Tommy Fogerty & The Blue Velvets

Tommy Fogerty & The Blue Velvets was the initial incarnation of The Golliwogs, a group which would in turn eventually become Creedence Clearwater Revival. The few songs recorded under this name and as The Golliwogs are very much within the style and sound of the time, borrowing from Ritchie Valens, Buddy Holly and the Beach Boys, all twisted to something much sweeter than what CCR came to be known for. The Blue Velvets was the name of the band formed in 1959 by John Fogerty, Doug Clifford, and Stu Cook (all born 1945) in El Cerrito, California. In 1964 they changed their name first to The Golliwogs, and then in 1967, eventually, to Creedence Clearwater Revival. John Fogerty, Doug Clifford, and Stu Cook began playing instrumentals and "juke box standards" together under the name The Blue Velvets. The trio also backed singer Tom Fogerty (John Fogerty's older brother by three years) at live gigs and in the recording studio and they were known as Tommy Fogerty & The Blue Velvets. By 1964, the band had signed to Fantasy Records, an independent jazz label based in San Francisco at the time. For the band's first release, however, Fantasy Records co-owner Max Weiss renamed the group The Golliwogs (after the children's literary character, Golliwogg). Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.