"Up Around the Bend" is a song by American rock band

Creedence Clearwater Revival Creedence Clearwater Revival, also referred to as Creedence and CCR, was an American rock band formed in El Cerrito, California. The band initially consisted of lead vocalist, lead guitarist, and primary songwriter John Fogerty; his brother, ...

, written by the band's frontman

John Fogerty John Cameron Fogerty (born May 28, 1945) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. Together with Doug Clifford, Stu Cook, and his brother Tom Fogerty Thomas Richard Fogerty (November 9, 1941 – September 6, 1990) was an American mu ...

. The song was composed and recorded only a few days prior to the band's April 1970 European tour and was included on the album ''

Cosmo's Factory ''Cosmo's Factory'' is the fifth studio album by American rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival, released by Fantasy Records in July 1970. Six of the album's eleven tracks were released as singles in 1970, and all of them charted in the top 5 ...

''. Released as a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

, with "

Run Through the Jungle "Run Through the Jungle" is a 1970 song by American rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival. History The song was written by Creedence's lead singer, guitarist and songwriter, John Fogerty. It was included on their 1970 album '' Cosmo's Factory'' ...

" on the flipside, the double-sided single climbed to number four on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in the spring of 1970. It was certified

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by the

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for sales of over one million copies. It was also a major hit in the UK, where it reached number three on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. The song opens with a prominent, high-pitched guitar

riff A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accompani ...

played by John Fogerty. The song's

lyrics Lyrics are words that make up a song, usually consisting of verses and choruses. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist. The words to an extended musical composition such as an opera are, however, usually known as a "libretto" and their writer, a ...

have Fogerty telling of a gathering "up around the bend" on the highway and inviting the listener to join in. ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' described the song as a "powerfully sung and played bit of rock with excellent top forty drive." The song has been

covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

by artists such as

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

, who recorded a version of the song early in his career, and Finnish rock band

Hanoi Rocks Hanoi Rocks was a Finnish rock band formed in 1979. They were the first Finnish band to chart in the UK and they were also popular in Japan. The band broke up in June 1985 after drummer Nicholas "Razzle" Dingley died in a drunk driving acciden ...

, who covered it on their 1984 album, ''

Two Steps from the Move ''Two Steps from the Move'' is the fifth studio album by the Finnish rock band Hanoi Rocks, released in 1984. This is their last album to feature drummer Razzle, before he was killed in a car accident on 8 December 1984. Album information Bef ...

''.

Charts

Certifications

In popular culture

"Up Around the Bend" has appeared in the following films: '' Eau froide, L''' (1994), ''

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'' (1996), ''

Remember the Titans ''Remember the Titans'' is a 2000 American biographical sports film produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Boaz Yakin. The screenplay, written by Gregory Allen Howard, is based on the true story of coach Herman Boone, portrayed by Denzel W ...

'' (2000), ''

Invincible Invincible may refer to: Film and television * ''Invincible'' (2001 drama film), a drama by Werner Herzog about Jewish cabaret during the rise of Nazism * ''Invincible'' (2001 TV film), a fantasy / martial arts TV movie starring Billy Zane ...

'' (2006), ''

The Hoax ''The Hoax'' is a 2006 American comedy-drama film starring Richard Gere, directed by Swedish filmmaker Lasse Hallström. The screenplay by William Wheeler is based on the book of the same title by Clifford Irving. It recounts Irving's elaborate ...

'' (2007), ''

Red Dawn ''Red Dawn'' is a 1984 American action drama film directed by John Milius with a screenplay by Milius and Kevin Reynolds. The film depicts a fictional World War III centering on a land invasion of the continental United States by an alliance o ...

'' (2012), and ''

Free Birds ''Free Birds'' is a 2013 American computer-animated science fiction comedy film. The film follows two turkeys travelling back in time to the first Thanksgiving to get turkey off the menu. It was produced by Reel FX Creative Studios as its fir ...

'' (2013). It was also used in the

TV mini-series A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. " Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format ...

