label released a live recording entitled The Royal Albert Hall Concert. Contrary to its title, the 1970 performance was recorded in Oakland, California, not at the Royal Albert Hall in London, England. Subsequent issues of the original 1981 album have been retitled simply The Concert.

The success of Creedence Clearwater Revival made Fantasy and Saul Zaentz a great deal of money. Indeed, Fantasy built a new headquarters building in 1971 at 2600 Tenth Street in Berkeley, California.^[17] Zaentz also used his wealth to produce a number of successful films including Best Picture Oscar winners One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Amadeus, and The English Patient. In 2004, he sold Fantasy to Concord Records. As a goodwill gesture, Concord honored the unfulfilled contractual promises Fantasy made nearly forty years earlier, finally paying the band a higher royalty rate on their sales.

One decision made by John Fogerty rankled his bandmates and would leave all of them without most of their hard-earned money and facing legal and financial problems for years. Without the other three band members' knowledge, Fogerty agreed to a tax shelter scheme proposed by Saul Zaentz and his lawyers in which most of the bandmembers' assets were transferred to Castle Bank & Trust (Bahamas) of Nassau. Zaentz and his associates withdrew their assets before the bank eventually dissolved — along with the savings of the four Creedence Clearwater Revival band members. A series of lawsuits began in 1978 and eventually ended with a California court awarding $8.6 million to the band members in April 1983. Despite this legal victory, very little of the money was recovered.^{[citation needed]}

John Fogerty, seeing that Zaentz was no longer involved with the company, also signed a new contract with Concord/Fantasy. In 2005, the label released The Long Road Home, a collection of Creedence and Fogerty solo classics. After Revival came out on the Fantasy label in October, 2007 but before his following album Blue Ridge Rangers Rides Again was issued in 2009, Fogerty switched from Fantasy to Verve Forecast Records.

Attempts at reuniting[link]

The original Creedence lineup rarely reunited after their breakup, and never professionally. All four members jammed together at Tom Fogerty's wedding on October 19, 1980. John Fogerty, Cook, and Clifford played at their 20th El Cerrito High School reunion in 1983, but they performed as their original incarnation, The Blue Velvets. In the 1980s and 90s, new rounds of lawsuits between the band members, as well as against their former management, deepened their animosities. By the time Creedence Clearwater Revival was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993, John Fogerty refused to perform with his surviving bandmates Stu Cook and Doug Clifford. The pair were barred from the stage, while Fogerty played with an all-star band that included Bruce Springsteen and Robbie Robertson. Tom Fogerty's widow Tricia had expected a Creedence reunion, and even brought the urn containing her husband's ashes to the ceremony. Cook and Clifford formed Creedence Clearwater Revisited, a partial reunion group with additional musicians, two years later.

In a July 2011 interview with the Calgary Herald, John Fogerty, for the first time in over 20 years, admitted that he would at least be willing to consider reuniting with Cook and Clifford. "Years ago, I looked at people and I was so full of some sort of emotion and I'd say, 'Absolutely not!' . . . . But I have to admit, people have asked me more recently, and even though I have no idea how such a series of events would come to pass, I can tell that there isn't the bombast in my voice, in the denial, in the refusal. It's more like, 'Well, I dunno.' Never say never is I guess is what people tell you. In this life, all kinds of strange things come to pass," Fogerty said. "Realizing that it doesn't really kick up a big firestorm of emotion, it kind of suggests that at least if someone started talking I'd sit still long enough to listen."^[18] When asked about a potential reunion again in October 2011, Fogerty said: "I'm saying it's possible, yeah. I think the call [laughs] would maybe have to come from outside the realm. Somebody would have to get me to look at things in a fresh way." ^[19]

However, Cook and Clifford both stated in the February 2012 edition of Uncut Magazine that they aren't interested in a CCR reunion. "Leopards don't change their spots. This is just an image-polishing exercise by John. My phone certainly hasn't rung," Cook said. Added Clifford: "It might have been a nice idea 20 years ago, but it's too late."^[18]

Legal rights to music[link]

Creedence Clearwater Revival's catalogue of songs has frequently been used or referenced in popular culture. In part this is because John Fogerty "long ago signed away legal control of his old recordings to Creedence's record label, Fantasy Records."^[20][21] Fogerty objected to what he regarded as a misuse of his music in an NPR interview:

