Gunslinger

Background

"Gunslinger" is the second track of Revival, the eight solo album of John Fogerty with new material. The song was written, arranged and produced by John Fogerty and recorded by Jim Scott, Seth Presant and Ryan Freeland at NRG Recording in North Hollywood. The album was released in October 2007. It reached #14 in the USA, #5 in Sweden and #6 in Norway.  

Right after the New Year in 2007, Fogerty started to write songs for his new album. The first four weeks in the studio were lousy; nothing decent emerged. In February, he picked up a emi-acoustic hollowbody humbucker [model BB1200] guitar manuactured by Australian company, Maton. He had acquired it during the Australian tour in late 2005. "Broken Down Cowboy", "Gunslinger" and "Don't You Wish It Was True" came almost immediately. 

Fogerty considers "Gunslinger" a more universal political commentary than an explicit description of the United States in 2007. In Fogerty's view of history, a small group of people can move in to an otherwise decent settlemen, take over and make their own law. Fogerty doesn't believe in vigilante justice to solve this out but he's looking for a person with a clear vision and honorable intentions to come in and say each of you guys have to give up a little bit, this will be the law and everybody follows it. That way we all will get along (Jim Ladd, interview with John Fogerty, KLOS, Los Angeles, September 27th, 2007).

After writing the songs for Revival, Fogerty and his band rehearsed them relentlessly and recorded the basic tracks in a 12-day session in spring 2007. It was the same process Fogerty used with Creedence Clearwater  (Harold Steinblatt, Interview with John Fogerty, The Guitar World, January 2008).  

Personnel

Vocals, guitar: John Fogerty

Guitar: Hunter Perrin

Bass: David Santos

Drums, percussion: Kenny Aronoff

Equipment

On "Gunslinger", John Fogerty plays a Stratocaster-like guitar made by Ernie Ball. Dudley Gimple of the company helped Fogerty design the guitar, and Seymour Duncan wound the pickups for it. The guitar also has a Callaham vibrato bridge (Art Thompson, Interview with John Fogerty, The Guitar Player, March 2008).    

Live versions

John Fogerty played "Gunslinger" for the first time at the opening concert of the Revival Tour at Hammerstein Ballroom in New York on November 2nd, 2007. From this point on, he has delivered the number live on stage quite regularly, except the years 2009 and 2010 when he only performed it for a couple of times. 

"Gunslinger" was also added to the set list in the PBS Soundstage TV concert Fogerty and the band recorded at WTTW Studios in Chicago on November  29th,  2007. It was aired in the USA on February 7th and 14th next year.  

To promote Revival, Fogerty and his band headed for Clinton Street Studios in Lower Manhattan, New York in October 2007. They performed "Creedence Song", "Don't You Wish It Was True",  "Gunslinger", "Broken Down Cowboy", "Long Dark Night" and "Proud Mary". The studio concert was heard in David Dye's syndicated World Cafe show in the USA on October 26th, 2007. 

Furthermore, Fogerty delivered "Gunslinger" as one of the bonus numbers in the first Cosmo's Factory and Green River album concerts at Beacon Theatre in New York in November 2011.  Both events were broadcast live by Sirius XM satellite radio.

"Gunslinger" appears also on the John Fogerty concert DVD Comin' Down the Road filmed at Royal Albert Hall in London, UK, on June 24th, 2008. 

Critical reception

"In a similar vein, though pertaining to social, rather than romantic, matters is “Gunslinger”, a lamentation about the decline of the values that made America a great place to live. In moments like these, Fogerty sounds all the more vulnerable because of the passage of time." -Michael Franco, The Pop Matters, October 10th, 2007. 

"--- assesses the country's wayward ways as well, with a beautiful tune and a hint of the urgency of Vietnam-era queries like "Who'll Stop the Rain." It's particularly wily, and subversive, that Fogerty pines in the lyrics for a figure from the Old West to clean up the world when that's precisely how Bush somehow sees his role." -Jim Farber, New York Daily News, October 14th, 2007. 

"The tamest of the bunch, musically and lyrically, is "Gunslinger", where Fogerty takes a sharp, critical look at the state of the people of the country. He bemoans, "This used to be a beautiful place / Decent folks, hardworkin' ways / Now they hide behind locked doors / Afraid to speak their mind", over slick guitar and a mellowed country vibe." -Chad Grischow, IGN, October 26th, 2007. 

"Not that he’s a pacifist, though Revival’s opening song, “Don’t You Wish It Was True,” is pretty utopian, because in the second song he wishes for a “Gunslinger” to come along to clean things up, “somebody tough to tame this town … there’ll be justice all around.” So Berkeley-born John apparently still thinks of himself as a cowboy, broken down or otherwise, and he’s not opposed to guns … just wants to see them in the right hands. (Actually, in interviews, he’s said it was more the idea of a principled leader who would come in and make things right, and the metaphor of a gunslinger just came to him.)" -Charles Andrews, Audio Video Revolution, November 1st, 2007. 

"It is a very cool song about trying to right the wrongs in this world. The bridge solo is so reminiscent of the old CCR stuff that I could almost smell the seventies. Ewwwww!" -Upon This Rawk, September 9th, 2008

"Better is "Gunslinger," a far more subtle, more intelligent, and therefore more successful, attempt at making the same points. When it was recorded most of the world had never heard of Barack Obama, yet listening to the song today it’s easy to interpret the current President to be the intended gunslinger that Fogerty wishes would arrive in town to save the day." -Charlie Ricci, Bloggerhythms, August 19th, 2009.  

Fans' views

"Very western Tex/Mex style with great cowboy/Clint Eastwood "man with no name" hero type song. Will sound great on Austin City Limits."

"A nice, slowish song, reminds me a little of I Saw It On TV. Nice guitar, and a real great story song."

"It has very good lyrics, the music is easy to listen to with some catchy twangy guitar licks. It’s also saying something."

Legacy

"Gunslinger" was #12 on the Rolling Stone list of the 100 Best Songs of 2007.

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