The cover of John Fogerty’s book, “Fortunate Son: My Life, My Music.”
I think we’re in the golden age of the rock ‘n’ roll memoir, with many major classic-rock artists reaching a point in their lives when they want to get their version of what happens and/or what it all means into print. Over the last 10 years or so, Bob Dylan, Keith Richards, Neil Young, Pete Townshend, Rod Stewart, Gregg Allman, Patti Smith, Steven Tyler and many others have published memoirs or autobiographies.
The latest rocker of that stature to join the club is John Fogerty, whose “Fortunate Son: My Life, My Music,” comes out Oct. 6. To promote it, Fogerty will sign books at the Bookends bookstore in Ridgewood, Oct. 8 at 7 p.m. For information, visit book-ends.com.
His use of “Fortunate Son” — a 1969 hit by his band Creedence Clearwater Revival — in the memoir’s title is a bit surprising, since in the song, he’s referring to privileged youths who were able to avoid facing danger overseas in the Vietnam War via their family connections. He explained what the memoir’s title means to him in a recent interview with the Associated Press, saying: “As I a kid I wanted to make music and dreamed about being like my musical heroes and eventually it came true. I have become very fortunate, so that’s my take on the use of the phrase now.”
