The famous ballad Fortunate Son by the rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival is considered one of the most famous anti-war songs. But, according to John Fogerty, he was trying to draw people’s attention not only to the senseless cruelty of bloodshed.
The history of creation and the meaning of the song Fortunate Son
The author points to the unscrupulousness of the ruling elite, which starts military conflicts, and then benefits from them, putting the lives of not their children at stake. He also condemns jingoists who justify thousands of deaths in the interests of the state.
In Bad Moon Rising, a book about Creedence Clearwater Revival, writer Hank Bordowitz recounts Fogerty’s history of the composition. John also explains what Fortunate Son is about:
This is a confrontation between me and Richard Nixon… The haves, the people who have everything. Far from being a positive image of people living on top of a hill with their big cars. These are people I don’t respect. Throughout the Vietnam War, there were those who did not have to go to war. I then thought of David Eisenhower, Dwight’s grandson, who married Julia Nixon…
In general, I showed the group a song. I had few. I knew the chord progression and felt the energy. I also had the name Fortunate Son, but there was no actual song. And yet I showed the group the structure, which was familiar to me as a musical director of the group.
Once I went into the bedroom, sat on the edge of the bed with a yellow notepad and a felt-tip pen. That’s how the song came about. “It ain’t me, it ain’t me, I ain’t no fortunate son.” In my heart I screamed at the top of my voice, but did not utter a word. That’s how it appeared – on three sheets of notebook. It took about twenty minutes…
I performed the song as an anti-war protest. When I walked into the corridor after the concert, someone would come up and say that we played amazingly. I remember I said, “Richard Nixon is a great inspiration.”
Nixon was constantly saying something along the lines of “peace with honor” or “my country – love it or leave it,” but we knew perfectly well that this guy was a real evil.
Fogerty talks about the main idea of the piece in Craig Werner’s book Up Around the Bend:
When I wrote Fortunate Son, Julia Nixon was hanging around with David Eisenhower. And you perfectly understood that none of these people would be affected by the war. In 1969, most in the country thought that morale among the troops was high, and about eighty percent supported the war. But those of us who were closely following what was happening understood that we were bound to get into trouble…
Of course, it was written in the Nixon era, and let’s just say I didn’t support Mr. Nixon at all… I was, I think, twenty-three years old. I was just infuriated at the prospect of a simple guy being in the army in a war that he so strongly opposes. However, the sons of the rich and those in power did not have to worry about this. They were happy. I was thinking how all these guys were walking around saying, “It’s good for America,” Nixon and everyone else was saying it. But their children were not going anywhere.
By the way, in 1966, John Fogerty himself was drafted into the army. According to his confession, he managed to agree on a transfer to the spare part, so he did not take part in the hostilities. David Eisenhower, who inspired the CCR leader to write the song, went into service in 1970 and spent three years on one of the American reserve fleet ships in the Mediterranean.
Release and achievements
In September 1969, the song was released as a single from the album Willy and the Poor Boys. It was later included in Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Clip Fortunate Son – CCR
And now let’s watch the video clip for the cult song of Creedence Clearwater Revival.
Interesting Facts
- CCR once performed Fortunate Son on The Ed Sullivan Show. Most likely, this became possible, since the producers did not realize that the song was protest and anti-war.
- John Fogerty does not own the copyright to the song. He lost them due to a contract with Fantasy Records. Now he has to put up with the fact that the composition is often used, regardless of its main idea.
- The track sounds in many famous films, including the famous picture “Forrest Gump”.
Fortunate Son Lyrics
Some folks are born, made to wave the flag
Ooo, their red, white and blue
And when the band plays “Hail to the Chief”
Ooo, they point the cannon at you, Lord
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no senator’s son, son
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no fortunate one, no
Some folks are born, silver spoon in hand
Lord, don’t they help themselves, y’all
But when the taxman comes to the door
Lord, the house looks like a rummage sale, yeah
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no millionaire’s son, no, no
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no fortunate one, no
Yeah, yeah
Some folks inherit star spangled eyes
Ooh, they send you down to war, Lord
And when you ask ’em, “How much should we give?”
Ooh, they only answer “More! More! More!”, y’all
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no military son, son
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no fortunate one, one
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no fortunate one, no, no, no
It ain’t me, it ain’t me
I ain’t no fortunate son, no, no, no
Fortunate Son Lyrics
Some boys are born and made to wave the flag
Oh-oh-oh, them red-white-blue
And when the band plays “Hail to the Chief”
Oh-oh-oh, they point the gun at you, Lord
It’s not me, it’s not me
I’m not a senatorial son, no
It’s not me, it’s not me
I’m not one of the lucky ones, no
Some boys are born in a shirt
Lord, is it their fault, all of them
But when the taxman comes to the door,
Lord, the house is turning into a junk sale
It’s not me, it’s not me
I’m not the son of a millionaire, no no
It’s not me, it’s not me
I’m not one of the lucky ones, no
Yes Yes
Some guys inherit star-studded eyes
Oh, they send you to war, Lord
And when you ask them: “How much should we give?”
Oh, they only answer: “More! More! More!” – all of you
It’s not me, it’s not me
I’m not a military son, no
It’s not me, it’s not me
I’m not one of the lucky ones, no
It’s not me, it’s not me
I’m not one of the lucky ones, no no no
It’s not me, it’s not me
I’m not one of the lucky ones, no no no
Song quote
The song speaks more about class inequality than about the war itself. This is the old saying about the rich who start wars and the poor who have to fight.
John Fogerty
