Creedence Clearwater Revival announces Half-Speed Mastered editions

Two 180-gram Half-Speed Mastered editions will be released on Nov 15th

Craft Recordings is excited to announce the half-speed master editions of two classic titles from Creedence Clearwater Revival, in the continued celebration of their 50th anniversaries: Willy and the Poor Boys and Green River. Pressed on 180-gram vinyl and set for a November 15th release date, the albums were mastered at half-speed by award-winning engineer Miles Showell at Abbey Road Studios. Both LPs — which were previously available only as part of the seven LP Studio Albums Collection box set — come housed in handsome tip-on jackets, replicating the packaging of the original pressings.

1969 was a prolific year for Creedence Clearwater Revival, who released three Billboard Top Ten albums in 12 months — two of which were Green River and Willy and the Poor Boys. Released in August of ’69, Green River was the Bay Area band’s third studio album, and their first No. 1 record. Featuring hit singles “Bad Moon Rising” and “Green River” (which both went to No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100), the album also features fan-favorite “Lodi,” “Wrote a Song for Everyone,” and a cover of the R&B standard, “The Night Time Is the Right Time.” Included in Rolling Stone’s 2003 “500 Greatest Albums of All Time” list, Green River has often been cited as frontman John Fogerty’s favorite record from Creedence’s catalog.

Creedence Clearwater Revival’s following album, Willy and the Poor Boys, was released in November of 1969 to wide critical acclaim and commercial success. The LP includes one of the most enduring Vietnam protest songs, “Fortunate Son,” as well as quintessential CCR tracks like “Down on the Corner,” “It Came Out of the Sky” and “Midnight Special.” The record peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, and has been called the band’s “best record” by The Village Voice, while it was also included in Rolling Stone’s “500 Greatest Albums of All Time.”

Though Creedence were only active for a brief period (1968 to 1972), they found creative achievement and global success matched by few others in such a short span of time. Formed in 1968, the group tapped into a rich, traditional seam of American music that incorporated elements of swampy blues, country, rockabilly, gospel, and folk. Over the course of their time together, the band released seven studio albums on Fantasy Records (two of which would peak at No. 1, and three of which would be in the Billboard Top Ten). They scored nine Top Ten singles and played over 150 shows around the world.

To-date, Creedence Clearwater Revival remain one of the best-selling bands of all time and are one of the few acts to receive a coveted diamond certification from the RIAA, marking ten million units sold in the U.S. for their 1976 compilation, Chronicle: 20 Greatest Hits. Half a century later, the band’s music endures — in just the last few years alone, their songs have appeared in some of the most popular films (The Post, War Dogs, Suicide Squad), TV shows (The Voice, The Strain, Good Girls Revolt) and video games (Mafia III, Watch Dogs II, Crackdown 2), allowing a new generation of fans to discover classics like “Fortunate Son,” “Bad Moon Rising” and “Have You Ever Seen the Rain?”

Both these reissues were mastered at half-speed, an exacting process which brings titles like Willy and the Poor Boys and Green River a new vibrancy, half a century after they were recorded. Using high-res transfers from the original analog tapes, the mastering process involves playing back the audio at half its recorded speed, while the cutting lathe is turned at half the desired playback speed. The technique allows more time to cut a micro-precise groove, resulting in more accuracy with frequency extremes and dynamic contrasts. The result on the turntables is an exceptional level of sonic clarity and punch.

Special bundles are available via the official Craft Recordings store.