The Blue Ridge Rangers
| The Blue Ridge Rangers | ||||
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| Studio album by The Blue Ridge Rangers | ||||
| Released | April 1973 | |||
| Genre | Country, gospel, bluegrass, American folk | |||
| Length | 37 min. | |||
| Label | Fantasy | |||
| Producer | John Fogerty | |||
| The Blue Ridge Rangers chronology | ||||
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| Alternative cover | ||||
Reissue LP cover
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| Alternative cover | ||||
CD reissue cover
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    [1] |
| Rolling Stone | [2] |
The Blue Ridge Rangers is the first solo studio album by John Fogerty, the former lead singer and lead guitarist of Creedence Clearwater Revival.
Upon its initial release by Fantasy Records in 1973, the album was credited to "The Blue Ridge Rangers" with no mention of Fogerty on the cover. Fogerty chose to do this in order to distance himself from his Creedence legacy. The LP was later reissued and credited to John Fogerty with a different cover design. The CD reissue restores the original silhouette cover photo and credits the album to Fogerty. The album is made up entirely of traditional and country covers, and features Fogerty playing all the instruments.
The album peaked at #47 on the charts. Two singles from the album became hits: "Jambalaya" which peaked at #16, and "Hearts of Stone" which peaked at #37.
In 2009, Fogerty released a sequel to this album, entitled The Blue Ridge Rangers Rides Again.
Track listing
| Side one | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
| 1. | "Blue Ridge Mountain Blues" | Traditional | 2:29 |
| 2. | "Somewhere Listening (For My Name)" | Archie Brownlee | 2:37 |
| 3. | "You're the Reason" | Fred Henley, Terry Fell, Mildred Imes, Bobby Edwards | 3:12 |
| 4. | "Jambalaya (On the Bayou)" | Hank Williams | 3:15 |
| 5. | "She Thinks I Still Care" | Dickey Lee Lipscomb, Steve Duffy | 2:57 |
| 6. | "California Blues (Blue Yodel #4)" | Jimmie Rodgers | 3:04 |
| Side two | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
| 1. | "Workin' on a Building" | Traditional | 4:34 |
| 2. | "Please Help Me, I'm Falling" | Don Robertson, Hal Blair | 2:49 |
| 3. | "Have Thine Own Way, Lord" | Adelaide A. Pollard, George C. Stebbins | 2:59 |
| 4. | "I Ain't Never" | Mel Tillis, Webb Pierce | 2:49 |
| 5. | "Hearts of Stone" | Rudy Jackson, Eddy Ray | 2:10 |
| 6. | "Today I Started Loving You Again" | Merle Haggard, Bonnie Owens | 3:12 |
Chart performance
| Chart (1973) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 47 |
| U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums | 11 |