, ''

From the Earth to the Moon ''From the Earth to the Moon: A Direct Route in 97 Hours, 20 Minutes'' (french: De la Terre à la Lune, trajet direct en 97 heures 20 minutes) is an 1865 novel by Jules Verne. It tells the story of the Baltimore Gun Club, a post-American Civil W ...

'' (1998), the last episode of ''

The Wonder Years ''The Wonder Years'' is an American coming-of-age story, coming-of-age situation comedy, comedy/Drama (film and television), drama television series created by Neal Marlens and Carol L. Black, Carol Black. It ran on American Broadcasting Company ...

'', and in the first episode of ''

Hap and Leonard Hap and Leonard are two fictional amateur investigators and adventurers created by American author Joe R. Lansdale. They are the main characters in a series of twelve novels, four novellas, and three collections of stories and excerpts. They are ...

'' (2016). The song was featured in the

Kurt Cobain Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – April 5, 1994) was an American musician who served as the lead vocalist, guitarist and primary songwriter of the rock band Nirvana. Through his angst-fueled songwriting and anti-establishment persona ...

documentary ''

Kurt Cobain About a Son ''Kurt Cobain: About a Son'' is a 2006 American documentary film about American rock musician Kurt Cobain, directed by AJ Schnacksoundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

-based radio host

Kim Peterson Kim Peterson (known to fans as "The Kimmer") is a U.S. television and radio journalist. He recently hosted a news/information talk-show on Atlanta's WYAY NewsRadio 106.7 from 3:00PM to 6:00PM EST. The Show consisted of Peterson as host, Pete Davis ...

used the guitar riff from the song's intro as part of his 1990s WGST afternoon drive-time talk show's theme song/

bumper music Bumper music, or a bump, is a term used in the radio broadcasting industry to refer to short clips of signature songs or theme music used to buffer transitions between programming elements, typically lasting no longer than fifteen seconds. It is ...

, often with Peterson mimicking a

Marine Corps Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...

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‘s cadence call over the music.

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

and

glam punk Glam punk is a term used retrospectively to describe a short-lived trend for bands which produced a form of proto-punk that incorporated elements of glam rock, initially in the early to mid-1970s. History Glam punk has been seen as a backlash to ...

band

covered "Up Around the Bend" on their fifth studio album ''

''. The song was also released as a

. The song was frequently used by

Pete Buttigieg Peter Paul Montgomery Buttigieg ( ; ; Sometimes pronounced or , but not by Buttigieg himself. born January 19, 1982) is an American politician and former military officer who is currently serving as the United States secretary of transp ...

at events in his

campaign Campaign or The Campaign may refer to: Types of campaigns * Campaign, in agriculture, the period during which sugar beets are harvested and processed *Advertising campaign, a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme * Bl ...

for the

2020 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2020 lists the national/federal elections held in 2020 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *5 January: **C ...

before he suspended it on March 1. Apart from the choice of the song possibly being intended to allude to Buttigieg's position as mayor of

South Bend, Indiana South Bend is a city in and the county seat of St. Joseph County, Indiana, St. Joseph County, Indiana, on the St. Joseph River (Lake Michigan), St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. As of the 2020 United S ...

, Buttigieg recalled in his 2019 book, ''

Shortest Way Home ''Shortest Way Home: One Mayor's Challenge and a Model for America's Future'' is an autobiography by Pete Buttigieg, the Mayor of South Bend, Indiana from 2012 to 2020. The book was first published by Liveright Publishing in 2019. On July 8, ...

'', that as a teenager, "We might talk, or not, as we crossed the state line, either in Mom's giant blue Buick LeSabre listening to NPR news, or Dad's two-door Chevy Cavalier listening to what might have been his sole cassette, the Creedence Clearwater Revival masterpiece ''Cosmo’s Factory'', looping permanently in the tape player for about as long she owned the car."

References

{{Authority control 1970 songs 1984 singles CBS Records singles Columbia Records singles Creedence Clearwater Revival songs Fantasy Records singles Hanoi Rocks songs Number-one singles in Australia Relativity Records singles Song recordings produced by Bob Ezrin Song recordings produced by John Fogerty Songs written by John Fogerty RPM Top Singles number-one singles