Folks will remember Forrest Gump and that was a great movie, but they don't remember all the really poor movies that Fantasy Records stuck Creedence music into: car commercials, tire commercials. I'm remembering a paint thinner ad at one point, the song "Who'll Stop the Rain". Oh, boy. That's clever, isn't it?^[22]

Of particular interest was the use of his protest song "Fortunate Son" in a blue jean commercial.^[20] In this case, the advertiser eventually stopped using the song, as Fogerty related in a later interview:

Yes, the people that owned Fantasy Records also owned all my early songs, and they would do all kinds of stuff I really hated in a commercial way with my songs. ... Then one day somebody from the L.A. Times actually bothered to call me up and ask me how I felt, and I finally had a chance to talk about it. And I said I'm very much against my song being used to sell pants. ... So my position got stated very well in the newspaper, and lo and behold, Wrangler to their credit said, "Wow, even though we made our agreement with the publisher, the owner of the song, we can see now that John Fogerty really hates the idea," so they stopped doing it.^[23]

Discography[link]

• Creedence Clearwater Revival (1968)
• Bayou Country (1969)
• Green River (1969)
• Willy and the Poor Boys (1969)
• Cosmo's Factory (1970)
• Pendulum (1970)
• Mardi Gras (1972)

Members[link]

See also[link]

	Book: Creedence Clearwater Revival
Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print.

• Creedence Clearwater Revisited
• John Fogerty discography
• BlueVelvets/Golliwogs discographies
• Kalamazoo, Michigan

References[link]

External links[link]

• Creedence Clearwater Revisited official site
• Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Ed Sullivan Show
• Creedence Clearwater Revival at WorldMusicDatabase
• Creedence Clearwater Revival at the Internet Movie Database

v t e Creedence Clearwater Revival Doug Clifford Stu Cook John Fogerty Tom Fogerty Studio albums Creedence Clearwater Revival (1968) Bayou Country (1969) Green River (1969) Willy and the Poor Boys (1969) Cosmo's Factory (1970) Pendulum (1970) Mardi Gras (1972) Live albums Live in Europe (1973) The Concert (1980) Compilations Creedence Gold (1971) More Creedence Gold (1973) Pre-Creedence (1975) Chronicle, Vol. 1 (1976) The Best of Creedence Clearwater Revival (1977) 20 Golden Greats (1979) Creedence Country (1981) Hits Album (1982) Chronicle, Vol. 2 (1986) Rollin' On the River (1988) Heartland Music Presents Creedence Clearwater Revival (1992) Keep On Chooglin' (1999) At the Movies (2000) Creedence Clearwater Revival: Box Set (2001) Bad Moon Rising: The Best of Creedence Clearwater Revival (2003) Platinum (2004) Creedence Clearwater Revival Covers the Classics (2009) Singles "Walking on the Water" "Porterville" "Suzie Q." "I Put a Spell on You"/"Walk on the Water" "Proud Mary"/"Born on the Bayou" "Bad Moon Rising"/"Lodi" "Green River"/"Commotion" "Down on the Corner"/"Fortunate Son" "Travelin' Band"/"Who'll Stop the Rain" "Run Through the Jungle"/"Up Around the Bend" "Lookin' Out My Back Door"/"Long As I Can See the Light" "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?"/"Hey Tonight" "Sweet Hitch-Hiker"/"Door to Door" "Someday Never Comes"/"Tearin' up the Country" "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" Related articles Discography The Golliwogs Creedence Clearwater Revisited Recollection Fogerty v. Fantasy Saul Zaentz Fantasy Records Book:Creedence Clearwater Revival

Bam Margera
Bam Margera, September 2006
Born	Brandon Cole Margera (1979-09-28) September 28, 1979 (age 32) West Chester, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Residence	Castle Bam in Pocopson Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania[1]
Occupation	Stuntman Director Actor Skateboarder
Years active	1998–present
Spouse	Melissa "Missy" Rothstein (2007–present)
Website
www.bamargera.com

Brandon Cole "Bam" Margera^[2] (pronounced /mɑrˈdʒɛərə/ mar-JAIR-ə; born September 28, 1979) is an American professional skateboarder, television and radio personality, actor and daredevil. He released a series of videos under the CKY banner and came to prominence after being drafted into MTV's Jackass crew. He has since appeared in MTV's Viva La Bam and Bam's Unholy Union, all three Jackass movies, and Haggard and Minghags, both of which he co-wrote and directed.

