Creedence Clearwater Revisited put a spell on TJ’s Corral

Hey kids! If you ever want to see your parents (or grandparents) act like teenagers, attend a Creedence Clearwater Revisited concert with them. It was fun to see an older crowd acting so youthful. It was very much a senior gathering, which makes sense if you consider that Creedence was established in 1967.

The concertgoers were into it, especially a gentleman behind us who must have discovered the band was playing about half way through the show when he started yelling, “These guys are (blanking) awesome” over and over at the top of his lungs. Enthusiasm comes in many forms.

The Carson Valley Inn put on a quality event by bringing Creedence to its outdoor venue, TJ’s Corral, on Sunday, Aug. 12. This was my first visit there. I can say that there is not a bad seat in the house. It’s big enough, but not too big, with plenty of free parking, too.

CCR is made up of two of the four original members of Creedence Clearwater Revival, Doug Clifford (drums) and Stu Cook (bass guitar and vocals). Other band members are Kurt Griffey (lead guitar), Steve Gunner (keyboards, guitars, percussion and vocals) and McGuinness (lead vocals and guitar).

Creedence started off strong with “Born on The Bayou” and moved right on into “Green River.” McGuinness is a stellar vocalist, delivering the Creedence feel on every song while playing rhythm guitar all night. I first heard him singing with CCR last year at Grand Sierra Resort in Reno. He seems to have found his groove since then, appearing more comfortable and natural on stage.

Stu Cook and Doug Clifford are a truly solid rock and roll rhythm section, one of the finest of their era. Cook was strutting around with a huge smile most of the time, while Clifford sat stoic, pumping out a solid tempo that did not waver.

The band’s breakthrough hit, “Susie Q,” was an eight-and-a-half minute showstopper. Griffey, on lead guitar, played an amazing extended solo that got the crowd amped up. He moved around the entire stage, bringing his performance up close to everybody. Although there were many great guitar solos, another highlight was Griffey’s work on “I Put A Spell On You,” a cover of a Screamin’ Jay Hawkins song. It was beautifully done.

As the show got nearer to the end, security had to intervene on senior revelers trying to crowd the stage, dancing and reaching out to band members. We can’t have that! One woman didn’t want to leave and security didn’t want to touch her. It was kind of funny, but during the encore they allowed the craziness to ensue. The band closed the show with “Have You Ever Seen The Rain,” “Cotton Fields” and “Up Around The Bend.”

— Nick McCabe

• Coming up
  38 Special
  When: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 21
  Where: TJ’s Corral at the Carson Valley Inn
  Tickets: $49 and $59 LINK
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