Creedence Revisits Classics but Lacks Fogerty’s Vision

It’s hard to blame Stu Cook and Doug Clifford for wanting both cash and credit for their long-undervalued role as the rhythm section of Creedence Clearwater Revival--especially in the wake of the snub they got from John Fogerty, who, citing bad blood from years of bitter legal squabbles, refused to let them perform with him at the group’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 1993.

And it’s hard to blame the old group’s fans for wanting to hear this classic music live. It has been nearly 25 years since the band’s demise, a time in which Fogerty has rarely performed any of it.

But all Creedence Clearwater Revisited proved Saturday at the Greek Theatre--with drummer Clifford and bassist Cook joined by three hired hands playing classic CCR songs--was the greatness of Fogerty’s CCR songs and vision.

Sure, this presentation was a remarkable simulation. John Tristao, a Seattle janitor who won a Fogerty sound-alike audition, has all the vocal grit and force of the real thing, while ex-Cars guitarist Elliot Easton, an unabashed Creedence acolyte, dexterously recreated Fogerty’s swamp-rock chooglin’.

But Tristao has little of Fogerty’s nuance and character, and Cook’s good-time nostalgia patter undercut the haunting and/or haunted depth of such greats as “Who’ll Stop the Rain” and “Bad Moon Rising.” Only Easton, who shined on the extended solos of “Suzie Q.” and “I Heard It Through the Grapevine,” added any new dimensions. If Cook and Clifford really want to gain their own credence, they need to create new music of their own with the resonance and distinction of the old songs.