Early life[link]

Margera was born in West Chester, Pennsylvania, to Phil and April Margera. He is the younger brother of Jess Margera and nephew of Vincent Margera. His grandfather nicknamed him "Bam" at the age of three after his habit of running into walls.^[3] He attended East High School and cites friend Chris Raab as his only reason for attending high school.

Career[link]

Television and film[link]

Margera began shooting videos of himself and his friends skateboarding and doing stunts, which eventually turned into the CKY video series.^[4] He independently released CKY. CKY2K, CKY3 and CKY4 have also been released. CKY stands for "Camp Kill Yourself", a reference to the film Sleepaway Camp. These early videos feature many of Margera's friends, including Ryan Dunn, Brandon DiCamillo, Rake Yohn, Chris Raab, Brandon Novak and others who form a loose collective known as the CKY Crew. CKY is also the name of a rock band featuring his brother Jess, and the history and relationship between the video and band projects is heavily interlinked.

Following the CKY success, former Big Brother editor Jeff Tremaine noticed Margera's videos and drafted him into the team which would eventually become MTV's Jackass. Margera and Ryan Dunn became mainstays of the cast while other CKY crew members played supporting roles to various degrees. Margera went on to appear in Jackass: The Movie, Jackass Number Two, and Jackass 3D. Several skits in the first Jackass movie were CKY style pieces filmed in and around West Chester, but similar scenes in the second movie were removed after the arrest of Margera's uncle Vincent Margera.

After Jackass, Margera was given his own MTV series entitled Viva La Bam, which ran for five seasons between 2003–2005. The show followed Margera and his crew as they performed various stunts and missions. The show was primarily filmed in West Chester, Pennsylvania but also visited New Orleans, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Brazil, Finland, Mexico, Amsterdam and Transylvania. In addition to the regular series, special episodes have included "Viva La Spring Break" and a "lost" episode included on the Viva La Bands CD.

Following the show, in 2007, Margera was engaged and the wedding was filmed for Bam's Unholy Union as a follow-up to Viva la Bam. The show follows Margera, his then fiancée Melissa Rothstein and their friends in the lead-up to their wedding.^[5] Also in 2008, Margera had a "prominent, non-sex role in" a pornographic film by Gina Lynn called The Fantasstic Whores 4 with Brandon Novak.^[6]

In 2009, Margera appeared on Nitro Circus.^[7]

In October 2010, Margera appeared in Jackass 3D and the movie broke box office records.^[8] He visited Europe doing press for the movie in late October.^[9]

Margera appears with Dunn and pro-skateboarder Tim O'Connor on Bam's World Domination, a half-hour Spike TV program that debuted on October 13, 2010. The first episode showcased Margera and his friends' attempt to conquer an obstacle course race, in the Tough Guy Competition, held outside London, England.^[10][11]

Skateboarding career[link]

Since 2003, Margera has been a member of Team Element, the demonstration team for Element Skateboards.^[12] He is also sponsored by Speed Metal Bearings, Adio Footwear, and Fairman's Skateshop.

Independent films[link]

Margera has written, produced and starred in three independent films. Margera co-wrote, directed and starred in Haggard (2003), an independent film based on real events in the life of his friend Ryan Dunn. Dunn played himself as the main character while Margera played "Valo", a character based on himself and elements of HIM singer and friend Ville Valo.^[13]

Margera also directed Minghags, formerly titled Kiss a Good Man's Ass.^[14] The film is a loose sequel to Haggard and will feature the "garbage juicer" invention from that film.^[15] This film was confirmed on Radio Bam and the front page of FilthyNote Records by Tim Glomb. Filming started April 5, 2007.^[16] On an episode of Radio Bam, Margera said that they are trying to make the movie PG-13 rated,^[17] but with the amount of swearing and a shot of nudity, an 'R' Rating could not be avoided.^[18] They had its first viewing of the rough version of the film on August 7, 2007, at Sikes Hall.^[19] The movie was released in December 2008. The film was a straight-to-DVD release.

Subsequently, Margera released a Christmas-themed movie entitled Bam Margera Presents: Where the#$&% Is Santa? in December 2008.^[20] The movie is about Bam and his friends going to the Arctic Circle in Finland on a quest to find Santa Claus. The film features Ville Valo from HIM, The Dudesons, Hanoi Rocks, Mark the Bagger, and more.^[20]

Radio Bam and music[link]

Margera began a weekly Sirius Satellite Radio show on Sirius channel 28 Faction on November 24, 2004 called Radio Bam. The show features Margera along with friends from the CKY and Jackass crews.

