It s great to have you writing new and topical material. When did you start writing Weeping In the Promised Land, and what motivated you?
I keep a little song book that I started in 1967. I wrote this title in that book somewhere between 25-30 years ago. It was compelling. I understood that it had a lot of meaning, but I didn t know specifically where it would go. I wrote a song using that title maybe two years ago and actually recorded it with some musicians; it was not this song, it was a different song, and it wasn t focused in its intent like this. It was kind of generic, I would say, therefore I was dissatisfied with it. I thought the title was better than the song, so I shelved it.
John Fogerty is once again reacting to current events with a new song, Weeping in the Promised Land. I took a look back at what 2020 has been and tried to get my feelings out about the political climate, Black Lives Matter, COVID and everything else that occurred this year, he said in a statement. Friends are dying, we are stuck at home, we are indeed weeping in the promised land.
In the song, the former Creedence Clearwater Revival leader refers to President Donald Trump as a forked-tongue pharaoh obsessed with power and shouting down a medicine man - most likely a reference to Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation s leading immunologist.
A threat to informers and media freedom
We’re sorry, this service is currently unavailable. Please try again later.
Dismiss
January 7, 2021 8.42am
Normal text size
Credit:Illustration: John Shakespeare
To submit a letter to The Age, email letters@theage.com.au. Please include your home address and telephone number.
JULIAN ASSANGE
A threat to informers and media freedom
UK District Judge Vanessa Baraitser has ruled that Julian Assange cannot be extradited to the US to face espionage charges on the grounds of his mental health and the regime under which he would be jailed there (The Age, 6/1). This is a relief and it reasserts some measure of faith in the British justice system.