Creedence Clearwater Revival "Bayou Country" [1969]

Clearly embarrassed by their San Francisco existence (and rightly so), Creedence Clearwater Revival decided to reinvent themselves as rootsy swamp things from the Mississippi Delta (however wrongheadedly). John Fogerty sings like a snarling dog who should have been put down yesterday, and his socio-political stance regrettably opens the door for the redneck rock of the early 70s and gives Bruce Springsteen all his dumb ideas about singing for the "common man." It's tough to describe the myriad ways CCR screwed things up for radio listeners of the late 60s, but in retrospect it's crystal clear the hippie era wasn't nearly as liberal as its members tend to remember it. That CCR was able to rip off Howlin' Wolf riffs without impunity yet needed to pay royalties to the writers of "Good Golly Miss Molly" gives an accurate score of the music industry at the time. And honestly -- that's all these guys really cared about, wasn't it?