In 2005, Margera started a music label, Filthy Note Records, and has directed music videos for Clutch, Turbonegro, Viking Skull, Vains of Jenna and several for CKY. He also directed seven music videos, "Buried Alive By Love", "The Sacrament", "And Love Said No", and "Solitary Man",for the Finnish band HIM, and three for The 69 Eyes, "Lost Boys", "Dead Girls are Easy" and "Dead N Gone". He also plays the keyboard in a novelty band called Gnarkill along with Brandon DiCamillo, Jess Margera, Rich Vose and Matt Cole.

Other projects[link]

Margera has been animated as a character in pro-skateboarder Tony Hawk's video games Pro Skaters 3 and 4, Underground and Underground 2, American Wasteland, Project 8 and Proving Ground. He also voiced a character in the video game Scarface: The World Is Yours. He made cameo appearances in the movies Grind and Destroying America.

In late September 2008, Margera opened a bar/theater called "The Note", in his hometown of West Chester, Pennsylvania.^[21]

In late 2009, Margera released a book containing private writings and pictures titled Serious as Dog Dirt.^[22]

Personal life[link]

Relationships[link]

Margera was previously engaged to Jenn Rivell, a divorced single mother. Rivell played a prominent part in several of his projects and the couple appeared to be co-habiting in various episodes of Viva La Bam. However, the relationship ended in 2005.^[23] In November 2006, Margera filed for "Protection From Abuse" from Rivell after she allegedly broke into his house.^[23] He further alleged that Rivell had exhibited irrational and aggressive behavior towards him on several previous occasions including stealing several computers and vandalizing his house immediately after their initial breakup. The judge dismissed the allegations as "speculative" and "hearsay".^{[24][dead link]}

In 2006, Margera became engaged to childhood friend Melissa "Missy" Rothstein.^[25] The events leading up to their wedding (with about 350 friends and family in attendance) on February 3, 2007, in downtown Philadelphia, were chronicled on the MTV series Bam's Unholy Union. The couple's honeymoon was in Dubai. In 2008, during an appearance LA Ink, Bam told Kat Von D about $13,000 in damages done to the hotel for his marriage, saying " I was kind of ready for it though. I was like: 'I’m inviting the Jackass crew. If something doesn’t get broken then that’s not right'."^[26][27]

In July 2009, Margera was taken to the hospital by paramedics and state troopers from his West Chester home after his wife Missy called 911 after a four day alcohol binge.^[28][29] On the drinking binge, Margera said "I may get a divorce . . . booze helps."^[28] In October 2010, Margera told Howard Stern he and Missy were living in separate cities, they meet once a week and Missy knows about his girlfriend in San Francisco and another in West Chester.^[30][31]

Name, residence and assault[link]

In an October 24, 2007 interview with the Cleveland Free Times, Margera stated that although he had completed paperwork that would legally change his first name to Bam, he was "still debating" filing it after a conversation with his father.^[2]

Margera currently resides in "Castle Bam", a large house in Wawaset, Pennsylvania. The house has a gothic theme, a skatepark in the driveway and is situated on 14 acres (57,000 m²) of land. In January 2007, Margera built a ramp in his backyard, near the old casino seen in Viva La Bam. The ramp itself caused trouble with the township.^[32] Margera's parents and select members of the CKY Crew lived in the house while shooting Viva La Bam, with Margera's uncle residing in a house on the property.

On Saturday, June 12, 2010, Margera was allegedly attacked with a baseball bat outside of his bar, The Note, in West Chester, Pennsylvania.^[33] Margera spent the night at Crozer-Chester Medical Center where he was treated for head injuries. According to Elizabeth Ray, the alleged assailant, Margera used "the n-word, with black in front of it".^[33] Ray denies attacking Margera.^[33] Margera, on the other hand, denies having said the words, claiming "I called her a crazy bitch and an idiot, but I definitely didn't use the n-word".^[34]

TV, film, and releases[link]

TV[link]

Movies[link]

Video games[link]

DVDs/Videos[link]

• CKY video series: CKY, CKY2K, CKY3 and CKY4. (1999–2003)
• Hook-Ups Presents: Destroying America (2001)

Book[link]

• Bam Margera, Serious as Dog Dirt (MTV; November 17, 2009) ISBN 1-4391-4773-6

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Bam Margera

• Official website
• Bam Margera at the Internet Movie Database
• Bam Margera's skate video filmography.
• Filthy Note Records Official website
• Bam Margera on Myspace