PROUD MARY

 Few songs roll through music history with as much grit, soul, and unstoppable energy as “Proud Mary.” 

When I think of Tina Turner, one of the first songs that come to my mind is, “Proud Mary.” Ike & Tina Turnerrecorded this song as a cover in 1971, and it won the duo their first Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance Group in 1972. After the duo broke up, Tina Turner continued to perform “Proud Mary” as a solo artist, and audiences were eagerly expecting to see her perform her powerful high-energy rendition of “Proud Mary” each time she graced the stage. It soon became her signature song. Like most songs that are hits, they come with a bit of history, also. 

Let’s take a look at Proud Mary’s history. “Proud Mary” was not written by Tina or Ike Turner. “Proud Mary” was written by John Fogerty, who was the vocalist, lead guitarist, and song writer for the group Creedence Clearwater Revival, sometimes known as CCR. Back in 1968, John Fogerty was granted an honorable discharge from the U.S. Army. He was elated to receive his “walking papers” from the Army so that he could return to his beloved songwriting. He picked up a notebook he had been keeping and saw that the first words he had written in his notebook were these two words: Proud Mary. His original idea for the song was about a cleaning lady who worked for a wealthy family, a proud maid named Mary: 

                                                                   Left a good job in the city

                                                                   Workin’ for the man every night and day

                                                                   And I never lost one minute of sleepin’

                                                                  Worryin’ ‘bout the way things might have been

                                                                  Big wheel keep on turnin’

                                                                  Proud Mary keep on burnin’

                                                                  Rollin’, rollin’, rollin’ on the river.

Soon, the song shifted from a maid to a riverboat! Fogerty’s bandmate, Stu Cook was watching the television show, Maverick. When Cook saw a riverboat, he remarked to Fogerty, “Hey riverboat, blow your bell.” That comment caused Fogerty to rework the song’s concept to be about a paddlewheel riverboat instead of a maid.  Although the song’s central character is a riverboat, the maid plays a central role that is all about leaving a stressful job to find something more peaceful and joyful all while hitching a ride on a riverboat. 

                                                                     Cleaned a lot of plates in Memphis

                                                                     Pumped a lot of ‘pane down in New Orleans

                                                                     But I never saw the good side of the city

                                                                     Till I hitched a ride on a river boat queen.

                                                                     Big wheel keep on turnin’

                                                                     Proud Mary keep on burnin’

                                                                     Rollin’, rollin’, rollin’ on the river

“Like the river it celebrates, “Proud Mary” keeps on rolling! And as they say, “THE REST IS HISTORY.”

 NOTES:

SN: To cover a song simply means the artist will record or perform a new version of a song that was originally written by someone else. (Permission is needed to cover a song. My EP, “Something to Say” includes five songs that are covers).

“Proud Mary has since been covered by the following artist, in addition to Ike & Tina Turner: The Checkmates, Ltd., Frankie Laine, The Osmonds, Rod Stewart, The Longest Johns, Elvis Presley, Solomon Burke, Neil Sedaka, and the cast of the show Glee.